Crowd Logistics Platform’s Informative Support to Logistics Performance: Scale Development and Empirical Examination

An empirical research on developing a logistics performance scale

Purpose

The main objective of this study is to identify reliable and valid performance dimensions for both the identification and quantification of logistics performance that continues its development in the academic literature.

Design/methodology/approach

Quantitative research approach was used in the scale development process. First, the logistical performance literature was analyzed in detail, and it was evaluated that the logistics performance consists mainly of logistics efficiency, logistics differentiation, logistics agility and logistics effectiveness dimensions. During the scale development process, opinions were obtained from academics, industry managers and pilot applications were carried out. For the implementation of the developed scale, a total of 108 companies engaged in logistics activities in Turkey were identified, and the developed scale was applied to 398 logistics professionals.

Findings

A 28-item logistics performance scale has been developed based on the resource-based theory to measure totally five-dimensional performance. First, the three items under the logistics agility dimension were separated from this dimension as a result of the exploratory factor analysis, and it was understood that these items belong to the “logistics flexibility” dimension. The established structure was supported by confirmatory factor analysis. The reliability and validity of the scale are within the range of acceptable values.

Research limitations/implications

The research data were collected from the Western Mediterranean region. The scale should be tested in different geographies.

Originality/value

By means of establishing a valid and reliable scale for logistics performance and its sub-dimensions, it is evaluated that this study will contribute to future research based on the measurement of logistics performance.

Priorities of Urban Transport System Stakeholders According to Crowd Logistics Solutions in City Areas. A Sustainability Perspective

This article presents assessment results for the priorities of different urban logistics stakeholders in order to launch crowd logistics (CL) solutions within a city area. Additionally, this analysis was conducted by using various dimensions of sustainable city development. The unique character of this study lies in presenting the priorities of the interviewed stakeholders. Therefore, the purpose of this publication is to analyze the priorities of various stakeholders in relation to the introduction of CL solutions within a city area. The reason for such analysis is the rapid development of a large number of sharing-economy initiatives, including services. For this study, a few methods were used to achieve the research goal. Firstly, text mining and text analysis methods were implemented to analyze the opinions of the interviewees. Then, two chi-square tests allowed us to determine whether the groups of stakeholders are statistically different or not. Finally, the AHP (analytic hierarchy process) and DEMATEL (decision making trial and evaluation laboratory) methods were applied in order to define the priorities of the stakeholders. The needs of particular groups of respondents were derived from the interview based on the questionnaire. The results of the analysis allow for defining the demand characteristics for CL solutions by presenting the areas that are crucial for particular groups of stakeholders.