Empowering Decision-Making and Resilience in Multi-Tier Supply Networks: The Role of External Data

A company’s information capabilities need external data to keep pace with today's global economy's increasing dynamics and transformation. Businesses need to come from educated guesses based on exclusively internal data to understand the enrichment of their database with external data for making decisions. Many companies center on focal-firm perspectives and rely on a limited basis of data and information sources not recognizing the extended supply chain and both data types. We investigated approaches of firms acting within interconnected dynamics and intertwined networks. By interviewing European manufacturing firms and performing an in-depth case study, we focused on approaches to integrating external data into supply chain decision-making. Looking through the lens of absorptive capacity, we underpin value recognition, assimilation and application of successful data strategies. The study shows that different external data sources can enhance network visibility and foster resilience. Working with external data can reduce susceptibility to disruptions while providing a comprehensive multi-tier network view. This associated shift toward broader, network-based data strategies is essential to enterprise survival. Three archetypes of external data utilization maturity in supply chains are introduced to reflect the process of establishing an organization’s capabilities to implement plans and strategies to manage dynamic business environments.