The book focuses on the development of the concept of supply chain management and the current state of knowledge on supply chain structure and infrastructure. It draws together knowledge from materials management, purchasing and supply management, operations management, industrial marketing and logistics perspectives, as well as industrial economics, organizational behaviour, systems thinking, and strategic management. Three key conceptual themes are developed: (1) the recognition of supply chain management as a multi-level endeavour, (2) the increasing aspirations for supply chain management to be a strategic, not just an operational concept, and (3) the view of the supply chain management research community as an academic discipline. The book also examines supply chain structure in terms of dyads, triads, chains, networks, supply bases, supply systems and supply markets. Supply chain infrastructure is discussed in terms of processes, roles and behaviours, and draws on extensive international empirical research. Challenges for researchers are addressed, such as interconnectedness in complex supply systems, the need for greater resilience, and how public policy and public value can be impacted by research. It concludes with a co-authored chapter that examines the potential future identity of supply chain management.

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Professor Christine Harland is a world-leading researcher in purchasing and supply chain management, healthcare supply chains, and public procurement. She currently holds the Gianluca Spina Chair of Supply Strategy at Politecnico di Milano and has raised nearly £5 million in research funding. Her research engages and impacts policy and practice in complex confederal supply chains and networks, particularly in healthcare, but also in technology, automotive, and food sectors. She has changed the perception of public sector procurement and its role internationally through performing international comparative studies of public procurement, furthering the role of procurement in commissioning, and developing evidence-based procurement. As a Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) professor and Fellow of CIPS, Christine has helped shape the profession internationally. She is currently Ombudsman and Associate Editor of the Journal of Supply Chain Management, and a former editor of the Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management. In 2004, Christine was awarded the International Federation of Purchasing and Materials Management Hans Ovelgonne Award for research excellence. She is lead editor of the Sage Handbook of Strategic Supply Management (2013), co-author of the world's leading text and case book in operations management, and co-editor of a text on public procurement. In 2014, she received the Louis Brownlow Award for the Best Article in Public Administration Review written with a practitioner at the annual meeting of the American Society. Christine was President of the UK Health Care Supply Association from 2004-2011 and served on the council of management of the UK charity the Research Institute for Care of Older People (RICE) supporting dementia research and care. In 2019, she was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the International Purchasing and Supply Education and Research Association (IPSERA).