Resumo

LOURY-OKOUMBA, WV  e  MAFINI, C. Buyer-Supplier Relationships and Firm Performance in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods retail industry. JCMAN [online]. 2018, vol.15, n.1, pp.850-878. ISSN 1815-7440.

The fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) retail industry in South Africa faces unique performance-related challenges that impede its abilities to sustain growth in a competitive and volatile sector. One of the strategic routes identified to improve the overall performance of FMCG retail firms is to develop sound relations with supply chain partners based on engagement, commitment, trust, communication and cooperation. Thus, the present study aimed at investigating the perceived influence of buyer-supplier relationships on firm performance in the FMCG retail industry. For this quantitative study, six hypotheses were formulated to determine the proposed relationships. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 244 supply chain managers and professional employees of 37 FMCG retail firms located in Gauteng province. The analysis of data was conducted through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to determine the psychometric properties of measurement scales and structural equation modelling (SEM) to test the six hypotheses stated. The results revealed that all five predicting constructs (buyer-supplier engagement, commitment, trust, communication and cooperation) exert a significant positive influence on supplier performance, with trust exerting the strongest. Furthermore, supplier performance was found to be a significant mediating construct to the relationship between buyer-supplier relationships and firm performance. The study further concludes that supplier performance is an essential driver of firm performance due to the strong relationship it shares with firm performance. The results of the study are a useful diagnostic tool when examining firm performance related challenges within the FMCG retail industry.

Palavras-chave : Buyer-supplier relationships; buyer-supplier engagement; buyer-supplier commitment; buyer-supplier trust; buyer-supplier communication; buyer-supplier cooperation; supplier performance and firm performance.

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