Title: Last Mile fulfilment strategy for competitive advantage

Authors: Harry W.T. So, Angappa Gunasekaran, Walter W.C. Chung

Addresses: Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong. ' Department of Management, University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth, North Dartmouth, MA 02747–2300, USA. ' Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

Abstract: One of the biggest challenges in e-business is the so-called |Last Mile|, the fulfilment service for the customer. It is particularly difficult to combine profitability and a high service level for competitive advantage. This paper defines and describes a model of the Last Mile advantage from the perspective of competition. The Last Mile advantage is the innovation in combining inbound and outbound logistics within the supply network to bring together fragmented buyers and sellers. The model outlines two businesses – architecture and infrastructure businesses – both of which are responsible for managing different competitive forces for the firm|s competitiveness. Essentially, all firms can be evaluated based on these two businesses, which can be used to translate corporate strategy into project initiatives that add value to and control value in the firm. This paper also outlines the different Last Mile configuration and initiatives for those players located within the value system.

Keywords: order fulfilment strategies; e-commerce; e-business; production networks; supply chain management; SCM; last mile advantage.

DOI: 10.1504/IJLSM.2006.010384

International Journal of Logistics Systems and Management, 2006 Vol.2 No.4, pp.404 - 418

Published online: 18 Jul 2006 *

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