A review of supply chain complexity drivers

Studies on supply chain complexity mainly use the static and dynamic complexity distinction. While static complexity describes the structure of the supply chain, the number and the variety of its components and strengths of interactions between these; the dynamic complexity represents the uncertainty in the supply chain and involves the aspects of time and randomness. This distinction is also valid when classifying the drivers of supply chain complexity according to the way they are generated. Supply chain complexity drivers (e.g., number/variety of suppliers, number/variety of customers, number/variety of interactions, conflicting policies, demand amplification, differing/conflicting/non‐synchronized decisions and actions, incompatible IT systems) play a significant and varying role in dealing with complexity of the different types of supply chains (e.g., food, chemical, electronics, automotive). This paper reviews the typical complexity drivers that are faced in different types of supply chains and presents the complexity driver and solution strategy pairings, in the form of a matrix. Drivers and strategies are extracted from real‐life supply chain situations gathered from multiple existing sources; such as reports, archives, observations, interviews. The synthesis of good practices would assist decision‐makers in formulating appropriate strategies to deal with complexity in their supply chains.