Abstract:

Issues related to the supply chain management (SCM) are currently being given more and more attention. Supply chain (SC) consists of mining, production, commercial and service enterprises cooperating in various functional areas, and their customers, among which the flows of material, information and finance are visible. The function of such a network system is related primarily to the integration and coordination of network participants’ activities through developing a coopetition strategy. It means the integration and coordination of material, information and financial flows, beginning from raw material acquisition to consumption. This creates a competitive advantage of the SC links and their customers. It is worth noting, yet rarely emphasized in the relevant literature, that apart from the indicated flows of materials, information and finance, there is a need to identify and examine the human flows (or people flows) in the SC. According to S.T. Menon (2012) research in SCM has predominantly been the purview of research in the areas of operation management, logistics and information technology systems, with limited reference to human resources. The people dimension has been under-represented both in research and in practice (Sweeney 2013). However, according to Fawcett et al. (2008) people are the key bridge to successful collaborative innovation, and therefore, should not be overlooked. We agree with Sweeney (2013) that supply chains are about people: customers and suppliers. People are those who design, manage and execute SC operations.