A conceptual model for construction supply chain management implementation

During the last two decades, both researchers and governmental studies revealed an increased interest about Construction Supply Chain Management (CSCM), but up to now practitioners are still facing difficulty to improve business performance through such approach. A call for ad-hoc solutions that foster the effective implementation of SCM practices has clearly risen up. This working paper is part of a wider research project which aims to provide academics and practitioners with a valuable support in this direction. We propose an integrated conceptual model to enhance the implementation of CSCM from a contingent view. The research to date includes an extensive and systematic literature review that assesses the main building elements related to SCM introduction. Such elements include: the antecedents, or prerequisites; the approaches, which involve the interrelation of strategies, structure and practices; the benefits related to an effective SCM adoption; and the contextual and environmental variables. Main implications for academics concern the analysis of extant CSCM literature from an innovative and integrated perspective, in order to highlight actual research gaps and future research agenda. At this research stage, other important goals include the advancement of useful and challenging research questions and hypothesis, with the aim to collect relevant feedback about the suitability of both the model and the research strategy.