Providing a Framework for Lean, Agile, and Resilient Supplier Selection in the Supply Chain of the Etka Organization: A Rough MCDM Approach

The competitive landscape among companies and their supply chains necessitates a heightened focus on collaborating with the best suppliers. The appropriate selection of suppliers presents an opportunity for organizations to gain a sustainable competitive advantage while enhancing profitability. The Etka organization, responsible for meeting the consumption and general needs of the armed forces, is no exception. Consequently, it requires establishing partnerships with suppliers across industries. To address this need, this research aims to provide a framework for selecting suppliers with lean, agile, and resilient approaches within the supply chain of the Etka organization. To achieve this objective, an extensive review of the relevant literature on lean, agile, and resilient supplier selection was undertaken. Through this process, key selection criteria were identified, and the fuzzy screening method was employed to localize and refine these criteria. Furthermore, the combined rough best-worst method was utilized to assign weights to each criterion, reducing uncertainties associated with expert opinions. "Cooperation and coordination" emerged as the most critical criterion from the resilient supply perspective, "trust development" from the agile supply approach, and "product quality" from the lean supply approach. The application of the rough VIKOR method then facilitated the ranking of selected suppliers, resulting in the Qaemshahr canning company being identified as the most desirable supplier in the related industry. This study presents a comprehensive framework for selecting lean, agile, and resilient suppliers within the supply chain of the Etka organization, enabling fruitful partnerships that contribute to competitive advantage and overall profitability.IntroductionThe foundational importance of ensuring the timely provision of high-quality sustenance to the armed forces at reasonable costs stands as a cornerstone in bolstering a nation's defense preparedness. The Etka organization, entrenched in the responsibility of orchestrating the seamless delivery of top-tier nourishment to military personnel from farm to table, grapples with the imperative of devising astute supply chain management strategies. As global challenges, such as the ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic, underscore the criticality of resilient supply chains, Etka's commitment to fortifying its procurement infrastructure gains newfound significance. While Etka cultivates a portion of its food internally, strategic partnerships play a pivotal role in ensuring the efficient fulfillment of diverse demands. In tandem, industry-wide strategies like adopting lean, agile, and resilient supply chain methodologies could guide organizations toward operational efficiency, profitability, and customer-centricity. The nimble nature of the agile approach, coupled with the waste-reducing prowess of the lean strategy, and the resilience to rebound after disruptions embody the ethos underpinning modern supply chain excellence. Effective supplier selection emerges as a linchpin in the quest for operational optimization and enhanced competitiveness, particularly manifesting as an imperative facet in Etka's role as a custodian of the armed forces' nutritional sustenance. This necessitates meticulous scrutiny, evaluation, and collaboration with suppliers aligned with the organization's criteria to ensure streamlined procurement processes. This scholarly endeavor embarks on architecting a comprehensive roadmap for selecting suppliers harmonized with Etka's requisites through the delineation of precise procurement criteria and strategic imperatives.Literature ReviewIn the area of supplier selection, various studies have been conducted. Among these, there are studies that have selected suppliers based on one, two, or all of the essential, agile, and resilient approaches. These three approaches are of significant importance in the matter of selecting suppliers, to the extent that almost all recent research in the field of supplier selection has examined at least one of these approaches. Therefore, in this study, after reviewing and studying the literature on the subject, we proceed to identify the criteria for selecting essential, agile, and resilient suppliers. The identified criteria for selecting essential suppliers include: cost, quality, lead time, collaborative relationships with suppliers, level of service and customer satisfaction, flexibility, just in time, information sharing, implementation of quality management systems, waste management, automatic inventory replenishment, and inventory management. The identified criteria for selecting agile suppliers include: production flexibility, delivery flexibility and speed, resource flexibility, market sensitivity, information sharing, reliability, responsiveness, capacity to create new production lines, process integration through IT, quality improvement, minimizing uncertainty, innovation capability, cost flexibility and reduction, trust development, reducing resistance to change, and improving after-sales services. The identified criteria for selecting resilient suppliers include: excess inventory, reliability, adaptability, multiple sourcing, collaboration and coordination, identifying vulnerable points, awareness of risks and their management, redundancy in production equipment, having a list of alternative materials, technological capability, demand-driven management, and warehouse location flexibility.MethodologyThe current study is characterized by an applied research type with a descriptive methodological approach. The nature of this research as a questionnaire-based inquiry categorizes it as a descriptive-survey study. The statistical population targeted in this investigation comprises experts and managers from the business department of the Etka organization. Data collection methods employed in this study encompass both library research for theoretical foundations and field research for practical investigations. The foundational knowledge and background were cultivated through a meticulous examination of authoritative texts and articles, aligning with the library research method. Conversely, the actual data collection process involved direct engagement with the subjects through the distribution of a questionnaire, reflecting the field research method. Upon establishing the supplier selection criteria derived from existing literature, a questionnaire was formulated to screen these criteria, which was subsequently shared with the experts at Etka organization. Through expert consultation, certain identified criteria deemed less critical for the organization were eliminated following a fuzzy screening process. Subsequently, the best and worst criteria were identified through a second questionnaire distributed among the experts. Using the rough Best-Worst Method (BWM), expert-valued criteria were quantified and prioritized within the lean, agile, and resilient frameworks. Subsequently, a final questionnaire was administered to experts, aiming to evaluate suppliers from the Etka Organization based on the weighted criteria determined in the previous stages. These supplier evaluations were quantified using Raff's numbers, supported by Raff's theory relationships. Finally, a comparative analysis was conducted to rank the selected suppliers utilizing the VIKOR method relationships. This methodological approach employed a systematic process of refining criteria, expert consultation, and quantitative analysis to effectively evaluate and rank suppliers within the organizational context of the Etka organization.ResultsThe findings of this research indicate that when selecting a supplier for the Etka organization, the most critical approaches in order of importance are resilience, agility, and lastly, the lean approach. Consequently, a framework was developed for the selection of suppliers optimized for Lean, Agile, and Resilient (LAR) characteristics within this organization. The key criteria for supplier selection across lean, agile, and resilient approaches were identified as product quality criteria, trust development, and cooperation and coordination, respectively. Moreover, through a comparative analysis of the weight and significance of these criteria, it is evident that among the top five essential criteria recognized, three fall within the realm of resilience. This reaffirms the significance of prioritizing resilient suppliers in the selection process. Lastly, the research findings highlight that the Qaemshahr cannery demonstrates exemplary performance concerning Lean, Agile, and Resilient approaches.Conclusion and DiscussionThe framework devised for selecting suppliers using Lean, Agile, and Resilient (LAR) approaches offers several practical applications for the Etka organization. A comprehensive assessment of the prevailing supply conditions within the organization revealed a minimal adoption of the key criteria outlined in this research in the practical supplier selection processes at Etka. With attention to these findings, the Etka organization stands to enhance its supply chain operations within the food industry significantly by revisiting and fine-tuning its supply policies in alignment with the framework established in this study. The suggested course of action entails the organization reconsidering its supplier selection criteria to prioritize suppliers who align with the identified criteria, fostering improved operational performance. By recalibrating its supplier selection practices in accordance with the research framework, the Etka organization can strive towards optimizing its supply chain operations, enhancing efficiency, and fostering resilience in the face of challenges. Therefore, leveraging the insights gleaned from this research framework presents an opportunity for the Etka organization to refine its supplier selection strategies, bolster operational efficacy, and cultivate relationships with suppliers that align closely with the organization's objectives and requirements.