IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/proeco/v148y2014icp145-157.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Investigating virtual enterprise models: literature review and empirical findings

Author

Listed:
  • Esposito, Emilio
  • Evangelista, Pietro

Abstract

Despite the increasing academic interest in the virtual enterprise (VE), there are still two main lacunae in our understanding: conceptualisation of VE models and empirical research investigating real VE cases. This paper seeks to address these two gaps. In relation to the first, the paper provides a systematic literature review, showing six shared issues in the VE research (which may be considered the common foundations of the theoretical concept of the VE) and five non-shared issues (which may be considered as a framework to identify different forms of VE). On the basis of shared and non-shared issues, two VE types are identified (the hierarchical and the holarchical). In the hierarchical VE, a leader company acts as a product integrator and is responsible for the final product/service. In the holarchical VE, partners act as a single business entity and the self-organisation approach is the main coordination mechanism. The second gap is addressed through a questionnaire survey to explore the virtualisation process in 18 Italian companies participating in a network of firms characterised by a set of temporary peer relationships oriented to specific projects in which collaborative relationships are continuously formed and dismantled. Comparing the literature and the empirical evidence, a hybrid VE model some way between the hierarchical and holarchical models is evident. The hybrid model shares the relationships among peers with the holarchical model, and the presence of a coordinating firm with the hierarchical model. Similarities and dissimilarities of the above models are discussed together and future research directions are noted.

Suggested Citation

  • Esposito, Emilio & Evangelista, Pietro, 2014. "Investigating virtual enterprise models: literature review and empirical findings," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 145-157.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:proeco:v:148:y:2014:i:c:p:145-157
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpe.2013.10.003
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925527313004441
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ijpe.2013.10.003?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mikhailov, L., 2002. "Fuzzy analytical approach to partnership selection in formation of virtual enterprises," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 30(5), pages 393-401, October.
    2. Dowlatshahi, Shad & Cao, Qing, 2006. "The relationships among virtual enterprise, information technology, and business performance in agile manufacturing: An industry perspective," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 174(2), pages 835-860, October.
    3. Khalil, Omar & Wang, Shouhong, 2002. "Information technology enabled meta-management for virtual organizations," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(1-2), pages 127-134, January.
    4. Mezgar, Istvan & Kovacs, Gyorgy L. & Paganelli, Paolo, 2000. "Co-operative production planning for small- and medium-sized enterprises," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(1-3), pages 37-48, March.
    5. Luca Iandoli & Cristina Ponsiglione & Elio Marchione & Giuseppe Zollo, 2012. "Knowledge exchange processes in Industrial Districts and the emergence of networks," Central European Journal of Operations Research, Springer;Slovak Society for Operations Research;Hungarian Operational Research Society;Czech Society for Operations Research;Österr. Gesellschaft für Operations Research (ÖGOR);Slovenian Society Informatika - Section for Operational Research;Croatian Operational Research Society, vol. 20(2), pages 231-250, June.
    6. Gunasekaran, Angappa & Lai, Kee-hung & Edwin Cheng, T.C., 2008. "Responsive supply chain: A competitive strategy in a networked economy," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 549-564, August.
    7. Martinez, M. T. & Fouletier, P. & Park, K. H. & Favrel, J., 2001. "Virtual enterprise - organisation, evolution and control," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(1-3), pages 225-238, December.
    8. Yoo, Sang Bong & Kim, Yeongho, 2002. "Web-based knowledge management for sharing product data in virtual enterprises," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(1-2), pages 173-183, January.
    9. Huang, Min & Ip, W.H. & Yang, Hongmei & Wang, Xingwei & Lau, Henry C.W., 2008. "A fuzzy synthetic evaluation embedded tabu search for risk programming of virtual enterprises," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(1), pages 104-114, November.
    10. Gerardine DeSanctis & Peter Monge, 1999. "Introduction to the Special Issue: Communication Processes for Virtual Organizations," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 10(6), pages 693-703, December.
    11. Bottani, Eleonora, 2010. "Profile and enablers of agile companies: An empirical investigation," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(2), pages 251-261, June.
    12. Corvello, Vincenzo & Migliarese, Piero, 2007. "Virtual forms for the organization of production: A comparative analysis," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 110(1-2), pages 5-15, October.
    13. Tuma, A., 1998. "Configuration and coordination of virtual production networks," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(1), pages 641-648, September.
    14. Manthou, Vicky & Vlachopoulou, Maro & Folinas, Dimitris, 2004. "Virtual e-Chain (VeC) model for supply chain collaboration," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(3), pages 241-250, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Gunasekaran, Angappa & Irani, Zahir & Choy, King-Lun & Filippi, Lionel & Papadopoulos, Thanos, 2015. "Performance measures and metrics in outsourcing decisions: A review for research and applications," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 153-166.
    2. Daniela DAMIAN & Alexandru CAPATINA & Marilena RAPA & Gabriela CHIRU, 2018. "Practice Enterprises – Key Enablers for the Development of Students’ Entrepreneurial Skills: An FSQCA Approach," REVISTA DE MANAGEMENT COMPARAT INTERNATIONAL/REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL COMPARATIVE MANAGEMENT, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 19(5), pages 476-486, December.
    3. POPESCU Doris-Louise, 2018. "The Virtual Enterprises. Challenges And Tendencies," Revista Economica, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 70(5), pages 86-92, November.
    4. Vitaliy PAVLENKO & Tetiana PAVLENKO & Olga MOROZOVA & Anna KUZNETSOVA & Olena VOROPAI, 2017. "Solving Transport Logistics Problems In A Virtual Enterprise Through Artificial Intelligence Methods," Transport Problems, Silesian University of Technology, Faculty of Transport, vol. 12(2), pages 31-42, June.
    5. Cerchione, Roberto & Esposito, Emilio, 2016. "A systematic review of supply chain knowledge management research: State of the art and research opportunities," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 182(C), pages 276-292.
    6. Wang, Gang & Gunasekaran, Angappa & Ngai, Eric W.T. & Papadopoulos, Thanos, 2016. "Big data analytics in logistics and supply chain management: Certain investigations for research and applications," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 98-110.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Wang, William Y.C. & Chan, Hing Kai, 2010. "Virtual organization for supply chain integration: Two cases in the textile and fashion retailing industry," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(2), pages 333-342, October.
    2. Rodríguez Monroy, Carlos & Vilana Arto, José Ramón, 2010. "Analysis of global manufacturing virtual networks in the aeronautical industry," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(2), pages 314-323, August.
    3. Michela Pellicelli, 2018. "Gaining Flexibility and Innovation through Offshore Outsourcing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-12, May.
    4. Dowlatshahi, Shad & Cao, Qing, 2006. "The relationships among virtual enterprise, information technology, and business performance in agile manufacturing: An industry perspective," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 174(2), pages 835-860, October.
    5. Hausen, Tobias & Fritz, Melanie & Schiefer, Gerhard, 2006. "Potential of electronic trading in complex supply chains: An experimental study," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(2), pages 580-597, December.
    6. Toh, K.T.K. & Nagel, P. & Oakden, R., 2009. "A business and ICT architecture for a logistics city," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 122(1), pages 216-228, November.
    7. da Silva Gonçalves Zangiski, Marlene Aparecida & Pinheiro de Lima, Edson & Gouvea da Costa, Sergio E., 2013. "Organizational competence building and development: Contributions to operations management," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(1), pages 76-89.
    8. Iqbal, Tahir & Huq, Faizul & Bhutta, M. Khurrum S., 2018. "Agile manufacturing relationship building with TQM, JIT, and firm performance: An exploratory study in apparel export industry of Pakistan," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 24-37.
    9. Jingmei Zhou & Ting Xu & Yuchi Chiao & Yulin Fang, 2024. "Interorganizational Systems and Supply Chain Agility in Uncertain Environments: The Mediation Role of Supply Chain Collaboration," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 35(1), pages 184-202, March.
    10. Sujan Piya & Ahm Shamsuzzoha & Mohammad Khadem & Nasr Al-Hinai, 2020. "Identification of Critical Factors and Their Interrelationships to Design Agile Supply Chain: Special Focus to Oil and Gas Industries," Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Springer;Global Institute of Flexible Systems Management, vol. 21(3), pages 263-281, September.
    11. repec:dau:papers:123456789/3232 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Hong Joo Lee & Hyung Jun Ahn & Jong Woo Kim & Sung Joo Park, 2006. "Capturing and reusing knowledge in engineering change management: A case of automobile development," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 8(5), pages 375-394, December.
    13. Wang, Ying-Ming & Elhag, Taha M.S., 2007. "A goal programming method for obtaining interval weights from an interval comparison matrix," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 177(1), pages 458-471, February.
    14. Pamela J. Hinds & Diane E. Bailey, 2003. "Out of Sight, Out of Sync: Understanding Conflict in Distributed Teams," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 14(6), pages 615-632, December.
    15. Lun, Y.H. Venus & Browne, Michael & Lai, Kee-hung & Wong, Christina W.Y. & Cheng, T.C.E., 2011. "Examining the influence of firm performance on business risk-taking and the mediation effect of scale of operations in the container terminal industry," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 64-70.
    16. Monideepa Tarafdar & Sufian Qrunfleh, 2017. "Agile supply chain strategy and supply chain performance: complementary roles of supply chain practices and information systems capability for agility," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(4), pages 925-938, February.
    17. Ivanov, Dmitry & Sokolov, Boris, 2013. "Control and system-theoretic identification of the supply chain dynamics domain for planning, analysis and adaptation of performance under uncertainty," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 224(2), pages 313-323.
    18. de la Fuente, M. Victoria & Ros, Lorenzo & Cardos, Manuel, 2008. "Integrating Forward and Reverse Supply Chains: Application to a metal-mechanic company," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(2), pages 782-792, February.
    19. Liao, Shu-Hsien & Hu, Da-Chian & Ding, Li-Wen, 2017. "Assessing the influence of supply chain collaboration value innovation, supply chain capability and competitive advantage in Taiwan's networking communication industry," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 191(C), pages 143-153.
    20. Tomino, Takahiro & Park, Youngwon & Hong, Paul & Roh, James Jungbae, 2009. "Market flexible customizing system (MFCS) of Japanese vehicle manufacturers: An analysis of Toyota, Nissan and Mitsubishi," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 118(2), pages 375-386, April.
    21. Lai, Kee-hung & Wong, Christina W.Y., 2012. "Green logistics management and performance: Some empirical evidence from Chinese manufacturing exporters," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 267-282.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:proeco:v:148:y:2014:i:c:p:145-157. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ijpe .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.