The Influence of Responsibility Shift on Warehousing Performance: The Case of Australia

Vinh V. THAI,Vinh V. THAI,Zaheed HALIM 한국해운물류학회 2019 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.35 No.1

Although there have been extensive efforts to eliminate the use of warehousing due to its large requirement of resources, the need to connect manufacturing with end consumers will be difficult to coordinate without it. In Australia, the rapid advance of warehousing has facilitated the challenging demands of customers. In the literature, the challenges of increasing reliability, space utilisation, and reducing waste have been managed through improved warehousing processes and technology; however, the important role of employees through responsibility shift in enhancing warehousing performance has not yet been fully explored. This study therefore examines the relationship between the employment of Responsibility Shift (RS) and Warehousing Performance (WP) in Australia within the processes of Inbounding and Storage through the usage of a survey conducted with department supervisors and managers of warehousing companies which were members of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Australia (CILTA) and Supply Chain and Logistics Association of Australia (SCLAA). It was found that RS positively causes a statistically significant influence on warehousing performance. This research contributes to enrich the literature on RS as it is perhaps the first study which examines the effects of RS on warehousing performance in Australia while also enables warehousing managers to explore ways to improve warehousing performance from the human resource management perspective. Although being significant both in terms of managerial and academic implications, the generalizability of this research is limited from a small sample size. Future research, therefore, needs to look into a wider population as well as further investigation into the effects of Responsibility Shift in the rapidly developing warehousing business environment elsewhere in the world.

Competency Prole of Managers in the Singapore Logistics Industry

Vinh V. THAI,Khairunnisa Binte IBRAHIM,Vidya RAMANI,Hong-Yuan HUANG 한국해운물류학회 2012 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.28 No.2

In this paper, we aim to explore what competencies are essential for logistics managers to be successful in the future by developing a conceptual framework of competency profile of logistics managers based on the existing BLM model and some newly proposed competencies, taking into account changes in the business environment. A survey was conducted in Singapore with logistics managers from 350 rms. A total of 52 returned questionnaires were received, representing a response rate of 14.8%. We found that the proposed framework of 103 business-, logistics- and management-related competencies are essential for logistics managers to be successful, although management-related competencies were perceived as more important than the others. Although being based on the existing BLM framework, this research also proposed and validated new competencies into the existing BLM framework to reect the necessary response to changes in the business environment. This research also contributes to management practice and serves as another effort to map out the critical competency prole for logistics managers of the future.

Defining Service Quality in Tramp Shipping: Conceptual Model and Empirical Evidence

Vinh V. THAI,Wei Jun TAY,Raymond TAN,Alan LAI 한국해운물류학회 2014 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.30 No.1

Tramp shipping constitutes a prominent segment of the shipping market. As customers increasingly seek value from service providers for low price but yet high quality services, there is a pressing need to understand critically what construe the service quality for the tramp sector. In this respect, however, no prior research has been conducted for this market segment. This study recognises the gap in the existing maritime literature and aimed to propose and validate a service quality (SQ) model to address such a gap. The study employs a triangulation approach, utilising literature review, interviews and surveys to develop, refine and verify the SQ model proposed. Interviews were conducted with various parties in the tramp sector while a survey using a sample size of 343 tramp shippers and 254 tramp service providers was also conducted with tramp shippers and tramp service providers. It was revealed that the SQ model of six dimensions of Corporate Image, Customer Focus, Management, Outcomes, Personnel and Technical, and their 18 associated attributes could be used as a reliable tool to measure service quality in tramp shipping. This research contributes to fill the gap in the existing literature by introducing and validating a new SQ model specifically for tramp shipping. Meanwhile, the model can also be used by practitioners to receive their customers’ evaluation of their service quality as well as a benchmarking tool for continuous improvement. This study is, however, confined to a small-sized data collected in Singapore and to the bulk commodity context. Further studies on the practicality of the SQ model involving larger sample size and in other regions and for the general and specialized cargoes would be required to enhance its reliability.

How We Stand: Shipping Industry Today and Tomorrow

Vinh V. THAI 한국해운물류학회 2019 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.35 No.1

Assessing the National Logistics System of Vietnam

Ruth BANOMYONG,Vinh V. THAI,Kum Fai YUEN 한국해운물류학회 2015 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.31 No.1

The purpose of this research is to present and analyse the current situation regarding the capability of the national logistics system in Vietnam. A national assessment framework for macro-logistics is utilised in combination with semi-structured interviews of key Vietnamese stakeholders to reflect on the current situation in the country. There are still numerous shortcomings in the Vietnamese logistics system. These shortcomings are not purely infrastructure based but also from a regulatory and commercial perspective. The presented national logistics system assessment framework can be replicated in other countries or regions when assessing national logistics capability. The findings can help foreign investors, international logistics providers wanting to provide their services in Vietnam to understand the logistics context within the country. These findings are also helpful for policy makers in Vietnam on how to improve their national logistics system. This study proposes a template to assess national logistics systems and provides an in-depth understanding of logistics in Vietnam, a country that has not been much studied in the literature.

Airline Value Chain Capabilities and CSR Performance: The Connection Between CSR Leadership and CSR Culture with CSR Performance, Customer Satisfaction and Financial Performance

Schavana PHILLIPS,Vinh V. THAI,Zaheed HALIM 한국해운물류학회 2019 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.35 No.1

This research examines Corporate Social Responsibility in Leadership (CSRL) and Culture (CSRC) as valuable resources of the value chain capabilities, and its influence on CSR Performance (CSRP), as well as its resulting effect on Customer Satisfaction (CS) and Financial Performance (FP) in the context of the airline industry. CSR entails the practice of social and environmental activities. These activities mainly concentrate on improving the relationships of a firm with its stakeholders, which consist of shareholders, charitable and community organisations, employees, suppliers, customers, and the environment (Sprinkle and Maines, 2010). It is therefore in this context that this research adopts the concept of CSR which consists of two aspects of social and environmental sustainability. Based on the traditional value chain model by Porter of the mid 1980’s, this research however also focuses on other robust and contemporary business thinking such as culture and leadership within the CSR setting. Three carriers in the aviation industry within the US and Asia Pacific markets are analysed and some resulting academic and managerial implications are discussed. Findings from this research highlights the importance of cultivating and promoting CSR culture and leadership so as to positively influence CSR performance, which can in turn enhance other aspects of firm performance specifically customer satisfaction and financial performance. Hence, this research provides incentives for managers to invest in CSR in their quest for sustainable performance. Building on the hypothesis that firms achieve sustainable performance and ultimately financial performance through the identification of value chain capabilities such as CSRL and CSRC, the findings of this research indicate that there is a strong requirement for sustainable firm performance in the current environment but this can only be achieved where the approach is embedded in the core business, by CSR leaders who can apply the concepts of value creation through a strong CSR culture. This research is original as it is perhaps one of the first studies which examine the linkage between CSR-related constructs of leadership, culture and performance.

Structural Analysis of Port Brand Equity Using Structural Equation Modeling

이태휘,여기태,Vinh V. THAI 한국해운물류학회 2014 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.30 No.3

Port competition, especially in the Northeast Asia (NEA) region, can be described as a price war. In this price competition, it is necessary to build up the brand concept to acquire higher market share. This paper aims to provide structural relationships for port brand equity (PBE) and explore the PBE stages statistically. The stages are divided into three steps: port service quality as the precedent of PBE, the PBE dimensions (brand awareness [BA] and brand loyalty [BL]), and the antecedent of PBE (overall value of brand equity [OVBE]). From a survey conducted with port users in Korea, the empirical results revealed several significant relationship: between tangibles (TA) dimension of port service quality and BL, between the empathy (EMP) dimension of port service quality and both BA and BL, and between BA and BL and OVBE. From the empirical analysis, this study suggests both managerial and academic contributions for port managers and scholars for further policy development and research in this important area.

Impacts of Implementation of the Effective Maritime Security Management Model (EMSMM) on Organizational Performance of Shipping Companies

Elena SADOVAYA,Vinh V. THAI 한국해운물류학회 2015 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.31 No.2

This paper aims to examine the impacts of the Effective Maritime Security Management Model (EMSMM) on organizational performance of shipping companies. For this purpose, a survey was administered to collect data from shipping and ship management companies worldwide. The hypotheses in this study were tested using the structural equation modelling (SEM). It was found that the proposed model has direct positive impacts on security, business resilience and customer performance, as well as indirect positive relationship with security-related, and time market performance. Besides, the categorization of organizational performance of shipping companies, proposed and empirically validated in this study, can be used by the companies to measure the impacts of security management.

Evaluating the role of dry ports in the port-hinterland settings: Conceptual framework and the case of Vietnam

Nguyen Lam Canh,Thai Vinh V.,Nguyen Duc Minh,Tran Mai Dong 한국해운물류학회 2021 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.37 No.4

Analyzing the dry ports’ impacts on different stakeholders is imperative for assessing the feasibility of a dry port project and promoting the collaboration among such parties to optimize the supply chain between inland customers and seaports. This paper aims at developing a conceptual framework to evaluate the role of dry ports from multi-criteria and multi-stakeholder approaches. Based on an extensive literature review, a hierarchy of evaluation criteria was developed from the perspectives of three main stakeholder groups, i.e. dry port users, seaport-based players and community. Interviews were then carried out to verify the face validity of the initially proposed framework given the context of Vietnam, followed by a survey assessing the dry port’s contributions. The findings highlight the major role of dry port users in driving the success of a dry port, while also recognizes significant roles of seaport-based players and the community. The study provides insights into how different stakeholder groups might value the contribution of dry ports and demonstrates that dry port characteristics have apparent impacts on their role as perceived by each group. Finally, this research points out the current issues of the Vietnamese dry port system and provides re commendations and managerial implications accordingly.

Changing Concentration Ratios and Geographical Patterns of Bulk Ports: The Case of the Korean West Coast

Taehwee LEE,여기태,Vinh V. THAI 한국해운물류학회 2014 The Asian journal of shipping and Logistics Vol.30 No.2

Contrary to liner shipping, common shipping network patterns are difficult to organize in tramp shipping as origin and destination ports are irregular and they may change based on shippers’ demands. Unlike liner shipping whereas the choice of ports is strongly related to their geographical locations among other factors and a topic of much research in the contemporary literature, the geographical issues related to bulk ports are an interesting yet currently under-researched topic. For this reason, this study aims to analyze the concentration ratios of bulk ports to reveal geographical patterns, using the case of bulk ports along the west coast of Korea including, Incheon Port (ICP), Pyeongtaek-Dangjin Port (PDP), and Gunsan Port (GSP). To examine and shed more light to the above mentioned research issue, this paper adopts a series of methods, such as Hirshmann-Herfindahl Index (HHI), Location Quotients (LQ), and Shift Effects (SE). Results from the HHI analysis, indicated that de-concentration has been gradually rising because of a considerable overlapping of ports’ functions. Meanwhile, the LQs’ confirmed this result. Finally, the SE’ results effectively showed that a substantial shifting of cargo had occurred among the ports.