Ensuring Supply Chain Resilience in the Food Retail Industry during COVID-19 : The Case for the Food Retail Companies in Sweden using Resource-Based View Theory

The Case for the Food Retail Companies in Sweden using

Resource-Based View Theory

Ensuring Supply Chain Resilience in the

Food Retail Industry during COVID-19

MASTER THESIS

THESIS WITHIN: Business Administration NUMBER OF CREDITS: 30

PROGRAMME OF STUDY: Supply Chain Management

and International Logistics

SUPERVISOR: Elvira Ruiz Kaneberg, PhD AUTHORS: Kazi Safayat Jamil & Manuel Soares JÖNKÖPING May, 2021

Acknowledgments

To begin with, gratitude rests upon the Almighty, our supervisor Dr. Elvira Ruiz Kaneberg, and fellow mates from the program.

The difference between the beginning of the year and to this day is highly different due to the constant value injection. It can never be measured how much our supervisor had pushed us to bring out the best of us, for us. Mere thanking her will fall short since she did not just guide us to the right track, she made sure we stick to the plan of doing a rigorous research study.

The fellow mates from the program have put their necessary thoughts that made us thinking even more and let us come up with something interesting. Their wisdom and enthusiasm in assisting us made us cordial to them even more!

Lastly, our acknowledgment is due to the Jönköping University, and to all the staff as well as the teachers who have always been there to assist us. Our families who have sacrificed their time being with us, are greatly remembered on this special occasion.

Signing off!

Regards

Kazi Safayat Jamil

Master Thesis in Business Administration

Title: Ensuring Supply Chain Resilience in the Food Retail Industry during COVID-19: The Case for the Food Retail Companies in Sweden using Resource-Based View Theory

Authors: Kazi Safayat Jamil & Manuel Soares Tutor: Dr. Elvira Ruiz Kaneberg

Date: 2021-05-24

Key terms: Supply Chain Management, Supply Chain Resilience, Food Supply Chain Resilience, COVID-19, Resource-Based View Theory, Food Retail Stores in Sweden

Background: COVID-19 has brought so many changes in the business environment and in the ways of doing business. Food retail companies in Sweden have been trying to cope with the changes and challenges and have made necessary decisions to become resilient. It is in their urge to become resilient; however, the implementation is arduous at times.

Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is two-folded. One is to know the supply chain inefficiencies, and the other is to understand how the inefficiencies can be mitigated through the actions of the supply chain professionals.

Method: Semi-structured questions have been asked in the interviews to gather in-depth insights from the industry expert. The interviews were taken from the branch managers of food retail stores in Sweden. The analysis has been done based on the content analysis.

Findings: Content analysis assisted the emergence of the factors. It was done by analyzing the quotes from the branch managers. Therefore, the relationship between the characteristics and the RBV theory has been scrutinized.

Conclusion: The purpose of the thesis was to find the inefficiencies of the food retail supply chain in pandemic times. Also, it was to find the solution about how the supply chain

inefficiencies can be tackled to ensure supply chain resilience in the food retail stores in Sweden. For that purpose, data have been collected right from the field where the action takes place, and therefore, the data have been analyzed. Hence, the problems have been found, and the solutions have been recommended.

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Table of Contents

List of Figures ... vi

List of Tables ... vi

List of Abbreviations ... vii

1

Introduction ... 1

1.1 Background ... 1

1.2 Problem ... 2

1.3 Purpose ... 5

1.4 Operational Perspective and Definitions ... 5

1.5 Thesis Structure ... 5

2

Frame of Reference ... 7

2.1 Supply Chain Resilience (SCRES) ... 7

2.2 COVID-19 Impact on Food Supply Chain ... 12

2.3 Addressing Supply Chain Resilience ... 13

2.4 Application of Resource-Based View Theory concerning COVID-19 ... 15

2.4.1 Competitive Advantage vs. Sustainable Competitive Advantage vs. Superior Performance ... 16

2.4.2 Analysis of the Food Retail Stores ... 17

2.4.3 Store Requirements upon RBV ... 19

2.4.4 Value of the Store Resources ... 19

2.5 The role of management and RBV in the Food Retail Industry of Sweden .... 20

2.6 The connection among the RBV, SCRES, and COVID-19 ... 22

3

Design of Research Instruments ... 24

3.1 Methodological Approach to the Literature ... 24

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3.2.1 Ontology ... 26

3.2.2 Epistemology ... 27

3.2.3 Ontological and Epistemological Position of the Research ... 27

3.3 Research Approach ... 29

3.3.1 Qualitative Research Approach ... 30

3.3.2 Quantitative Research Approach ... 31

3.3.3 Justification of Chosen Approach ... 32

3.4 Research Strategy ... 32

3.4.1 Content Analysis ... 33

3.5 Method of Data Collection ... 34

3.5.1 Sample Profile ... 35

3.5.2 Interview Itinerary ... 35

3.6 Reliability and Validity ... 36

3.6.1 Reliability ... 37

3.6.2 Validity ... 37

3.7 Ethics ... 38

4

Empirical Findings and Data Analysis ... 41

4.1.1 Empirical Findings of Part 1: Origin of the Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies in Sweden ... 41

4.1.2 Data Analysis of Part 1: Origin of the Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies in Sweden ... 51

4.1.3 Empirical Findings of Part 2: Mitigation of the Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies in Sweden ... 54

4.1.4 Data Analysis of Part 2: Mitigation of the Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies in Sweden ... 66

v 5.1 Managerial Implication ... 75 5.2 Theoretical Implication ... 76 5.3 Ethical Implications ... 76

6

Conclusion ... 77

7

References ... 80

8

Appendices ... 89

8.2 Pilot Study Questionnaire ... 91

8.3 Thesis Study Questionnaire ... 92

8.3.1 Part 1: Origin of the Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies in Sweden... 92

8.3.2 Part 2: Mitigation of the Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies in Sweden... 92

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List of Figures

Figure 1 Theoretical Lenses for Understanding SCRES ... 14

Figure 2 Characteristics of the Resources ... 18

Figure 3 Literature Synthesis ... 23

Figure 4 Article Searching Process ... 26

Figure 5 Ontological Positions (Easterby-Smith et al., 2021) ... 28

Figure 6 Epistemological Positions (Easterby-Smith et al., 2021) ... 29

Figure 7 Content Analysis of "Origin of the Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies in Sweden ... 51

Figure 8 Content Analysis of Mitigation of Supply Chain Inefficiencies in the Food Retail Companies of Sweden ... 66

List of Tables

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List of Abbreviations

CA Competitive Advantage

SCA Sustainable Competitive Advantage EU European Union

SP Superior Performance SCRES Supply Chain Resilience RBV Resource-Based View SCM Supply Chain Management KPI Key Performance Indicator ETA Expected Time of Arrival PR Public Relations

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1 Introduction

______________________________________________________________________

This chapter discusses the rise of the problem due to the inception of the pandemic, COVID-19, and its impact on business operations. The problem discussion has been formulated, which, in the latter part, supports the purpose of the study. The research questions have been constructed based on the goal in this section. Lastly, the theory that this thesis will be based on has been discussed on its merits.

______________________________________________________________________ 1.1 Background

In the field of Supply Chain Management, resilience has been theorized by scholars and business practitioners to comprehend the disruptive nature or phenomenon of the Supply Chain. 'Resilience' has been coined in Merriam-Webster as "the capability of a strained

body to recover its size and shape after deformation caused especially by compressive stress" and "an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change"

(Merriam-Webster, 2021). In proportionate to the discipline of Supply Chain Management, the meaning of resilience stays identical to the meaning given by Merriam-Webster (Merriam-Merriam-Webster, 2021).

Supply Chain Resilience (SCRES), a term to occupy the capacity to assist the disrupted supply chain, has been formulated so that the disruptive phenomena can be studied and processed into the business operations' functionalities. According to Ponis & Koronis (2012), SCRES deals with ensuring a proactive plan that can anticipate the disruptive events in the supply chain and respond to the disruption by undertaking control and operational functions of the business. It will not be embellished to claim that the supply chain resilience accredits the companies to cultivate the score of being efficient in the supply chain operations when disruptions occur in the industry, the company, or the world (Ponis & Koronis, 2012). Ponomarov (2012) incorporated the definition with comprehensive measurements by stating that the SCRES is the capacity of the company's adaptability, which empowers the company to stay on its feet when disruptions storm in.

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Also, the response from the companies and the process of recovery should be regulated in due time. That requires the consideration that the companies have control and connection with all the levels of the business processes and functions.

If the COVID-19 pandemic had taught the people at least one thing, it is the "changes of plans." As the pandemic stayed put out open, the behavior of the consumers transformed, and it did monumentally. Since the consumers had to step up to familiarize themselves with the 'new lifestyle,' being forced to choose one might argue (Stoecklein, 2021). The companies, especially the food retailers, needed to bolster their supply chain strategy with new feathers since the sourcing, inventorying, delivering, distributing- all the supply chain and logistics factors should come in the front and would ask for adjustments for advancement to stay afloat (Stoecklein, 2021). A recent study by Felix, Martin, Mehta & Mueller (2020) showed that the dining-in in the restaurants had lost 27% of their sales in the US. That sheds light on the impact of the food retailing sector. Since the dining-in had a downturn, people did not stop eating. Instead, they found the grocery stores or the food retailers to buy raw or processed foods and stay home (Felix, Martin, Mehta & Mueller, 2021). Therefore, the pressure fell on the food retail stores since the consumption pattern of the people had changed due to the COVID-19 (Stoecklein, 2021).

1.2 Problem

To understand the problem from the field, the researchers had conducted a pilot study. The pilot study was done by visiting the food retailing stores physically in the prominent cities of Sweden, and the managers of the stores were asked questions about the pandemic, sales, and consumers' behavior and reaction upon the social distancing. The intent of having a pilot study was to gather a view on the overall phenomena so that the researchers could undertake a theory that could let them address the problems and portray solutions to the issues.

In Sweden, the food retailing sector is run by multiple supermarket chains that possess sufficient purchasing capability of the products in bulk, leading them to become cost-efficient in the process. In regular times, this is what the supermarkets do on a daily or

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weekly basis. Therefore, the supply chain of those works in this way too. However, this system may not seem as suitable as before since the demand from the consumer sides has changed in this pandemic time. Consequently, consumers' behavior pattern has also changed. This pandemic has led the consumers to go for 'panic buying,' which left the supermarkets vacant! It is a phenomenon where the supply chain experiences shocks (Informant 27, Personal Communication, January 13, 2021).

According to Eurostat (2021), the sales of food, beverages, and tobacco had increased by 1.2% in Sweden in April 2020. Therefore, the rate of consumption had an increase in that period though COVID-19 was in play. That means, when people stayed at home for being under the quarantine, when social distancing was in the play, the rate of consumption had a jump, and as a result, the consumption for households increased. The food retail stores in Sweden did not think of experiencing this. That has created a problem for the food retailers since the food retailers need to have adjustments to the forecast, and the forecast was exceeded every time they did (Informant 11, Personal Communication, January 17, 2021).

In contrast, the forecasts are usually done for short terms (1 month) and long terms (3 months) (Informant 11, Personal Communication, January 17, 2021). Therefore, the inefficiency in the supply chain had been noticed. In addition to that problem, another problem found from the pilot study was that the people rushed over to the supermarkets and bought foods and home accessories in bulk quantity, leaving none for the rest of the people (Informant 27, Personal Communication, January 13, 2021). That has also created a problem for the food retailers to ensure supply chain resilience. Therefore, the shortage of food has been seen in the food retail stores in Sweden (Informant 27, Personal Communication, January 13, 2021).

Another observation was found from the pilot study. People who follow Islam as their religion could not get 'halal' food from grocery stores (Informant 27, Personal Communication, January 13, 2021). Most of the halal food (meat, for example) came from Denmark, and since the border had remained closed (Informant 27, Personal Communication, January 13, 2021). There is only one slaughterhouse in Sweden, located

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in Gothenburg, where meat is processed according to the Law of Shariyah (Islamic Law) (Informant 27, Personal Communication, January 13, 2021).

For the food retail companies in Sweden, it is one of the most significant drawbacks not to have an online presence. However, the established food retailers in Sweden have a physical and online presence in Sweden, which incurs them a lot of money. During the pandemic, when social distancing had been imposed, the online service of the food retailers should be booming. However, it did not. The pilot study that the researchers had revealed that the reason for not being able to run online marketing successfully was the inability and unwillingness of people to use mobile apps (Informant 10, Personal Communication, January 14, 2021). In addition to that, the rules from the government to maintain social distancing make it difficult for the retailers to run the physical stores. According to the pilot study, even though the stores have online facilities, it was challenging to find employees to provide home delivery services at the beginning of COVID-19 (Informant 10, Personal Communication, January 14, 2021).

The problems mentioned above have been discovered from the pilot study. However, it is salient to conduct the problem generation from the field and to address the issue. Hence, the food supply chain in Sweden during the pandemic needs to be found out from the roots and required to analyze so that the supply chain resilience can be ensured in the food retail industry. Increase in food consumption by the people, shortage of food in the food retail stores, lack of coordination among the supply chain actors (inefficiency in maintaining inventory, challenges in distribution and logistics support, for instance), lack of efficiency in using the resources have been acknowledged in the problem discussion.

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1.3 Purpose

Upon that problem discussion, the purpose of the thesis is to analyze the challenges of ensuring supply chain resilience in the food retail industry in Sweden. Therefore, the authors intend to investigate the loopholes in the supply chain operation of the food retail companies in Sweden to find out the factors that are creating disruptions in supply chain management. In addition to that, the authors will focus on proposing the remedies for acting against the disruption factors and shining brighter at the end of the day.

RQ1: Where are the challenges of the supply chain to deal with the inefficiencies of the Swedish food retail companies during the pandemic and to remain competitive in the industry?

RQ2: How can the Swedish food retail companies' supply chain inefficiencies be encountered to ensure supply chain resilience?

1.4 Operational Perspective and Definitions

This thesis will draw the attention of the food retail companies in Sweden to adopt the suggestions and mitigate the problems that existed in the supply chain. The managerial perspective is the primary focus of the study since this study will explore the causes of not having resilience in the supply chain as well as how the supply chain can become resilient of the Swedish food retailers.

1.5 Thesis Structure

This thesis paper has been folded into eight chapters. The introduction involves notifying the readers about the problem in the industry. The formulation of the research question goes into this chapter too. The following chapter is the frame of reference where the understanding of the theory has been comprehended that can sufficiently provide a basis for the researchers to take the research a step ahead. The theory is germane to the problem and can address the solution. The following chapter introduces the adaptation of research methodology and data collection method. Moving forward, the data analysis and the empirical findings provide a detailed understanding of the informants about the particular

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phenomena. In that chapter, the responses have been analyzed. The following chapter, discussion, suggests the implications of this thesis. Lastly, the conclusion wraps the paper stating the purpose and answering the research questions. In addition to that, it also discusses the linkage among the factors and categories and the implications in the pragmatic world, respectively. The last two sections are consisted of the references and appendices.

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2 Frame of Reference

______________________________________________________________________ This chapter comprises the phenomena of supply chain resilience and how supply chain resilience can be addressed by adopting resource-based view theory in practice. The resource-based view theory has been enumerated so that the elements of the theory can grant the researchers to synthesize the problem.

______________________________________________________________________ 2.1 Supply Chain Resilience (SCRES)

Earlier in the 19th century, storing inventory was the most implemented strategy to cope with any disruption in the supply chain (Kent & Flint, 1997). With the onset of customer satisfaction as well as the service sector in contrast to carrying costs of inventory, costs of production, costs of transportation, and costs of distribution became the point of focus for the managers of the supply chain (Kent & Flint, 1997). Just-in-Time (JIT) (Tan, 2001) and Vendor-Managed Inventory (VMI), two production mechanisms, were introduced to make quick response so that the increasing demands of customers could be met and the risks of keeping high levels of inventory could be alleviated. Nonetheless, adopting these mechanisms has severely cut down safety stocks and buffer stocks. And this has culminated in making supply chains more vulnerable to disruptions.

Supply being closely associated with demand is advantageous in terms of response and efficiency. But it simultaneously makes supply chains exposed during critical times that disruptions can occur (Wagner & Bode, 2009). Furthermore, Six Sigma and Lean manufacturing fixate abating buffer stocks and corresponding capacity to demand-pull mechanisms. Although having great ability and inventory is helpful to respond immediately during natural hazards, it does not elucidate how managers can combat the disruptions caused by the disasters. How capable a system is to face and manage disruptions is generally termed resilience. Therefore, the term 'resilience' has turned into a literature 'buzzword' with a promise of mitigating risk and creating stability in a system like a supply chain. Moreover, this term has a strong connection with versatility and

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durability. The resilience term will be investigated in the next section by reviewing different literature works on the supply chain's susceptibilities and different approaches to predict, minimize, and recapture from disruptions (Wagner & Bode, 2009).

Supply chain as a term and its system-wide view are now commonly accepted by academia, management professionals, and industry experts to confabulate and capsulize the concept of the supply chain as a complete system. In a very recent time, because of the oscillating effects of the disruptions of the supply chain on all the economic activities, the supply chain has turned into an indispensable part of the conversation for people in general, politicians, humanitarian managers, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) (Christopher & Peck, 2004). A range of managerial activities involves supply chain management. Some of them are procurement, logistics management, and sourcing. Planning and executing these activities are challenging, and it requires economic and consequential coordination of financial, relational, and informational flows beyond the borders of an individual organization (Ponomarov, 2012).

Resilience portrays the capability of the system to restore its balance when there is an upheaval (Zakour & Gillespie, 2013). Originally resilience was conceptually contemplated from an ecological perspective. But at present, it is frequently and increasingly used in the fields of social science and disaster and vulnerability management. In ecology, the term resilience is interpreted as a system's capability of fighting back during the occurrence of any disturbance. At the same time, it still maintains balance in its process, diversity, and integrity (Folke et al., 2004). The field of electrical distribution frequently emphasizes the concept of resilience as recovering from a breakdown and restoring the balance without prolonging the process (Maliszewski & Perrings, 2012; Shan, Felder, & Coit, 2017). The resiliency of the electricity system spotlights avoidance, safekeeping, reduction, response, and recouping (Shan, Felder, & Coit, 2017). The supply chain is ruminated as a network of each of the systems, as mentioned earlier (Pettit, Fikstel & Croxton, 2010). Established on this particular approach, it has been pigeonholed by Fiksel (2003) into four salient aspects of the systems of resilience: conformability, diversity, adherence, and efficiency. Resiliency in the

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humanitarian supply chain context reiterates different ways that a system can ratify to counter natural hazards. It also reiterates the system's potential to cope with a critical condition, imbibe severe consequences, experience, conform, and reclaim from disruptions (Berkes, 2007).

Extensive research was carried out by Cranfield University (Peck et al., 2003) on the supply chain's resilience. The Centre of Logistics and Supply Chain Management delved into the knowledge base of the Swedish industry. The goal of the research was to make the Swedish food retail industry more resilient so that it could withstand the threats concerning the supply chain in the continual of business. They also called attention to the matter that these topics have been scarcely researched on. The report delineates suggestions about the betterment of supply chain resilience, remarking that the resilience mechanisms vary from one supply chain system to another (Peck et al., 2003). Cristopher and Lee (2004) altercate that the confidence of the supply chain can be escalated by clarity and administration. Escalating the supply chain confidence is a very fruitful way of encountering disruptions. And the confidence is achieved by the system's sophistication of surviving catastrophe. According to their points of view, event management is one way to revamp administration where inventory is determined beforehand and placed at crucial zones to tackle any disruption of material flow in an entire network. If any disturbance takes place at any of the zones, an admonition is dispatched to all the managers of the supply chain so that they can undertake corrective actions instantly (Melnyk et al., 2009). Following Abe and Ye (2013), suppliers, retailers, and wholesalers can formulate and implement strategies to mitigate risk and inflate disaster resilience. They should be very discreet while reckoning the balance that the efficiency of the supply chain maintains with the preparation of disaster risk. It may be feasible to source from an individual supplier and bring an upsurge in profit. But it also maximizes the vulnerability of retailers. Contrarily, transaction costs will shoot up if multi-sourcing is posited. Therefore, firms must analyze a cost-benefit calculation to augment resilience. They should think of selecting suppliers based on the criteria of risk minimization instead of only cost reduction. The visibility of the supply chain can be magnified by using adopting

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monitoring systems and curtailing the supply chain by disintermediating. An extensive appraisal of the amenability of a company to any kind of disturbance and its repercussion on the supply chain of the company can pave the way for strategies about risk alteration and extenuation (Abe & Ye, 2013).

At the same time, it is also recommended by Christopher and Lee (2004) that the processes of the supply chain need to be agile, adaptive, and aligned to battle against increasing demands and supply uncertainties and accomplish remarkable performance. Agility speaks of having the capability to respond to sudden and short-term changes instantly and manage the disruptions smoothly. Adjustment means adjusting the supply chain design so that it can blend in with the structural market shifts. Alignment refers to frequent knowledge and information exchange with the partners of the supply chain to reach a new and better benchmark of performance (Christopher & Lee, 2004).

Adaptability needs to be a fundamental characteristic of supply chain resilience. Because the post-disruption condition can be significantly divergent from the original condition, it was revealed by Um (2017) that flexibility and agility both are the major components of the processes of supply chain resilience. The dynamic and vigorous characteristic of adaptability makes it less burdensome for supply chains to fight back and come back with a more improved condition after the disruption. Christopher and Peck (2004) have made the term supply chain resilience even more conceptualized by including elements, namely risk classification, supply base strategy, collaboration studies, and risk management culture of supply chain management. Some other factors have been secondary: compatibility, visibility, agility, redundancy, and efficiency. Despite pointing out fascinating standpoints, they could not provide any empirical justification. Agility and flexibility have been differentiated by Goranson and Goranson (1999), where flexibility has been defined to be the planned and organized adaptations to respond to sudden yet predicted external disruptions. On the contrary, agility signifies unplanned and unintended transformations that will be a mechanism to cope with unforeseen external disruptions. However, some authors envisage flexibility to be related to agility simultaneously (Stevenson & Spring, 2007). In addition to this, two methods are

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introduced by Caniato and Rice (2003), flexibility and redundancy. According to them, these methods have more promising ways to amplify supply chain resilience. Redundancy, meaning excessive inventory/capacity, can effectively make up for the lost capacity during adverse circumstances. On the other hand, flexibility is the capacity committed previously is redeployed.

Wherefore Craighead, Blackhurst, Rungtusanatham, and Handfield (2007) exchanged views on the capabilities of supply chains to mitigate risks and have grouped into the capability of recovering and capability of warning. The first one is about interaction among entities and how they can utilize their resources to work on disruptions. The second one, the capability of warning, is the ability to anticipate and visualize the disruptions that can occur. Standing on this study, Park, Hong, and Roh (2013) proposed that these strategies of risk mitigation alleviate the relationship among the design features of the supply chain from the perspectives of disruption severities and complexities. Nonetheless, redundancy and flexibility are undoubtedly two significant concepts regarding supply chain resilience. However, apart from these two, some other capabilities are also vital. Oftentimes, these two capabilities are concurrently put into effect to cope with disruptions. Howbeit, to what degree a firm would need to work on these concepts to withstand natural disasters is still somewhat vague.

Supply chain disruption is when an unprecedented situation knocks on the door (Hearnshaw & Wilson, 2013). Risk on the supply chain can be regarded as one of the most threatening scenarios for the company (Micheli, Mogre & Perego, 2014). Therefore, alterations in the business environment and the nature of the supply chain being complex can add to a vulnerable supply chain (Pettit, Fiksel, & Croxton, 2010). It should be in the utmost interest of the companies to stay on the feet so that these can stay afloat even if the disruption kicks in with brutal force (Pickett, 2006). That is how the supply chain becomes vulnerable.

On supply chain vulnerability, Singh-Peterson and Lawrence (2014) stated that supply chain vulnerability is a degree of the operational susceptibility to the disruption and how the supply chain's vulnerability is being coped with. Hence, the supply chain vulnerability

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determines the sensitivity of the supply chain to the changes caused by the disruption. Bakshi and Kleindorfer (2009) suggested that the supply chain vulnerability is disrupted when the infrastructure of the supply chain is not connected as well as the factors that are closely related to the business environment. Asbjørnslett (2009) coined supply chain vulnerability as the absence of supply chain resilience, leading the supply chain to be vulnerable from both internal and external sides of the business. On the other hand, it has been said accurately by Juttner, Peck, and Christopher (2003) that when a company faces risks, and the risk-mitigating strategies are not sufficient to tackle the threats, the supply chain meets the worst possible consequence.

2.2 COVID-19 Impact on Food Supply Chain

Part-time employees play a huge role in the food retail companies in terms of utilization for the service delivery. After the lockdown has been imposed by different countries worldwide, the supply chain in the food industry has been affected drastically. This is caused due to the absenteeism of sickness or the state's restrictions (Barman, Das, & De, 2021). Therefore, it reduces the capacity of the company to serve the customers. This difficulty does not put restrictions on moving from one place to another only but also entices the experiences of customers. The customers get prone to find accessibility to specific sets of foods, such as products with a higher shelf life, such as canned or dried foods. Since the shutting down of restaurants is frequent, the pressure on the food retail stores is immensely impacted (Barman, Das, & De, 2021). When they try to find something inside the supermarket, the customers may not be able to find it by themselves. Therefore, it can happen due to two reasons. One is that the stock of the searched products is already finished. And the other reason is that the searched product has not been put on the shelf by the employees (Barman, Das, & De, 2021). Both defenses are associated with an ineffective supply chain that has been disrupted by the COVID-19 when social distancing has been imposed. Lack of labor makes it difficult for all the food retail companies to fill the shelves (Barman, Das, & De, 2021). And 'panic buying' lets the customer have more food products to leave nothing for the other people. This sort of

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scenario is not forecasted daily. Therefore, shortages are created, and delays in providing services frequently occur during the pandemic (Barman, Das, & De, 2021).

On another note, one of the vital elements of food retail is the transportation system. Food-loaded trucks come from a long way, and multiple truck drivers are needed to cross that long road (Barman, Das, & De, 2021). Due to the pandemic, the restrictions of using multiple drivers have been restricted. Thus, it creates a delay in reaching the destination since the driver may need to rest on the way numerous times. Therefore, a delay in the activity is seen (Barman, Das, & De, 2021). COVID-19 did not just put its claws on the health of the people but also did a grab on the financials of the people. People now tend to stay home and cook healthy food for themselves. Also, they are reluctant to order online foods since it costs extra money, and the courier might spread the virus without even knowing (Barman, Das, & De, 2021). Therefore, the consumption rate of the households has increased, and the number of families is growing in numbers who want to have a balanced diet by having nutritious foods. According to the Agricultural Research and Economic Council (CREA), in Italy, the consumption of fruits, legumes, vegetables, and olive oil have jumped up by 29%, 26.5%, 33%, and 21.5%, respectively (Barman, Das, & De, 2021).

2.3 Addressing Supply Chain Resilience

This subsection demonstrates the reviews of the theories that have been employed and undertaken by the authors to understand supply chain resilience. The theoretical framework justifies the phenomenon to cater to the underlying relationship within the acting variables in augmenting generalization between various supply chain sectors (Foy et al., 2011). The following figure contains the theories that have been justified by the scholars about the interest of SCRES for a different segment of the supply chain.

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Figure 1 Theoretical Lenses for Understanding SCRES

From the figure, it is portrayed that the Resource-Based View (RBV) has been attracted a lot of the eyes of the scholars in understanding SCRES to a significant extent in addition to the Dynamic Capabilities and Systems Theory. Scholars have undertaken studies and argued on the aspect and perspective of dynamic capability theory for ensuring and augmenting SCRES in the company since they believe that the dynamic nature of business environment should be controlled by adopting dynamic capabilities theory to adjust the changes needed for the environment (Ponomarov, 2012; Teece, 2007). Scholars such as Erol, Sauser, and Mansouri (2010) as well as Blackhurst, Dunn, and Craighead (2011) have pledged at one point on the systems theory since the theory advocates resilience as a latent attribute which is comprised of agility, flexibility, adaptive capacity, and robustness. Through the lens of the systems theory, Blackhurst, Dunn, and Craighead (2011) believed that the disruption in the supply chain caused by security concerns, concern over customs regulations, the complexity of the product development could be addressed.

Though there are seven more theories to be discussed, a lot of theories have been adopted and employed in only one paper. Therefore, all the ideas have not been discussed, and for this thesis, it is not ideal for explaining all the theories since only one approach will be followed. Upon numerous understanding, the authors of this paper have adjudicated that the theoretical framework of this thesis will be established on the Resource-Based View

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to have a holistic comprehension of the food stores and their supply chain operations in Sweden.

Resource-Based View (RBV) theory has been undertaken by the authors to address the research questions. It signifies the internal resources of the company, which are significantly crucial to the company, scarce, and unrivaled to achieve competitive advantage (Barney, 1991). This reasons that a company is formed with resources that are tangible and intangible. These resources should be accumulated so that the birth of unique capabilities may take place inside the company and create new opportunities (Wernerfelt 1984; Barney, 1991). In the SCRES, RBV suggests that the capabilities and the resources of the company should be regarded as the pillar of ensuring supply chain resilience (Ponomarov & Holcomb, 2009).

2.4 Application of Resource-Based View Theory concerning COVID-19

From the reviewed literature (Ellis-Chadwick et al., 2007; Ekeledo and Sivakumar, 2004; Beard and Sumner, 2004; Wernerfelt, 1984), scholars have introduced a plethora of similar concepts and resource categorizations. Some of them involve reputation, organizational culture, capabilities, business experience, and assets that are controlled and administered by firms, the implementation of strategies that upgrade the firms' performance not only efficiently but also effectively. The study intends to consider the resources of the retailers in the grocery sector instead of their capabilities and assets. It assumes the concept of resource propounded by Wade and Hulland (2004). The concept depicts those capabilities and assets as resources that are both valuable and accessible and can identify market opportunities and respond to market threats. Assets, both tangible and intangible, are things that firms can use to create and produce products and services and introduce them to their consumers.

That said, capabilities are the continuous pattern of activities in the process of utilizing assets to produce goods and services (Wade and Hulland, 2004). Competitive advantage lies in these two available resources (Barney, 1991; Peteraf, 1993; Ekeledo and Sivakumar, 2004). A more simplified concept was provided, quoted in Fahy (2000). It defined competitive advantage as a kind of advantage that a firm can exert over its

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competitor in a relevant industry, market, or strategic group. On the ground of these definitions, the assets of a retailer in this study can be contemplated concerning its physical shops. And its capability can be considered its ability to use its shops and take actions to recognize and counter its market opportunities and threats.

COVID-19, the pandemic has had a lot of impacts on the supply chain operations of the Swedish retail stores, affirmed by the informants. Supply chain availability has been questioned (Araz et al., 2020). The unavailability of resources impacted the overall economy, and along with the food retail industry, different industries have been axed (Ivanov, 2020). According to a report published by Fortune (2020), 94% of the top 1000 companies worldwide have experienced the claws of COVID-19. The following sub-sections will emphasize the attributes of Resource-Based View in relation to ensure supply chain resilience so that the Swedish food retail companies can get back to the phase that the companies cherish.

2.4.1 Competitive Advantage vs. Sustainable Competitive Advantage vs. Superior Performance

This research follows the model of Fahy (2000), which reviews the critical RBV elements of competitive advantage (CA) and sustainable competitive advantage (SCA), classifications and properties of resources that generate competitive advantage, and strategies that management chooses. A simplified definition of the term CA is provided in the study, which properly distinguishes between SCA and CA. Fahy (2000), according to RBV, possesses a similar assumption that resources can be a potential source from which CA can derive. At any given time, several firms in an industry can exert competitive advantages over their rivals. Those advantages can be a more efficient production system, better customer service, lower cost of production, etc. For instance, Tesco can exert its competitive advantage over Asda with its strategy of supply and distribution (Mkansi, 2013). At the same time, Asda can also utilize its price advantage against Sainsbury's (Mkansi, 2013). A firm's advantage over its rival is meaningful only when there is a comparison between the firm and another group of entities (Mkansi, 2013). An example regarding this is the Piggyback of Tesco being compared to the hybrid and DC models of Asda. Here, the study of Fahy (2000) remarked a salient perception

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about RBV that SCA cannot derive from all kinds of resources. Because not every resource has the same potential to offer the advantage, some determinants differentiate SCA from CA. Heterogeneity, for example, is a determinant that shows resource variance in a firm. Homogeneity, contrastingly, is the similarity in a firm's resources. And then, there are barriers, appropriateness, and value that display the resources' characteristics of generating advantages. The subsequent section will discuss what makes a resource sustainable and demonstrate the differences between these two terms.

According to the suggestion of research that discussed the term superior performance (SP) (Fahy, 2000; Peteraf, 1993; Montgomery and Wernefelt, 1991), obtaining a sustainable competitive advantage can assist a firm in achieving superior performance. That will further lead to the rent appropriation. While there is the existence of two occasions at the same time, there are also differences in the process of evaluating superior performance. For instance, Fahy (2000) argues that it is conventional to evaluate a firm's superior performance based on its rents, market share, and profit. Nonetheless, in industrial economics, the 'classical' school holds a dissimilar point of view (Montgomery and Wernefelt, 2001). In the opinion of that point of view, one of the major factors that are essential to achieve superior performance is coming from the members of the industry. The justification behind this is that they can participate and play a pivotal role in tackling competitive rivalry. To be consistent with the RBV literature, this study confines with a valuable insight that a firm can achieve a sustainable competitive advantage that will persist and cause superiority if the involved resources are limited and the rival firms cannot expand or imitate them freely e. g. physical shops in this study (Peteraf, 1993). 2.4.2 Analysis of the Food Retail Stores

Practitioners and academics (Murphy, 2007; Hays, Keskinocak, & De Lopez., 2005; Enders and Jelassi, 2000) shared many viewpoints that cater to a rationale that explains how the food retail stores should be analyzed on a resource-based perspective to ensure resilience in the supply chain. The infrastructure of the stores for both operation and financial purposes is to supply and distribute the products to the customers. The infrastructure of the firm, e. g. warehouses and stores may generate a considerable value

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of success and sustainable competitive advantage for its brick-and-mortar business. While the stores' value within the industry of grocery is accepted and acknowledged by the scholars, it is also argued by other scholars that a tangible asset like a store's potential to be a source of constituting a sustainable competitive advantage provides an opposite implication (Clulow, Gerstman, & Barry, 2003).

Regarding the pertinence of resource characteristics like appropriability, obstacles to duplication, and value as displayed in Figure 2 (Fahy, 2000), the academics oppose that a firm cannot leverage a tangible asset at the same time (Hoskisson and Hitt, 2008). Besides, it can duplicate the asset easily. Hence, it cannot be a promising source of generating a sustainable competitive advantage (Clulow, Gerstman, & Barry, 2003). Conversely, it was precisely indicated by Hoskisson and Hitt (2008) and Wernerfel (1984) that any single resource typically does not generate a competitive advantage alone. A competitive advantage can be constituted through the exclusive coalescence of several resources, and this is what this research is principally based on. Therefore, according to Fahy (2000), it is necessary for the management to ensure that the key resources are valued, have less or no chances to imitate, and have proper utility. Consequently, SCA and SP will be earned and restored in the supply chain, which will safeguard the supply chain resilience to the core of the business.

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2.4.3 Store Requirements upon RBV

Studies in RBV have developed and executed a different criteria framework with protruding emphasis for assessing, measuring, and evaluating the ability of a resource to comprise a packed supply chain. For instance, Mills & Bourne (2002) developed a framework with the inclusion of sustainability, versatility, and value as a metric of assessing the requirements for the food stores. It was adduced by Grant (1991) that it is mandatory for resources that they reach the benchmark of transparency, replicability, durability, and transferability. Peteraf (1993) raises an argument here that the immobility and heterogeneity of resources, the before and after barriers to rivalry are determinants of imperative value for establishing a sustainable competitive advantage. Among the other criteria canvassed and implemented in Barney's (1991) well-known framework that contains four attributes: inimitability, rareness, non-substitutability, and value (Clulow, Gerstman, & Barry, 2003; Wright, Dunford, & Snell, 2001). Finally, Fahy (2000) built an RBV model that suggests that the key resources must meet the following criteria to fit as a promising source of ensuring supply chain resilience: the retail store should be valuable and must have the capacity to offer. Also, the store should be created in a way so that it will be difficult for the competitor to duplicate. The obstacles are needed to be realized for the retail stores since these are inimitable, immobile, and non-substitutable in nature (Fahy, 2000).

2.4.4 Value of the Store Resources

Several scholars have justified, elucidated, and developed the value concerning RBV with scrutiny (Mills & Bourne, 2002; Fahy, 2000; Wade and Hulland, 2004). A fundamental connotation here is that if the stores have to be potential enough to establish a supply chain resilience, they must create or offer value to the customers and enable the firm to concoct strategies that can make it more efficient and effective. Barney and Arikan (2001) introduced two logical assumptions based on the value of the stored resources. The assumptions provide an evaluation standing on attributes and propositions within RBV under a condition that claims that value creation through resource is both feasible and, at the same time, not so feasible too! First, the heterogeneity of resources is about the

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persistence in the differences of resources. It indicates that firms possess different kinds of resources that have immobility. The logical assumption is contemplated from the perspectives of the stores, for example, if demand for the stores becomes homogeneous, meaning all the food retailers own the same type of stores of the same number. The capabilities of supply are also homogeneous, meaning the managers working in retailing have the same capacity of production. There will be no variance in the contribution of the stores to that firm. In a scenario like this, creating value through investing in the assets of stores will not be feasible.

Notwithstanding this, Barney and Arikan (2001) note further that the existence of immobility and heterogeneity may be there, and some of the firms may oftentimes possess the resources that can capacitate them to formulate and execute strategies with much more competence and effectiveness than the rest of the firms. Those differences in resources will be lasting. An example of this is when the demand of stores becomes heterogeneous, meaning all retailers own different kinds of stores of other numbers in different locations. The supply capability is heterogeneous, meaning there is variance in decisions, knowledge, experience, and skills of managers.

That eventually causes variance in the contribution of the stores to retailing. It argues that the resources of the stores add value to retailing. Advocating this, Aki (2005) makes a statement that a firm's way of resource coordination and cooperation can bring to pass heterogeneity among all the firms. From a conventional perspective, the concept of value created by store resources has not been able to draw much attention. Fortunately, studies conducted in recent times on food retailing have established both practical and theoretical rationale that vouch for the store resources' potential to escalate a firm's value (Hays, Keskinocak, & De López, 2005).

2.5 The role of management and RBV in the Food Retail Industry of Sweden

Previously, it has been acknowledged that managers have a crucial role in making strategic decisions. Many studies find that strategies and capabilities are correlated (Fahy,

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2000; Kor and Mahoney, 2004). This exhibits that management capabilities, e.g., experience, skills, knowledge, and the development and conversion of a potential resource into a strategy, are two of the most required determinants of devising a sustainable competitive advantage. When a firm can combine these two and implement them effectively, it can consequently achieve superior performance. Nevertheless, this research has undertaken an approach that is more practice-oriented. And this can suggest the managers undertake RBV intending to implement the theory into action and make necessary changes to deal with the pandemic and ensure supply chain resilience in the process. Therefore, it is salient to prioritize the managers' role in making strategic decisions over a combination of enabling factors. Additionally, not every resource is equally important to establish a sustainable competitive advantage. They become important when management decides to attain and apply them to the market. Thus, cumulated and utilized together, the capabilities of management and resources have wondrous histories of causing social complexity and causal ambiguity. In this way, a retail company can combine resources with a promising source of gaining a competitive advantage to enable the company to attain superior performance (Fahy, 2000).

The role of the managers is exquisitely explained quoted in (Fahy, 2000) following the RBV, which are pertained to be a range of tasks that include the identification, development, protection, deployment, and conversion of a resource into something a customer would value. For instance, in this research, the role of a manager would involve identifying stores, developing strategies for supply and distribution for his/her firm's products and services that would ensure the supply chain resilience in the company. It is essential to explore the barriers such as COVID-19 and make sure how the barriers can be mitigated through calculative action. Therefore, the deployment of the elements of the physical stores is needed to be more efficient and beneficial so that it will capacitate the retail store to meet the demands of the customers and contribute to the success of the industry. Fahy (2000) and Foss and Klein (2006) conducted studies that share an analogous view that a strategy's value is perceived to be the result of how efficiently and accurately a manager can combine resources with expectations and the factors of critical success.

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Based on the perception that sustainable competitive advantage is followed by a superior performance with the utilization of storage resources in an efficient way, the managers need to step up since this pandemic has not been experienced before. The characteristics of the RBV suggest the capacity and the capability of the physical stores and how the supply chain of the stores can ensure resilience. The characteristics of the RBV must be acknowledged by the managers so that the characteristics, upon implementation, can provide the easiness of doing business in the time of the pandemic.

2.6 The connection among the RBV, SCRES, and COVID-19

For the Swedish food retail companies, CA, SCA, and SP is something that is needed to be restored. The elements of the attributes regarding CA, SCA, and SP have been mentioned, which will be utilized to find in-depth knowledge from the informants in the following section. Heterogeneity and homogeneity of various resources will be considered to generate CA, SCA, and SP for the Swedish food retail companies during the pandemic. Also, how these elements can ensure resilience in the supply chain during COVID-19 will be analyzed.

On the analysis from the food retail stores, the following figure from Fahy (2000) suggests that key resources (tangible assets, intangible assets, and capabilities) should possess the quality of being valuable, and those should not be easy to imitate by the competitors (meaning, barriers to duplicate should be optimized). Meanwhile, the resources should have maximum utility and appropriability to the store management. Hence, the strategic choice of the management will be effective, and it will result in having SCA and SP in the supply chain to ensure supply chain resilience in the company. Therefore, for this thesis purpose, these will be explored in detail, and in addition to that, the impact of COVID-19 will be brought up to cope with the research question.

The store requirements have been mentioned and discussed by the RBV model of Fahy (2000) that requires narrow criteria which involve the strategic choices of management in establishing supply chain resilience. These narrow criteria recognize the options of management to be adequately distinguished, particularly in using the stores to formulate a strategy. Thereupon, the researchers examine the criteria set by Fahy (2000) to be the

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most authentic in this paper for appraising the resources of the stores. In the study, the capabilities of the stores are adjudged to be a radical part of the amalgamation of the expertise and the procedures on which the retailers have to rely to formulate strategies of supply and distribution for the food products, which will consequently end up possessing supply chain resilience during the pandemic.

Value of the store resources is one of the crucial things in the food retail stores. Since the food retail companies work in the same industry, it isn't easy to have a unique operation of measuring store value. However, heterogeneity of resources gives the firms extra edge and employs the firm with supply chain resilience while COVID-19 is in play. The following figure depicts the literature synthesis and how the literature will guide the managers in making some decisions based on the attributes of the RBV and maintain supply chain resilience in the food retail stores in Sweden:

Figure 3 Literature Synthesis

Ensuring Supply Chain Resilience in Swedish Food Retail Stores Taking Informed Decision during COVID-19 Information on having CA, SCA & SP Information on maintaining the food retail store Information on balancing store requirements Information on valuing the resources of the store

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3 Design of Research Instruments

______________________________________________________________________

In this section, the research philosophy, research approach, research strategy, ethics have been discussed. This section signifies how the research will take place and on what ground the research will be analyzed.

______________________________________________________________________ 3.1 Methodological Approach to the Literature

This research intends to establish a unified framework for a resilient and flexible food supply chain, particularly during the occurrence of a natural calamity, COVID-19 for this instance. Existing knowledge always contributes to the groundwork for future research. Hence, literature reviews are of grave importance since they generate valuable insights in any given discipline. It makes a summary of the current research by recognizing the current patterns of the given topic (Seuring, Müller, Westhaus, & Morana, 2005). As the study deals with the resilience of food chain supply to natural disasters thus, the analysis will concentrate on the domains of supply chain management and its resilience. The following concentration of this literature review will be the food supply chain which, to specify, will address the problems that the supply chains encounter and the solutions to the problems so that they can eventually achieve industrial resilience.

The authors of the paper looked up the key terms such as supply chain risk, resilience, supply chain resilience, food supply chain resilience, supply chain resilience theory, supply chain resilience during pandemic, food supply chain resilience during the pandemic, Resource-based View Theory on the PRIMO JU which has been adopted to have a modified search. Primarily, the intent was to look for renowned literature works on the given topic. We saw that the greater part of the works was initiated after the investigation of Cranfield had been carried out on the resilience and vulnerability of the supply chain (Peck et al., 2003). Afterward, it came to the observation that there were many studies conducted on resilience in the years between 2008 and 2012. Also, the concept of resilience was studied thoroughly, and it was noticed that it had been involved

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in various occasions whose probability is low, but the impact is high. On the contrary, when it comes to risk management, it tends to manage singularly those occasions whose probability is high, but the effect is low (Sheffi & Rice, 2005).

These highly impactful occasions are involved with natural hazards and man-made hazards. It has also been noticed by the researchers that one of the fundamental and immediate needs during any disaster is food. In addition to that, the journals about supply chain management and humanitarian logistics have also been investigated. The criteria included in the search were established on books, publishing years from 2012 to 2021, reports, articles, and conference papers reviewed by peers. It has been found that, on supply chain resilience, there have not been many studies done by the scholars. Therefore, the authors decided to stretch the search to 2000 taken since they contained valuable concepts and observations which could come in handy for the research. Also, articles that are not peer-reviewed but from credible journals have been included since the topic is slightly different from what has been studied up to now.

The analysis of the articles was done meticulously so that the utilization of the theory, concept, or observations can be linked with the paper being written. The process of elimination was first done by evaluating the articles' titles and their abstracts. Some articles were eliminated because they were repetitive and contained specifications on identical concepts or theories. Thereupon, the articles were reviewed, and their salient findings, points, summaries, conclusions were added to a draft which was used to establish theories and methods relevant to the given discipline. Figure 3 exhibits the primary steps that were followed in this research methodology:

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Figure 4 Article Searching Process

3.2 Research Philosophy 3.2.1 Ontology

Ontology refers to the analysis of 'being.' The key concern of ontology is 'what is,' which explores the existence of nature, the structure or framework of reality (Al-Saadi, 2014), and what more there is to learn about the whole world (Snape & Spencer, 2003). According to Jupp (2006), ontology is a perception that studies the existence and different aspects of and relationships among social structures, social actors, and cultural norms.

Key Words

Supply chain risk, resilience, supply chain resilience, food supply chain resilience,

supply chain resilience theory, supply chain resilience during pandemic, food

supply chain resilience during the pandemic, Resource-Based View Theory

Database Selection

JSTOR, Science Direct, Web of Science, Taylor & Francis, and Emerald.

Article Collection From 2000 to 2021

Article Deletion

For the repetitive nature among the articles

Article Sorting

Based on the approach to the problem, abstract reading, methodology.

Article Finalization

Based on the theory, application, and usefulness to address the research

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Ontology concentrates on questions pertinent to things existing within society (Jupp, 2006). On the other hand, as per Ormston et al. (2014), ontology is a set of assumptions individuals make regarding what exists and the nature and type of reality. Similarly, Snape and Spencer (2003) characterize it as the world's nature and what is there for us to learn about it.

3.2.2 Epistemology

Epistemology is generally some postulations made about the nature or the kind of knowledge (Richards, 2003). It is also about the possibility of discovering and learning more about nature (Ormston et al., 2014). In agreement with Al-Saadi (2014), it studies how to find ways to look at the earth and derive its meaning. It also involves knowledge, embodying certain enlightenment and insight of the entailment of that knowledge. He further illustrates that epistemology observes what nature the knowledge has and how much it is possible to attempt it (Al-Saadi, 2014). That also includes the legitimacy and scope of the knowledge. From a similar but specific reference to contrasting perspectives about how to study social and natural worlds, Bryman (2008) construes epistemology as a matter relating to the query of what should be acknowledged to be acceptable knowledge in a particular discipline (Bryman, 2008).

3.2.3 Ontological and Epistemological Position of the Research

3.2.3.1 Ontological Position

According to Easterby-Smith et al. (2021), there are four positions on which the ontological position can be stood upon as the ontological base of the research. These are shown in the following figure:

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Figure 5 Ontological Positions (Easterby-Smith et al., 2021)

Upon the usefulness and usability, Relativism suffices the urge to fill the category of the ontological position of the thesis. It advocates that the scientific laws are created by the people, and the people are the ones who discover them (Easterby-Smith et al., 2021). It sheds light on the understanding that though the scientific laws are there, and these remain identical to everyone, the perception of the people can be different. This understanding has been supported likewise by Latour and Woolgar (1979). They opine that the discovery of the scientific evolution of ideas can be debated and discussed among the people. People can possess different viewpoints even though scientific development remains identical for all. In addition to that, they believe that the difference in views and capacity to accept others' views can depend on the reputation of the people (Latour & Woolgar, 1979). Therefore, it has been recommended that the truth underlying a theory, or an idea can be found once the associated people come into the agreement and accept the viewpoints of others.

Hence, for this research, the literature review discusses the RBV theory. In this research paper, the researchers intend on using the RBV to find the answers for ensuring supply chain resilience in the Swedish food retail companies. Therefore, it is vital to know the

Realism • The world is prgamtic and holds independent perception • Observations

are the basis of Science • Observations are done on observable behavior and incidents Internal Realism • The real world is independent from the mind of the humans • It is not possible to understand the observation directly since it depends on the perception • Scietific laws are said to be absolute Relativism • Scientific laws are created by the people • The people

who create the scietific law, should be a part of the context Nominalism • Reality is created by the people

• Reality can not exist

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problems first-hand from the company and then make necessary recommendations based on the theory.

Epistemological Position

According to Easterby-Smith et al. (2021), there are two positions on which the epistemological position can be stood upon as the epistemological base of the research. These are shown in the following figure:

Figure 6 Epistemological Positions (Easterby-Smith et al., 2021)

Upon the necessary understanding of the epistemological position, it has been found that Social Constructionism serves the researchers with the utmost utility. According to Easterby-Smith et al. (2021), 'reality' is constructed socially, and it is not built based on objectivity. Therefore, the people provide the meaning of reality (Easterby-Smith et al., 2021). There are multiple ways that people want to make sense of the real by sharing experiences (Berger & Luckman, 1966; Watzlawick, 1984. Shotter, 1993).

Therefore, as per the style of this research paper, social constructionism has been equipped so that the knowledge from the branch managers would shed light on solving the supply chain resilience issue accordingly. One quote from William Isaac Thomas and Dorothy Swaine Thomas (1928) can be quoted for better comprehension:

'If men define situations as real, they are real in their consequences.'

3.3 Research Approach

Positivism

Externally, the social world exists

The measurement of the properties of the social world can be measured via objective methods

Social Constructionism

Instead of external factors and objective, 'reality' is constrtucted

by the people

It makes perfect sense when the way poeple share their experiences

on a particular context is appreciated

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Many researchers have defined or categorized their researches using a vast number of different descriptions, which in true nature call under the common themes of qualitative or quantitative research depending on the field of study and their overlapping philosophies. A simple example can be the fact that oftentimes quantitative research is also referred to as 'empirical research' (Hinchey, 2008), as well as 'deductive, explanatory research' (Saunders et al., 2009; Engel and Schutt, 2005). On the other hand, judgmental or inductive research is just another name for qualitative research (Saunders et al., 2009; Engel and Schutt, 2005); qualitative research is also called exploratory research (Neelankavil, 2007; Engel and Schutt, 2005; Bernard, 2006); or formulative research (Khotari, 2006). There are also varying approaches to how scholars treat these approaches; while others define them quite similarly, others argue that these are entirely separate approaches. For instance, Hinchey (2008) places clear emphasis on empirical research being quantitative, while Khotari (2006); Srivastava and Rego (2011) discussed quantitative and empirical research as two different approaches to research.

3.3.1 Qualitative Research Approach

The qualitative framework has been suggested as a form of a scientific approach to research in the past study (Saunders et al., 1999; Morgan and Smircich, 1980; Malterud, 2001). The feature of the qualitative research approach has been identified similarly to have some specific qualities or traits as defined by scholars. These include the data as being less statistical (non-numeric), storytelling or narrative (audio-visuals, recordings, transcripts, notes, etc.) for information collection, and difficulty measuring. The strength of the qualitative approach is foremost in its adaptability and flexible nature, which allows the researchers to find answers to how and why questions, and second in closer interaction between the subject(s) of the study and the researcher. For example, more detailed and in-depth responses can be collected through open-ended questions, which allow informants to express their points of view instead of choosing from predetermined responses.

Another advantage lies in how the qualitative approach allows for more complex insights into informants' organizational experiences. Such insights lead to more vibrant