scholarly journals Sharing Economy for Cost Reduction and Efficiency Increase: The Case of Sharing E-Commerce Logistics

Complexity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
Qiang Wei ◽  
Daguang Sun ◽  
Xinyu Gou ◽  
Chunguang Bai

In the real business environment, due to unpredictable market demand or high prediction difficulty and low prediction accuracy, there will be inevitably operational loss in the field of e-commerce logistics caused by undersupply or oversupply of express service capabilities. At present, China is deepening the supply-side structural reforms. Confronted with the growing demand for e-commerce logistics express delivery, especially the urgent demand for tackling orders piling up to 1 billion pieces during the recent “Double 11” shopping carnival, it is very important and practical for us to study how to make scientific decisions on the supply side in the field of e-commerce express delivery. Therefore, in this paper, we design a sharing logistics cooperation mechanism considering both the undersupply and oversupply of express delivery service capabilities under stochastic demand. By comparing the earnings data of several listed express companies, we analyze four types of optimization strategies: the order flow proportion revenue sharing strategy (RE-OFP), the combined factors revenue sharing strategy (RE-RSF), the order flow proportion risk sharing strategy (RS-OFP), and the combined factors risk sharing strategy (RS-RSF). The research results demonstrate that the four optimization strategies of RE-OFP, RE-RSF, RS-OFP, and RS-RSF could achieve Pareto improvements in the operational performance of e-commerce express service. The performance of four revenue sharing and risk sharing strategies varies with different revenue sharing or risk sharing factors. Under some certain combined factors, the revenue sharing contract could help realize the supply chain coordination of the sharing logistics service. The sharing logistics cooperation mechanism based on equity investment proposed hereafter provides a feasible solution to solve the problems of high empty driving rate and operational cost of e-commerce express delivery service in urban areas.

Symmetry ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 882
Author(s):  
Yanhua Du ◽  
Jun Fang ◽  
Jingxiao Zhang ◽  
Jun Hu

In recent years, China’s government has encouraged the adoption of the TOT (Transfer-Operate-Transfer) model to realize the marketization of China’s public service stock projects. The TOT model is a cooperation mechanism through sharing investment, revenue and risks between the government and private partner. Therefore, a fair and reasonable revenue sharing method (RSM) is the key to the success of the TOT project. This paper aims to provide a fair and reasonable RSM based on a modified Shapley value with a triangular symmetric fuzzy structure element, which has better motivation, flexibility, forecasting function and dynamic precise distribution function. According to the factors that affect revenue sharing, the Shapley value is improved with initial correction coefficient composed of investment ratio, risk-sharing ratio, execution degree, and fuzzy payment to achieve fairness and reasonableness. The methodology is illustrated by a case study of a TOT project selected from Laohekou city of Hubei province, China. The results testify that the revenue-sharing ratios of participants is positively correlated with the initial correction coefficient, which make the RSM more motivating; and the Shapley value with fuzzy payment by using triangular symmetric fuzzy element function make the RSM more flexible, and it has both forecasting function and precise dynamic distribution function under project revenue uncertainty.


Author(s):  
Peng Liang ◽  
Melat Sima ◽  
Yu Huang ◽  
Xiaoyu Sun

China began connecting farmers directly with supermarkets 10 years ago, when they were at a disadvantage and forced to sell products at low prices, as unstable cooperation among supply chain participants led to inequitable distribution of revenue. Revenue-sharing contracts offer a risk-sharing approach to ensure supply chain coordination and optimize profit for all. Research on short life cycle products with revenue-sharing contracts assume stable prices or investigate the effects of revenue-sharing contracts on supply chain coordination. This study introduced a revenue-sharing contract model into a ‘farmer-supermarket direct-purchase’ supply chain, considering price fluctuation and retail promotional efforts, stochastic market demand, among other factors. Revenue-sharing contracts achieved long-term stability in supply chain coordination, all participants obtained more profits, and the size of revenue-sharing parameter depends on the position and bargaining power of all participants. A case study on Tianhong supermarket and Nanxia farmer cooperative verified these findings, eliciting practical implications for professionals and policymakers.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 809-816
Author(s):  
Anna Kwiotkowska ◽  
Magdalena Gębczyńska

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to explore causal complexity in the relationship between environmental uncertainty and firm’s performance. Due to complexity in the external and internal environment, the relationship between environment and firm performance rests not only on a single attribute but on the interrelation and complementarities between multiple characteristics such as firm features and external factors. This study examines the influence of a firm’s specific characteristics and the dimensions of environmental uncertainty on the company’s performance. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis is used to analyze data collected via questionnaires from 58 Polish small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The results suggest that characteristics of the general business environment, as well as the firm-specific characteristics all matter to firm performance. In addition, our findings clearly demonstrate that the determination of high firm performance is underpinned by substantial interdependence among the selected conditions and complexity. Therefore, any particular condition may have a different or even opposite effect on the outcome depending on the presence or absence of other conditions. Based on this, we conclude that external environmental uncertainty characteristics, with the dimensions of competitive intensity, technological turbulence and market/demand turbulence, are not as important as the other conditions for high-performing firms. The study offers a new perspective on the relationship between environmental uncertainty and firm performance with its systematic comparative analysis of complex cases. It identifies different combinations of conditions (paths) leading to a high firm performance.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurfarizan Mazhani Mahmud ◽  
Intan Salwani Mohamed ◽  
Roshayani Arshad

Purpose This paper aims to provide a proper understanding of corruption in the private sector, also known as the supply-side of corruption. It also presents the causes of corrupt practices and points out the corporations’ actions to mitigate corrupt behaviour in the business environment. Design/methodology/approach This study reviews the prior literature on the phenomenon of corruption in the private sector, its causes and the preventive measures that should be implemented. Findings Corruption in the private sector was associated with a firm’s interaction with the public sector, and the most common corruption in the private sector is grand corruption, which is improper contribution made to high-level public officials and politicians. The causes of corruption in the private sector can be explained from several dimensions: economy, psychosocial and legal and regulation. Preventative measures encompass both internal strategies, which are endogenous to business and external strategies like exogenous legislation and restrictions enforced by the government or outside organizations. Originality/value The efficient strategies in combating corruption need active cooperation and participation from the supply-side of corruption. Thus, this study contributes to the literature on the theoretical understanding of the corruption problem from the supply-side and responsibility play by the private sector in global anti-corruption initiatives.


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 341-362
Author(s):  
Linda Yin-nor Tjia

This paper analyses a process of decentralisation and re-centralisation in China’s railway system between 1978 and 2013 (i.e. Ministry of Railways reform and its end). The Chinese government first decentralised the railway sector, encouraged business diversifications, and incentivised local cadres to mobilise idle productive resources. Many entrepreneurial initiatives, such as the railway express delivery service, have proved successful in adding new profit stream. Born as an ad hoc solution to fix soft budgetary constraints, later it metamorphosed into market-oriented state capitalism. The government later re-centralised the railway express services as the China Railway Express, and the newly recovered entity became a centralised enterprise ( yanqqi 央企), venturing into an international competitive enterprise. The emergence of the China Railway Express suggests that decentralisation in China was not always an end to the property rights rearrangements, and that government was selective in converging to the parallel western privatisation model.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 456
Author(s):  
Dragan Lazarević ◽  
Libor Švadlenka ◽  
Valentina Radojičić ◽  
Momčilo Dobrodolac

A rapid development of Internet technologies creates new opportunities for e-commerce, which is one of the fastest-growing segments of the entire economy. For policymakers, the most important aspects of e-commerce are related to the cost reduction in transportation, facilitation of administration and communication, innovations at the market level, and environmental issues. An unavoidable part of the e-commerce production process is related to the postal service. New market expectations of modern society lead to the consideration of upgrading the traditional express delivery service in terms of time availability. In this paper, we propose a new 24-h availability of postal and courier service so-called “post express nonstop”. To assess the potential demand for this kind of service, we propose a forecasting procedure based on the Bass diffusion model. In particular, the research is directed toward the examination of environmental issues, considering both types of services—traditional and the proposed new one. A comparison is done by analyzing CO2 emissions in the last-mile delivery of goods to the users’ addresses. The experiment was carried out in the city of Belgrade, simulating the last-mile delivery under realistic conditions and controlling the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. In accordance with the results of this experiment and the forecasted number of postal items, a projection of CO2 emissions for the new service from 2020 to 2025 was carried out. The results show a significant contribution of the proposed new express delivery service to environmental well-being and sustainability.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 2209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Xue ◽  
Ruifeng Gong ◽  
Laijun Zhao ◽  
Xiaoqing Ji ◽  
Yan Xu

Government subsidies are a common policy adopted to promote energy conservation and emission reduction. The decision-making that occurs within the green supply chain for energy-saving products under government subsidies is an area of great academic interest and game theory is becoming a popular tool in such research. In this paper, we examined centralized and decentralized decision-making models for the green supply chain and a coordinated decision-making model for revenue-sharing contracts based on game theory. We studied the effects of government subsidies on retail prices, energy conservation levels, market demand, supply chain profits, and social welfare for energy-saving products. We then compared the effectiveness of the three models using a numerical example. Our results revealed the range of contract parameters for which manufacturer and retailer profits increase. Our results show that government subsidies can significantly improve social welfare and promote the improvement of energy-saving products. Centralized decision-making generates higher profits than decentralized decisions and government subsidies were positively correlated with the level of energy conservation, product prices, and market demand. Revenue sharing contract coordination decisions can coordinate the supply chain and achieve the same effect as centralized decisions.


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