1. Pedro Emanuel Botelho Espadinha da Cruz
Business Interoperability: a methodology to analyse and re-design interoperable buyer-supplier dyads
Programa Doutoral em Engenharia Industrial
Pedro Emanuel Botelho Espadinha da Cruz
Mestre em Engenharia e Gestão Industrial
Licenciado em Engenharia Química
Orientador: Professor Auxiliar com Agregação António Grilo

2. Agenda Research problem Objectives and research questions
Research methodology
The ADADOP method
Case studies
Conclusions
Agenda

3. Research problem
Cooperation between companies is an common strategy in the current industrial context. Supply chains can be described as a cooperative network where supply chain management focuses on how companies integrate and coordinate processes, use technology, and share knowledge and resources, treating all members of the value chain as an unified business entity. The condition that makes such supply chain activities possible is that companies are interoperable.
Research problem

4. Research problem
“Business interoperability is an organizational and operational ability of a company to cooperate with its business partners and to efficiently establish, conduct and develop information technology (IT) supported business with the objective of creating value”.
(Legner & Wende, 2006)
Why is business interoperability so important?
It is considered an enabler that makes possible to execute the supply chain operations seamlessly, easing their alignment and the information flow, guaranteeing high performance and competitiveness.
Interoperability problems affect IT-supported interactions.
Research problem

5. Objectives and research questions
Main objective
Provide an integrated methodology that systematizes the analysis and re-design of the interoperable buyer-supplier dyads to improve their performance and value-added to end-customer.
Unit of analysis: buyer-supplier dyads.
Main research question
How does the business interoperability problem identification and solving may be systematized in order to re-design buyer-supplier dyads, improving their performance and value?
Two areas:
Interoperability problem identification and characterization
The integration of design, modelling and performance measurement
Objective and research questions

6. Research methodology Objectives and Research questions
Literature review
Interoperability
Supply chain management
Engineering Design
Process modelling
The ADADOP method
Case studies
Single case study
In-depth case study
Different perspectives of the same dyad
Objectives and Research questions
ADADOP - A+D stages, AD framework and Optimization Procedure.
Research methodology

7. Framework for business interoperability impact on buyer-supplier dyads
strategic basis
aim
High-level proposition: interconnect interoperability issues in a systematic manner so one can identify and solve problems to accomplish a considered interoperable buyer-supplier dyad, which features higher performance and value created.
The ADADOP method

8. Representation of the interoperable buyer-supplier dyad
Taxonomy of interoperability types.
Business-specific context provided in SCM practices
Examples of SCM practices:
Strategy alignment
Supplier evaluation systems
Trust
Knowledge sharing
Information sharing
Interoperability types decomposition
The ADADOP method

9. Representation of the interoperable buyer-supplier dyad
Interoperability criteria
The ADADOP method

10. The ADADOP method application
Two stages method:
Determine the buyer-supplier dyad’s interoperability conditions
Optimise interoperability.
ADADOP - A+D stages, AD framework and Optimization Procedure.
The ADADOP method

11. Stages of analysis and decomposition (A+D stages)
The analysis (A) and the modelling (D) stages provide the sequence to study interoperability in the 9 considered perspectives.
The ADADOP method

12. Qualitative assessment (A stages)
The proposed qualitative assessment serves to describe buyer-supplier dyad’s interoperability conditions and to qualify them conceptually.
The level representation is to represent the current interoperability conditions and the subsequent steps firms need to perform in order to increase higher interoperability.
Example:
Criterion
Level of interoperability 1 2 3 4 5
Levels of goals definition
(Business strategy)
Not established
Verbal contract
Signed contract with conditions specified by governing company
All the objectives and ground rules were previously agreed upon
All the competencies were discussed in order to establish a win-win relationship
The ADADOP method

13. Axiomatic Design framework
Axiomatic design framework maps the business interoperability conditions from conceptual to physical and process levels.
The ADADOP method

14. Modelling the implications of interoperability (D stages)
Process modelling acts on the physical and process levels of AD, representing the dyad graphically and mathematically.
Four steps to detail the processes:
Identify the supply chain operations involved in design objectives.
Identify the processes and assign responsibilities to actors.
Detail the sequence and alignment of internal and interface processes.
Link resources to each process.
The ADADOP method

15. Optimisation procedure (OP stages)
The procedure aims to find the interoperability solutions and/or adequate PVs that ensure higher performance.
To achieve the optimally interoperable buyer-supplier dyad, the following steps are proposed to come from the determined BI conditions (“as-is”) to the optimal interoperability scenario (“to-be”):
Build simulation model
Select metrics
Collect data
Simulate and measure performance
Establish new scenarios
Test scenarios
Select best scenario
The ADADOP method

16. Optimisation procedure (OP stages)
Interoperability performance measurement framework
The ADADOP method

17. Case studies Case study 1 – Buyer-seller interaction. FS SS
Copper wire
(2nd tier)
Injection coils
(1st tier) FS SS
Case study 1 – Buyer-seller interaction.
Problem: incompatibility between communication systems to place and receive orders
FR3.1.2: Manage the interface between the inventory management system and the ordering system.
DP3.1.2: SAP and are not interoperable requiring manual conversion.
PV3.1.2: One user checks MRP on SAP and prepares an to send purchase orders (POs).
FR3.2.2: Manage the interface between the ICT for order reception and the order management system.
DP3.2.2: and SAP are not interoperable. Order data must be inserted manually into SAP.
PV3.2.2: A user checks and inserts order manually.
FR : Manage the interface between order management systems.
DP : Order data is not compatible between firms.
PV : Manual entry of order data.
Case studies

18. Case studies Case study 1 – Buyer-seller interaction. Solutions:
A. Improve “as-is”:
New resource distribution/quantity
New process sequence
B. New solutions:
WebEDI
EDI
OLT – order lead-time, Cv – conversion time, TIP – time of interoperation.
Case studies

19. Case studies Case study 1 – Buyer-seller interaction. The gain:
Reduction of lead-time, wasted time in conversion and time of interoperation
Elimination of non-added value activities
Elimination of redundant business processes
“to-be”
Case studies

20. Conclusions
A managerial tool (the ADADOP method) was developed that allows to systematically analyse and re-design the dyad to accomplish higher performance and value-added to the final customer.
The method allows:
The systematic identification and characterization of interoperability issues.
To capture the core attributes of the buyer-supplier dyad interaction.
To study the impact of interoperability in the dyad’s performance.
To test and select interoperable solutions.
By implementing the ADADOP method through case studies, was possible to confirm its applicability in the determination of interoperability problems and systematic solving.
Aids companies and managers in the decision-making process of business set-up or improving the current business relationship.
Conclusions

21. Thank for your time