Factors Determining Agility of Pharmaceutical Supply chain Management of Local pharmaceutical Industries in Ethiopia.

Abstract

Abstract Background: The pharmaceutical companies which have long been regarded as the laggards in supply chain management (SCM) have an option: either they can get rid of the short-term pressures they encounter, or they can have a long perspective and recognize the real contribution the supply chains can bring about. There are some government compulsory forces in Ethiopia in order to increase the local pharmaceutical productions and the supply chain to be agile. Since Agile Supply Chain (ASC) is considered as critical competitive advantage in recent years, yet the agility and the influencing factors are not well studied in these local pharmaceutical manufacturing industries. Objective: To assess determining factors of agility in supply chain management of local pharmaceutical manufacturing industries in Ethiopia. Materials and Methods: a quantitative descriptive cross -sectional study and phenomenology research design were employed. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect the quantitative data and in-depth interview method for qualitative data. The data was analyzed using descriptive analysis, bivariate analysis using Spearman’s correlation and using thematic content analysis. Results: From the survey on attitude of skilled professionals and managers on factors determining agility in the supply chain management of local pharmaceutical industries having a response rate of 94.79%, it is identified and categorized as: Intra-organizational factors, External factors and Environmental pressure factors are influencing agility of local pharmaceutical manufacturing industries: the specific factors implied with their spearman’s correlation coefficient are: cost reduction(0.540), delivery speed(0.242), planning and reordering(0.596), Assessment and prioritizing of suppliers for purchasing(0.462), Material quantity adjustment(0.314), trust development(0.503), Strategic supplier partnerships(0.714), customer relationship(0.299) and Environmental pressure(0.384). Conclusion and Recommendation: To survive and succeed, the local pharmaceutical companies have to clearly identify and understand the underling Intra-organizational factors, external factors and environmental pressure factors of agility in their supply chain. The local pharmaceutical manufacturing firms in Ethiopia has to make use of the opportunities on time by focusing on their supply chain strategy so that they can gain the ability to be flexible and respond quickly to unpredictable changes.