Supply Chain Management and Logistics: An Editorial Approach for a New Era

• Author: Robert Glenn Richey,Beth Davis‐Sramek
• Date: 01 June 2020
• Published date: 01 June 2020
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jbl.12251

Editorial

Supply Chain Management and Logistics: An Editorial Approach

for a New Era

Robert Glenn Richey Jr. and Beth Davis-Sramek

Auburn University

Our first editorial comes at a momentous time for supply chain

management and logistics (SCML) researchers, as well as the

practitioners responsible for managing SCML activities. Over the

last several months, we have seen global events put the spotlight

squarely on our field. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the signifi-

cance of managing supply chains has never been more pro-

nounced. As events continue to unfold, both the strengths and

weaknesses of supply chains are being publicly exposed for all

to see. This reality opens the door to many questions about the

future of SCML, and how the field will be altered in response.

SCML leaders will be called on to fix what is broken. They will

be challenged to develop more robust strategies and contingency

plans to mitigate future supply chain disruptions and related eco-

nomic, health, and public safety consequences.

For the first time, the public has been inundated with daily

news reports, press briefings, and political commentary about

“the supply chain.”While the discovery of our field has high-

lighted the significance of SCML, the pundits consistently show

a lack of understanding. This creates a complicated set of chal-

lenges and opportunities for the field going forward. We are in a

pivotal moment that calls for us to educate the public, practition-

ers, and policymakers about the foundations, decisions, and

impact of managing supply chains. The challenge resides in

explaining how SCML decisions are often grounded in balancing

tradeoffs, which is radically different than the absolutism preva-

lent in media and politics today. But this opportunity should not

be wasted—our community must embrace our mission to gener-

ate and disseminate knowledge that highlights and advances the

SCML discipline.

As these and other unexpected challenges and opportunities in

the SCML landscape continue to unfold, we look forward to

fully embracing the role as Editors-in-Chief for JBL. After many

years in our JBL roles as reviewers, AEs, and authors, we were

honored to be selected by the community to lead the journal

from 2021 to 2025. We appreciate the conscientious and often

thankless volunteer work that comes from those of you who are

committed to JBL’s continued success. We want to extend spe-

cial thanks to our colleagues Tom Goldsby, Walter Zinn, Stan

Fawcett, Matt Waller, Pat Daugherty, Jim Stock, Dave Closs,

and all the past editors who made tremendous strides in

improving the reputation and visibility of JBL. We hope that

with this opportunity—and with the support of the SCML com-

munity—we will carry on the tradition.

As scholars committed to advancing the journal, we have out-

lined distinct priorities and guiding precepts for moving forward.

First, we understand that the quality of our research is reflected

in the bar we set as “gatekeepers”in managing the review pro-

cess. We realize that the rigor of both the research and the

review process gives the academic community the unique ability

to offer credible claims and assertions about SCML phenomena.

Second, we acknowledge the importance of research that makes

a theoretical contribution to extend a study’sfindings beyond its

specific time and place, and to accumulate a systematic and

cohesive body of SCML knowledge. Finally, and most impor-

tantly to us, we believe it is the obligation of SCML scholars in

business schools to produce relevant research that advances busi-

ness practice and offers meaningful insights to decision makers

and other relevant stakeholders, especially those stakeholders

aligned with CSCMP.

With these priorities in mind when considering the JBL editor

role, it became clear that we needed to know what the community

had in mind for the journal. Although JBL is owned by CSCMP, it

is fundamentally shaped by its authors, reviewers, and readers. For

insight, we deployed a survey to understand the needs and wants of

the community. In developing the questions, we got feedback from

several members of the JBL editorial board and made calls to

authors around the world. We sent the survey to the most recent

attendees of the last three CSCMP Academic Research Symposia

(ARS), which resulted in an 88% response rate of 223 authors,

reviewers, and readers. Consistent with our own scholarly priorities,

the survey feedback helped us build a five-year plan for the journal.

Therefore, during our service as Editors-in-Chief, we hope to move

the journal forwardin the areas that follow.

From the survey responses, the top issue related to the review

process. Expediting the review process is a common request for

all journals, but it came as no surprise that folks in a discipline

that emphasizes timeliness want a quicker cycle time!After

examining the review process for other journals, we noted that

the number of reviews per manuscript has increased dramatically.

Some journals were providing five and six reviews plus an asso-

ciate editor comment. We saw little evidence that the additional

critiques significantly added value, but they certainly do add time

to the process.

Our contention is that a simplified structure is warranted. How-

ever, to also ensure the quality and rigor of the review process,

Corresponding author:

Robert Glenn Richey, Harbert Eminent Scholar in Supply Chain

Management, Raymond J. Harbert College of Business, Auburn

University, Auburn, AL, USA. E-mail: richey@auburn.edu

Journal of Business Logistics, 2020, 41(2): 90–93 doi: 10.1111/jbl.12251

© 2020 Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals