THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CUSTOMER VALUE CREATING SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT OUTCOMES AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

Abstract

Competition environment is becoming increasingly harsh for businesses that want to continue their activities in international markets. Opening up to new markets, managing customer relations effectively and creating customer value are critical for companies to maintain their competitiveness. In this context, the supply chain management phenomenon, which emerged as a value chain in the 1980s, is now an important area in the global trade environment with the impact of scientific and technological developments. This field research was conducted to determine whether the outcomes of the effectively implemented supply chain management process have an impact on creating competitive advantage. In line with the relevant objective, studies in literature have been examined in detail. Then, research variables, sub-dimensions and hypotheses were determined. As a result of the literature review, a questionnaire was created from the propositions with high reliability and validity. According to the results of the questionnaires that applied to 340 people working at enterprises in Gaziantep province, supply chain management outputs that create customer value have a positive effect on competitive advantage. However, no statistically significant relationship was found between the competitive advantage and product quality, one of the sub-dimensions of supply chain management outputs that create customer value. Furthermore, it has been found that there is a strong positive relationship between competitive advantage and competitive pricing, which is one of the sub-dimensions of supply chain outputs that create customer value.