A Path to a Public–Private Partnership: Commercial Logistics Concepts Applied to Disaster Response

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jbl.12031
• Author: Ronn J. Smith,R. David Swanson
• Published date: 01 December 2013
• Date: 01 December 2013

A Path to a Public–Private Partnership: Commercial Logistics

Concepts Applied to Disaster Response

R. David Swanson

1

and Ronn J. Smith

2

1

University of North Florida

2

University of Arkansas

This paper initiates an exploratory investigation with the aim of providing a better understanding of the applicability of several commercial

logistics processes to humanitarian logistics. The paper begins with background information, including humanitarian logistics literature and

then summarizes current government agencies’and nongovernmental organizations’policies. Stakeholder theory is used to explore the motiva-

tions of commercial organizations to participate in humanitarian logistics operations. Next, the adequacy of emergency management policy is

evaluated and four commercial logistics frameworks are analyzed for application to immediate disaster response. The analysis includes ratings

of the frameworks and open-ended comments from a sample of logistics experts. Findings provide guidance to the implementation of commer-

cial logistics processes to disaster response efforts.

Keywords: humanitarian logistics; stakeholder theory; disaster response; disaster recovery; public–private partnership; Hurricane Sandy;

Hurricane Katrina

INTRODUCTION

Natural disasters have increased dramatically over the course of

the last century. Disasters reported from 1900 to 2009 have

jumped from 50 disasters per year to 500 per year (Emergency

Events Database 2009). Global development has made large

areas increasingly susceptible to natural disasters because of high

population concentrations (Brown 1979). In the United States,

Hurricane Katrina highlighted shortcomings in the Federal Emer-

gency Management Agency (FEMA) response plans. In 2006, a

U.S. Senate report on Katrina concluded that FEMA’s logistics

failure during the Katrina crisis was no surprise considering the

antiquated logistics systems, poor planning, and lack of person-

nel (Senate Report 2006).

In contrast to the government response to Katrina, Walmart

and other retailers played an effective role in the immediate

disaster response process. The efforts of the private sector are

credited with saving lives and alleviating suffering (Horwitz

2008). In fact, Walmart trucks were arriving in New Orleans the

day following Katrina’s landfall—several days ahead of FEMA

(Horwitz 2008; White 2010). Overall, the private sector has

responded to disasters more efficiently and effectively than gov-

ernment agencies (White 2010). FEMA has not only acknowl-

edged the superior private sector response, but FEMA is

interested in applying lessons learned from the commercial sector

into FEMA disaster response plans (FEMA 2011).

The logistical needs during natural disasters have outpaced the

capacity of public response (Schneider 2005; Koppenjan and

Enserink 2009). One factor contributing to poor public response

is the viewpoint that logistics is a necessary expense, rather than

as a strategic component (Beamon and Kotleba 2006). The enor-

mous humanitarian logistical response needed to return a com-

munity to normal is rarely seen in commercial logistics. At the

same time, these commercial agencies have made positive contri-

bution during disaster response (Wright et al. 2006; Tomasini

and Van Wassenhove 2009). This highlights the need to examine

how commercial logistics can be applied to disaster response.

This paper seeks to identify the applicability of commercial

logistics frameworks to disaster response. First, background

information on commercial and humanitarian logistics is pro-

vided. Then, policies on global and domestic disaster response

and recovery are presented. This is followed by a summary of

how commercial logistics practices can be used to overcome def-

icits in existing humanitarian logistics response. Stakeholder the-

ory is used as a lens for examining the motivation of commercial

organizations’involvement in humanitarian logistics. In that dis-

cussion, the idea of private support to public disaster response is

framed as a public–private partnership (PPP). Four commercial

frameworks are then used as a foundation to identify different

types of logistical operations that a PPP approach might utilize

to improve disaster response. Logistics professionals from the

private and public sector are surveyed to provide empirical vali-

dation of the proposed processes. The paper concludes with a

discussion of the findings, implications, and areas for future

research.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Commercial and humanitarian logistics

There are significant differences between commercial and

humanitarian logistics (Oloruntoba and Gray 2006). The supply

chain in commercial logistics is fairly stable compared to human-

itarian supply chains. Commercial logistics typically has the

advantage of past demand to predict future demand. This means

that commercial logistics operates with predictable lead time

averages and variances. Furthermore, competitive pressures have

led commercial logistics providers to guard their logistics intel-

lectual property.

Corresponding author:

R. David Swanson, Department of Marketing & Logistics, Coggin

College of Business, University of North Florida, 1 UNF Drive,

Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA; E-mail: david.swanson@unf.edu

Journal of Business Logistics, 2013, 34(4): 335–346

© Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals