1. Abstract
MSc Innovation and Technology Management
The Impact of Cloud Computing
on Supply Chain Management
A study on how cloud computing can lead to more
dynamic Supply Chain Management
Philippos Philippou
Supervisor: Paul G. Maropoulos
2013-2014
This study explores the potential benefits of cloud computing adoption for supply chain
management purposes. This study also aims also to identify the main challenges that
industry faces due to the current economic conditions and how organisations can address
them. As a result has been found that, a more dynamic supply chain management can help
organisations to address those challenges. Through the research, it is recognised that the
current supply chain management strategies are struggling to meet the challenges, and thus
new strategies should be examined. Running supply chain management operations on cloud
is one possible strategy and this research examines its implications. Case studies reports
from different industries along with the available literature are analysed and combined to
form an integrated picture of the implications from cloud computing adoption. Has been
identified that by the adoption of cloud computing, aspects such as organisation's
collaboration, communication, responsiveness and efficiency can dramatically increase.
Those aspects are the keys that lead to more dynamic supply chain management, especially
under the current market circumstances. The significance of the study lies in the fact that it
approaches the research question by combining, the extensive literature references on cloud
computing and supply chain management along with real industry examples where
organisations have adopted cloud-based solutions in order to meet particular challenges.

2. i
Acknowledgments
First, I would like to thank all lecturers from MSc in Innovation and Technology Management
course at the University of Bath who provided me with the necessary skills to carry out that
dissertation.
I would also like to thank my supervisor, Professor Paul Maropoulos for his guidance and
support throughout my dissertation. I also want to thank my family and my friends for all their
support and encouragement while I have been working on this dissertation.
Thank you all!
Philippos

3. ii
Contents
List of Figures........................................................................................................................ iii
List of Tables......................................................................................................................... iii
List of Abbreviations.............................................................................................................. iii
Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1
Motivation .......................................................................................................................... 1
Research Question ............................................................................................................ 1
Scope and Objectives........................................................................................................ 1
Structure............................................................................................................................ 2
Literature review.................................................................................................................... 3
Supply Chain ..................................................................................................................... 3
Supply Chain Management................................................................................................ 3
Dynamic Supply Chain Management................................................................................. 5
Cloud Computing............................................................................................................... 6
Cloud Supply Chain ........................................................................................................... 9
Cloud Computing Services State-of-the-Art ......................................................................10
Methodology.........................................................................................................................12
Case Study Philosophy.....................................................................................................12
Research Approach – Methodology Justification...............................................................13
Research Classification ....................................................................................................13
Case Study Selection........................................................................................................14
Limitations ........................................................................................................................14
Research Findings ...............................................................................................................16
Data Analysis .......................................................................................................................20
Literature Review Analysis................................................................................................20
Case Studies Analysis ......................................................................................................21
BT Case Study..............................................................................................................21
Indoff Case Study..........................................................................................................22
Canadian Pacific Case Study ........................................................................................23
The City of Charlotte Case Study ..................................................................................23
Main Challenges...............................................................................................................24
Conclusion ...........................................................................................................................25
Authors Predictions and Further Studies...........................................................................25
References

4. iii
List of Figures
Figure 1: Dissertation Structure............................................................................................. 2
List of Tables
Table 1: Case Studies Key Points ........................................................................................16
List of Abbreviations
 SCM: Supply Chain Management
 IT: Information Technology

5. 1
Introduction
The global economic recession has caused unpredictable market fluctuations. Due to the
uncertainty of tomorrow, companies should be able to react rapidly in order to stay
competitive (Glenn, 2009; RightManagement, 2012). It is a fact that, an agile, flexible and
more dynamic supply chain can mitigate the impact of uncertainty and help the organisation
to react faster on the changing market conditions (Mercier, Sirkin, & Bratton, 2010). More
dynamic supply chains require appropriate management that in combination with the
appropriate information technology infrastructure will allow organisations to be more
responsive. Supply Chain Management fundamental objective is to increase customer
satisfaction. In order to improve the performance of the whole supply chain, organisations
need to engage innovative supply chain management technologies in a continuous basis.
Cloud computing emergence brought new insight on how companies can use information
technology for supply chain management purposes (Hurwitz, Bloor, Kaufman, & Fern, 2013;
Huth & Cebula, 2011). Bringing cloud computing into the supply chain management, in order
to develop more dynamic supply chains, is one of the biggest challenges running today.
Identifying that the available studies which prove that supply chain management can be
benefited from cloud computing technology are relatively limited, that dissertation aims to
combine literature and real industry examples in order to examine how cloud computing can
impact supply chain management. To achieve that, this study initially introduces supply
chain, supply chain management and cloud computing terms; following by a discussion of
how cloud computing can benefits supply chain management. In order to better demonstrate
the benefits gained regarding supply chain management by applying cloud computing
techniques, four different case studies, in where organisations have adopted cloud
computing for supply chain management purposes, are used. As a final part, this dissertation
draws the conclusions and suggests further possible studies.
Motivation
The main motivation behind this dissertation is to expand cloud computing and supply chain
management field of study. Having identified a flaw in literature, this study aims to draw an
integrated picture of how cloud computing leads to more dynamic supply chain management.
The ultimate purpose of that dissertation is to be able to be used as a reference for future
studies that will suggest cloud computing adoption for supply chain management purposes. It
is a fact that upgrading supply chain management can help organisations to face the
challenges arose from current economic conditions; this study aims to investigate if and how
cloud computing technology can upgrade supply chain management.
Research Question
The main research question of this dissertation is:
“How the leverage of Cloud Computing leads to more dynamic Supply Chain Management?”
Scope and Objectives
Very few studies examine in practice the benefits of cloud computing adoption in supply
chain management. Thus, the scope of this dissertation is to provide an integrated study

6. 2
which combines the literature behind how cloud computing can benefit supply chain
management with real industry examples where organisations are using cloud computing
solutions for their supply chain management purposes.
The main objectives are:
 Review and analyse the literature behind supply chain, supply chain management
and cloud computing.
 Develop deep understanding of today’s supply chain management challenges.
 Identify if and how cloud computing can help organisations to meet supply chain
management challenges.
 Find and analyse industry examples where cloud computing solutions have adopted
and how have impacted the supply chain management.
 Identify if the available literature of how cloud computing can benefit supply chain
management is verified through the industry examples.
Structure
Figure 1: Dissertation Structure

7. 3
Literature review
Supply Chain
In order, a product be acquired by the customer; a sequence of activities should be done in
prior. All the activities and procedures associated with the transformation and flow of
products from raw materials stage are part of a massive network which called supply chain
(Misra et al. 2010). Parts of the supply chain network are also the suppliers, factories,
warehouses, distribution centres and retailers which are responsible for all the procedures
relating with purchasing raw materials, converting them into intermediate goods and final
products and distributing a product or service to the end user (Naude 2009). In other words,
supply chain initiates from the raw materials’ suppliers and last until the final product ends up
to the final user. Dr. Hau Lee and Mr. Corey Billington (1995, p43) defined supply chain as:
“network of facilities that procure raw materials, transform them into intermediate goods and
then final products, and deliver products to customers through a distribution system."
According to Monczka et al. (2011): “supply chain is a set of three or more organizations
linked directly by one or more of the upstream or downstream flows of products, services,
finances, and information from a source to the customer.”. In order the goods and services to
be available to customers, a series of businesses should be involved in supply chain.
Businesses, not only related with production and distribution, but also with the promotion,
quality assurance, scheduling production, disposal and recycling of materials, components,
end products and services (Monczka et al. 2011; Stevenson 2005).
Supply Chain Management
The coordination and integration of all the activities which take place in the supply chain are
of great importance, as it determines organisation’s performance and extensively affects its
competitive advantage within the chain (Rossetti & Chen 2012). In order to coordinate,
integrate and manage the supply chain activities effectively, the Supply Chain Management
(SCM) system has established. Leenders et al. (2010) and Misra et al. (2010), determined
the Supply Chain Management as the way to manage all the supply chain’s activities, from
manufacturing operations, purchasing, transportation, and physical distribution, into a unified
program which utilized to ensure that the right product or service is distributed at the right
quantities, to the proper locations and at the appropriate time. SCM approach embraces all
organisation’s related suppliers and partners as it is responsible for managing the upward or
downward flows of materials, services, finances, and information from the initial suppliers
through factories and distribution centres to the final customer(Christopher, 2011; Giménez
et al., 2004). SCM deployment enables organisations to monitor and manage a wider range
of activities such as forecasting, production planning and scheduling, order processing, and
customer service(Zigiaris, 2000). SCM led the supply chain to the next level as it allows
organisations to link, control and monitor all of the activities in the chain and thus, businesses
are capable to integrate the activities into a seamless process with the objective of creating
net value and consequently to attain a sustainable competitive advantage in their sector
(Vollmann et al. 2005; Tiwari & Jain 2013). Effective logistics and supply chain management
development can provide a major source of competitive advantage (Christopher, 2011).
In a competitive global market, the development of an effective relationship between
organisations, customers and suppliers is highly important as it could affect organisation’s

8. 4
market position in a variety of ways. Through SCM, companies could develop their
relationship with their customers by boosting their customer’s value delivery. In order to
achieve that, companies must develop a synchronised management of their products or
services flow in which the information from sourcing to consumption will be linked (Bernard
LaLonde 1997). Organisations and customers relationship though is at one end of the chain.
To the other end, organisations need to consider how to manage and develop their
relationships with suppliers and partners who are one of the most important value-creating
activities across the chain. Building close, and long-term working relationships facilitate the
delivery of enhanced value to customers and, therefore, the customer and organisation’s
relationship will be greatly improved (Cox 1999). Satisfying customer requirements, which
enables businesses to compete more effectively in the market, requires integrated and
synchronized decision & value-creating activities across organisational boundaries, and the
only way businesses to achieve that is to develop an exceptional SCM (Hsu et al. 2009).
Apart from the enhancement of the relationship between organisation and customer, SCM
could benefits an organisation in many other ways(Ballou, 1997). Developing an efficient and
effective SCM, will enable companies to reduce their production cost and, therefore, lead
time and thus lead to inventory and shortfall reduction (Heizer & Render, 2013; Monczka et
al., 2011). In addition, logistics could be better managed through SCM and particularly
transportation and purchase costs (Stevenson, 2005; Waller, 2003). Suppliers’ evaluation
and selection could be highly improved and, as analysed above, will consequently increase
service level and add customers’ value (Lee et al., 2004; Simchi-Levi et al., 2007; Vickery &
Davis, 1998). Naturally, SCM cannot exist without the appropriate Information Technology
(IT) support.
Throughout the years, number of companies has developed Supply Chain Management
Software applications which can manage operations and coordinate information throughout
the supply chain network. Software vendors such as Oracle, SAP, i2 and Baan have
developed software designed to enhance SCM operations including supplier sourcing,
production planning, inventory planning, transportation planning, and demand planning.
Buxmann & Wolf (2004) researched on the adoption of Supply Chain Management software
in the automotive market in 2004. They chose automotive market because automotive
industries have commonly complicated chains consist of a large number of suppliers,
partners, factories and retailers. They found out that, in 2004, the SCM software solutions
adoption rate was 20.2% among the sampled automotive companies. The companies that
had adopted SCM software solution mentioned that they benefited with inventory and
shortfall reductions. Companies also observed that transportation and production costs had
curtailed. The research, additionally, showed that 65.8% of the sampled companies neither
use nor implement Supply Chain Management Software, citing their inability to quantify SCM
software benefits for their organisation as the main reason. Even though the sample is quite
small, that research is useful as it had implemented at the time when SCM software had just
appeared, and consequently the number of valuable conclusions could be extracted
regarding the initial SCM software adoption(B. B. Trebilcock & Large, 2011).
A new research released in 2010 by Gartner (www.gartner.com) and found out that SCM
software market reached $7.74 billion. A year later, Chad Eschinger, Gardner’s supply chain
vice president and research director, mentioned that, in comparison with 2010’s revenues,

9. 5
2011’s one were 12.1% higher. Next year (2012) Gartner’s research, also, showed that SCM
software market grew 7.1% from 2011, and reached $8.3 billion share(Gartner, 2012).
Eschinger identified cost reductions as the main driver which led companies to invest on
SCM software applications. He also mentioned that the lack of visibility and customer service
improvement as important factors that also led organisations to invest on SCM software
solutions. At the beginning on 2014, Gartner’s analysts estimated, based on 2013 research,
that by the end of 2014, SCM software revenue will reach $10 billion. SCM software revenue
is about to increase 12.2% from 2013’s one (Gartner, 2014). 2013’s survey is of great
importance as its findings had showed that the way companies used the SCM had changed.
Gartner conducted a survey taking as a sample 447 supply chain organisations which were
using SCM software solutions; asking them about the major barriers that hindered their
progress toward achieving organisational goals (B. Trebilcock, 2011). Organisations
mentioned inaccurate forecasts of demand for products and variability of demand as the
leading ones (Gartner, 2013; Logistics, 2010). Number of critical conclusions could be
gathered from all the surveys. As the market becoming increasingly complex, organisations
need to be up to date in order to follow the market trends and demands. Day by day,
companies deal with more and more suppliers, in order to be competitive in a rapidly
changing business environment. The expansion of supply chains is inevitable, and thus,
supply chain visibility became crucial. Companies started to synchronise their supply chain
with demand and customer service became the main priority (Heaney, 2013). Looking back
on their SCM software applications, organisations indicated, according to the latest survey,
that to deal with market trends and demands an underlying technology platform, which would
improve the visibility of information and enable more effective communication and
collaboration with suppliers and buyers, is essential(Gartner, 2014; Heaney, 2013).
As mentioned in the previous paragraph, 2013’s survey showed that the SCM approach from
companies had changed. When SCM firstly introduced to the market, as a tool to manage all
the supply chain’s activities, its main objective was cost reduction (Bernard LaLonde, 1997).
The decrement of the total amount of resources and inventory investments reduction were
along with cost the other main SCM objectives (Ramos, Asan, & Majetic, 2007).
Organisations, which first established the SCM, aimed to provide the necessary level of
customer service and, additionally, to build a competitive advantage for their supply chain
(Cooper, Lambert, & Pagh, 1997; Mclaren, Head, & Yuan, 2004). However, a chain of events
that has occurred in recent years has changed the consumers and companies’ behaviour.
Events, such as the big internet explosion along with the rise of social media and the
economic recession, led consumers to became more economical, more responsible and
more demanding (Voinea & Filip, 2011), and consequently forced businesses to adapt their
strategies to the changing environment. Nowadays, companies need to address the changes
in consumer's behaviour in order to develop their decision making (Bohlen, Carlotti, & Mihas,
2009). Also, the best option for companies to meet today’s challenges is through an updated
and modernized dynamic SCM.
Dynamic Supply Chain Management
Today organisations are not using SCM as a tool for cost reductions. They are using it as a
tool to create and deliver value to their customers(Pearson, 2012). SCM objectives have
turned to more dynamic, and thus, companies are seeking, through their updated SCM, to

10. 6
improve the alignment with trading partners to meet real customer needs and increase their
revenues(Shapiro, 2000). As a consequence, how to work with a partner in the supply chain
became highly important(Happek, 2005). Better collaboration with suppliers and partners will
allow businesses to synchronise their customer’s requirements with the flow of materials
from their suppliers (C.Stevens, 2007). Relationships with key suppliers, key distributors and
key customers have to be reconsidered in order to enable supply chains to become more
flexible (Christopher 2011). In general, businesses with big supply chains are seeking to
achieve good end-to-end information (Porter, 2014). Reasonably, the today’s SCM objectives
could only stand with the appropriate SCM software applications. In the software market,
there are many reliable applications which companies already adapted. SAAP and Oracle
are the main software pioneers as they currently have a great number of applications
available for SCM. Planning and forecasting, logistics, sourcing and procurement and service
and spare parts management are the main supply chain’s activities on which companies
have been using software applications (ww.dell.com, 2012). Even though the existing
available software applications are quite reliable, they cope with some issues due to the
increasing expansion of trade.
As mentioned on the previous paragraph, businesses which using SCM software solutions
are dealing with inaccurate forecasts of demand for products and variability of demand
(Gartner, 2012, 2013, 2014; Logistics, 2010; B. Trebilcock, 2011). Misra et al. (2010)
analysed current SCM software applications and they found out that the existing SCM
software applications are struggling to manage the supply chain in an era full of uncertainty.
Misra et al. (2010) have also identified that: “almost all existing supply chain systems are
featured in one or more of the following demerits: product availability focus; long lead times;
uncertainty throughout; lack of flexibility in systems; performance measured functionally;
poorly defined management process; no real partnerships; paper, phone, fax-based
relationship; performance measures insufficient. In order to overcome all of these
shortcomings, the next generation of supply chain management systems are required to
meet the needs.” On top of those issues, the inability of current SCM software solutions to
receive and analyse real-time data became crucial. Dealing with real-time data in supply
chain is essential on activities such as planning and forecasting, distribution and inventory.
Real-time data analysis accommodates rapid delivery as it improves supply chain flexibility
and thus the end user will benefit (Sahay & Ranjan, 2008). Finding ways to collect and
analyse together huge amount of data that is flowing within and across the business
processes, it is a key strategy for any organization to achieve competitive advantage as it’d
improves rapid customers’ satisfaction(Shang, Zhou, & van Houtum, 2010). Real-time data
analysis will improves business responsiveness as enables customers’ needs to be available
faster. Shin (2001) indicates that, delivering products or services to consumers faster than
the competition it improves company’s reputation. He also highlights that making products
available faster is key to increasing sales. All the above concludes that companies need
applications designed to deliver analysis and share alerts of real-time information across the
end-to-end supply and demand network (SAP news, 2014).
Cloud Computing
As today most companies are working under more dynamic environment, solutions that could
reduce the uncertainty of demand, and integrates supply chains using real-time data is more

11. 7
than necessary. The term of Cloud Supply Chain has recently introduced to businesses as a
tool to meet today’s challenges. Cloud Supply Chain is based on cloud computing
technology. There are many definitions which can describe cloud computing. Tiwari & Jain
(2013) defined cloud computing as “a type of parallel and distributed system consisting of a
collection of interconnected and virtualized computers that are dynamically provisioned and
presented as one or more unified computing resources based on service-level agreements
established through negotiation between the service provider and consumers." The
Economist (2011) said about cloud computing: “The rise of the cloud is more than just
another platform shift that gets geeks excited. It will undoubtedly transform the IT industry,
but it will also profoundly change the way people work and companies operate." Cloud
computing is distinct because is highly scalable and flexible. Cloud services could be scaled
across geographical locations, various hardware performance and software configurations
(L. Wang et al., 2010). In other words, cloud computing platforms can easily obtained by
users. Cloud computing platforms are also flexible as can adapt to various requirements of
potentially large number of users (Fox, Griffith, Joseph, Armbrust, & Konwinski, 2009).
Cloud computing is an integrated computing platform as it provides users with services to
access both hardware and software sources (Fischer & Turner, 2009).
Cloud computing service models and types:
 Hardware as a Service (HaaS) is highly flexible, scalable and manageable to meet
users’ needs. Users could rent, rather than purchase, a provider's tech assets such IT
hardware, an entire data center or a pay-as-you-go subscription service. Business
like Amazon and IBM are using HaaS strategy (Sokullu, 2007).
 Software as a Service (SaaS). SaaS allow users to run applications or services
through the internet without the need to install and run the application on their local
computer. Users also benefited from the fact that the provider is responsible for the
software maintenance. SaaS offers to users the ability to use Web-based solutions
that communicate in real-time and thus, it could find application in sectors as a supply
chain where real-time data analysis is crucial. For that reason, the supply chain
sector became an early adopter of SaaS solutions(Lindner et al., 2011; Monkmeyer,
2014). Microsoft’s “Software + Service”, Google’s Chrome browser are the most
famous SaaS providers(Google, 2014; Microsoft, 2014).
Recently, types such as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS)
and Data as a Service (DaaS) have introduced to the market. This study is focusing
mainly on HaaS and SaaS and more details for the rest could find at literature (IBM,
2014; Kumawat, 2013; H. Wang et al., 2012; Zhang et al., 2010).
How Cloud computing can be deploy is depending on users’ needs and requirements. Mainly
there are three different deployment models.

12. 8
Cloud computing deployment models:
 Public Cloud
Public clouds are owned, managed, operated and supported by third parties. Public
cloud can be accessed by any user via internet connection. In comparison with the
other deployment models, public cloud is cheaper and more importantly, offers the
ability to scale seamlessly on demand. Main concern about public cloud is data
security(Harris, 2014).
 Private Cloud
Private clouds are established, and is maintained, managed, operated and supported
for a specific business or organisation. The operation may be in-house or with a third
party on the premises. Private cloud offers greater control and data security(Huth &
Cebula, 2011; LuitInfotech, 2014).
 Hybrid Cloud
Hybrid Cloud is essentially a combination of both public and private cloud. Its
infrastructure is designed to allow data and applications to be moved from one cloud
to another. Hybrid cloud is increasing computing flexibility(Intel, 2013; YiPeng, 2011).
The main benefits of cloud computing adoption, as software as a service, in industry and
particularly in supply chain systems listed below:
 Cost
Cloud computing software has lower operational and maintenance costs than the
traditional software. Cloud software allows users to allocate and de-allocate
resources according to the demand. In addition, using cloud computing services cuts
down the hardware/software maintenance costs as the service provider is
responsible. Staff training costs are also reduced as there is no need to train staff
since the provider takes care for the service operation and maintenance. Cloud
computing software’s faster deployment, minimise project start-up cost. In addition,
cloud based solutions have predictable ongoing operating expenses. Due to cloud
solutions’ lower cost, SCM can now be implemented by small businesses(Columbus,
2014).
 Speed
Cloud computing solutions have faster deployment time and also IT delays are
minimised. Faster release of new features and automatic software updates save
precious time which could be used for other tasks(Dominy, 2012).
 Scalability and flexibility:
Large amount of resources are easily accessible from data centres. Cloud services
can easily expand in order to handle high demands(IBM.com, 2009).

13. 9
 Security and risk reduction
Cloud commuting providers take care of most issues such as hardware failures.
Providers offer better expertise and they can handle faster those issues. If any
machine (laptop) damage happens the data can still be accessed as are saved on
cloud(Fox et al., 2009).
 Usability
Cloud computing has the feature to keep all the data in one location and everyone
could work on them of one central copy. The traditional way of sending files back and
forth over email repealed. With cloud everyone can work in a document at the same
time which leads to efficiency increment. Collaboration also becomes stronger as
clouds computing enable employees to chat whilst working at the same document
(Salesforce.com, 2014; Zhang et al., 2010).
Cloud Supply Chain
Cloud computing solutions have partially adopted from few organisations in order to update
their supply chain operations, and the adoption is expected to grow. Initially, organisations
prefer to apply cloud computing solutions in strategies such as Planning and Forecasting,
Transportation Management Systems (Logistics), Sourcing and Procurement. Those three
strategies are considered the most cloud-friendly (Columbus, 2014; European Supply Chain
Institute, 2014). Apart from cost reductions, by applying cloud computing solutions in SCM
companies could be benefited in many ways. Below a summary of which are the reasons
that can force businesses to adopt the latest cloud-based solutions is presented.
In an era of uncertainty consumers, demands for products and services change rapidly and
thus, business also should react rapidly if they need to meet that challenge (IBM.com, 2004).
Under current conditions, companies are more demand-driven rather than forecasting
(Dahlström & Edelman, 2013). That requires a high level of agility and flexibility. In times
where there is an increasing demand for products or services, this demand may go beyond
the business internal capacity, and consequently businesses cannot respond. The excessive
demand might last for a short period, however, in order to respond, businesses, which use
non-cloud solutions, should deploy more and more servers for the whole year to have the
necessary capacity in case of demand explosion (Damodaram, 2010). With the emergence
of cloud computing, everything around storage and data has changed (Tiwari & Jain, 2013).
Due to cloud computing new features, companies have the option to adjust their capacity and
add new customers, according to their needs, quickly and flexibly avoiding unnecessary
delays and costs (Wright, 2001). “In order to remain competitive, it is essential for suppliers
to utilize new technological advances and enter the big data game” (Loewy, 2014).
Nelson (2013) on one of his article said that: “Long business supply chains are corruptible
and can hide a multitude of crimes if no one checks for fraud or criminal activity”1
.
Companies with long supply chains, usually, are straggling with the communication between
their suppliers. Using the current supply chain management systems, communication and
information sharing between business and supplier, which might be miles away, is time
1
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/9870692/Slavery-not-horse-meat-is-the-
real-scandal-on-our-doorstep.html

14. 10
consuming which sometimes could be fatal for the business2
. The ability to share information
within the supply chain is a powerful competitive weapon (Demirkan, Keneth Hsing, &
Bandyopadhyay, 2010; Singh, 2009). Nowadays, companies should build a robust supply
chain which should not be affected by sudden events. Cloud computing solutions are able to
connect any supplier at any time transforming supply chain to more flexible in to meet the
demands or deal with the sudden events efficiently(Bossers, 2014). Agile and flexible supply
chains can minimize the impact of uncertainty (Kumar & Pradeep, 2010).
Market globalisation led business to expand worthwhile. That forced companies to develop
inventories at various locations and thus, their management became really complicate
(Lindner et al., 2010; Smith, 2012). Hence, a larger number of distributors, warehouses and
factories are in pipeline. If there is a disruption at any point of the pipeline could lead to the
whole systems disruption due to late decisions and acts. In order to deal with that situation,
companies need to work with real-time data(Dowse, 2013). Real-time and actionable data is
critical and can improve proactive decision-making to drive value across the supply
chain(Sahay & Ranjan, 2008). Cloud computing systems allow companies to analyse real-
time data and take their decision faster. Intelleflex3
is a company which providing data
visibility solutions for the cold supply chain and asset management stated that “Decisions
could only be made after the data was recorded now; all the information is available decision
can be made quickly based on real-time data shared in the cloud. In addition, real-time data
analysis can reduce company liability and risk” (Intelleflex 2012).
More literature which defines the benefits of the cloud computing adoption in supply chain,
could be found from YiPeng (2011), Tsao et al. (2010), Li, Zhang, & Chen (2012) and
Durowoju, Hing Kai, & Wang (2011).
Cloud Computing Services State-of-the-Art
The cloud computing market grows day by day. There are several cloud computing services
available for supply chain management applications. IT giants such as SAP, Oracle and JDA
offer cloud based solutions for supply chain. At July 2014, SAP introduced to the market four
new cloud-based applications to meet new challenges created by the evolution of supply
chains into demand networks4
. SAP said that: “The applications were developed to deliver
analysis and share alerts of real-time information across the end-to-end supply and demand
network, with the speed of the SAP HANA platform and fast adoption through SAP
Cloud”(SAP news, 2014). Hans Thalbauer, senior vice president, Line-of-Business Solutions
for Supply Chain, SAP reported that: “The supply chain of today must evolve to operate in
the global marketplace, and must have the tools to meet the consumer’s demand for
products in real-time” (News, 2014)
Oracle also offers a variety of cloud based applications for supply chain management. On
Oracle website, the application development team undertakes that Oracle SCM solutions
“can transform business operations by delivering: a single view for order and supply and
2
http://www.genco.com/Logistics-Articles/article.php?aid=800897640
3
http://www.intelleflex.com/index.asp
4
http://www.insidesap.com.au/Market-Insights/sap-launches-cloud-applications-for-supply-chain-trials-
of-rapid-deployment-solutions-for-erp-and-cr

15. 11
fulfilment plans across the entire enterprise.”5
JDA recently released a cloud based solution
which undertakes better customer experience. JDA’s Customer Engagement solution
manages how retailers deliver goods to their customers by providing visibility into real-time
supply chain processes6
.
On 2013, a survey showed that 75 percent of the participated enterprises use some level of
cloud computing services. Comparing the adoption rates from 2012 (67%), it is a fact that
cloud computing is impacting the market rapidly fast (Pantoja-navajas, 2012;
www.attunity.com, 2013). Considering that the percentage of companies, adopted cloud
solution for their SCM, is relatively high, would reasonably be expected to exist in the
literature few studies which prove via real examples that cloud computing solutions benefit
SCM.
There is large number of studies, though, both on Cloud Computing and SCM in the
literature; however there is limited number of studies examining them jointly. Literature
mainly presents the application of Cloud Computing in the supply chain, and its impact on
performances but only a few studies introduce the SCM concept. On top of that, as
mentioned in the previous paragraph studies which analysing the benefits from cloud
computing adoption for SCM purposes, using real examples, are missing from the literature.
5
https://www.oracle.com/applications/index.html
6
http://www.jda.com/solutions/customer-engagement/

16. 12
Methodology
Initially, the main objective of that dissertation was to develop a deep understanding of how
Cloud Computing emergence is impacting the SCM using the appropriate literature. Through
the research, a gap on literature had been identified. It has been identified that, there is a
large number of studies both on Cloud Computing and SCM in the literature; however there
are very few available examining them jointly. Literature mainly presents the application of
Cloud Computing in the supply chain, and its impact on performances but only a few studies
introduce the SCM concept. On top of that, the majority of the studies mainly focusing on the
Cloud computing potentials and how will meet SCM challenges using the theory around
Cloud computing and SCM. Few or no studies are using real examples, where cloud
computing has been adopted for SCM applications, in order to prove that SCM can be
benefited from cloud computing adoption. Aim of the dissertation is to examine how cloud
computing solutions are applied to turn supply chain management to more dynamic, using
real industry examples.
The research was designed to gain deeper understanding and provide new insight into SCM
and cloud computing in order to answer the research question. A detailed literature review
was designed to create a full picture of supply chain, supply chain management, cloud
computing and its applications. From the available bibliography, the lack of articles with real
examples of cloud computing adoption on supply chain was observed. Thus, was decided to
use case studies reports from the industry to present real example of cloud computing
adoption. The case studies type used is called descriptive and has been defined by Yin
(2002) as the type of a case study that “used to describe in details a phenomenon and the
real-life context in which it occurred.” Four case studies reports from different industries have
been carefully selected to demonstrate the benefits of cloud computing adoption on SCM.
As mentioned before, the majority of studies are presenting cloud computing potential
applications for SCM purposes and highlighting the benefits that will be gained. The potential
benefits from those studies have been collected analysed and categorized according to how
and which SCM procedures will impact. Then, using case studies reports, the benefits gained
regarding SCM by adopting cloud computing solutions have been also collected analysed
and categorized according to how and which SCM procedures was benefited. Finally, a
comparison between the proposed from literature benefits and the case studies benefits has
been made, and its results are used to answer the research question.
Case Study Philosophy
The case study is a research strategy which has the ability to deal with a full variety of data
collection methods such as archives, interviews, questionnaires, and observations (Yin,
2009). According to Rowley (2000), case study is “a research strategy which focuses on
understanding the dynamics present within single settings.” Zucker (2009) defined that “case
study report refers to a summary of a case or to the document reporting a case.” Case
studies can be used as a research tool to generate describe and test a particular theory
(Rowley, 2000; Yin, 2009). Case studies describe situations or events based on several data
sources (Eisenhardt & Graebner, 2007) and thus, case studies results could be used as
replications, contrasts, and extensions to the emerging theory (Eisenhardt, 1989; Yin, 2009).

17. 13
Case studies considered as a research method which emphasize qualitative analysis and
which mainly seeks to understand the problem being investigated (Gable, 1994).
Research Approach – Methodology Justification
Apart from the theory behind the usefulness of case studies as a research tool, several
conditions have also taken into account for the decision to use quantitative data and
particularly case studies as an ideal methodology. Through the extensive research of cloud
computing and SCM literature, observed that it would be hard, and time-consuming to
contact a primary research such as interviews. Given that cloud computing is still considering
as an immature technology for supply chain sector, only few companies have partially
adopted cloud computing for SCM purposes. Those companies are mainly huge corporations
with thousands of employees and thus, primary data collection would be tough. Companies
with relatively large turnover, given their limited time, are hard to be approached for an
interview. Since primary data collection seemed not possible, sought alternative methods to
approach the research question.
Taking account of the theory around case studies as a research tool as well as the given
primary data collection circumstances, for the purpose of that study, decided to use case
studies reports as a research tool to best approach the research question.
Research Classification
Using Collis & Hussey (2009) research classification model, in order to answer the research
question, this dissertation was designed using the following models:
Purpose
 Exploratory: as mentioned before very few earlier studies exist to present real cloud
computing applications on SCM. The dissertation is emphasising on real industry
example where cloud computing solutions has been adopted to meet specific
challenges. The aim is to detect links between literature examples and real ones in
order to answer the research question.
Process
 Qualitative research: the secondary data collection relied only on case studies reports
and the existing literature. The case study method allowed the researcher to
understand the nature and complexity of the real industry SCM challenges and how
cloud computing has been used to meet those challenges
Logic
 Deductive reasoning: the dissertation intends to present the benefits of cloud
computing applications for SCM purposes using real examples in order to test the
existing literature. One of the dissertation aims, apart from the general understanding
which is presented on literature review chapter, is to present a specific
understanding of cloud computing and its application on SCM.

18. 14
Outcome
 Applied research: The researched project has been designed to offer an integrated
picture of how cloud computing will lead to more dynamic supply chain. The picture is
a mixture of literature and practical observation. Its significance lies in that there are
very few papers which combining theoretical and practical observations.
Paradigm
 Positivism: the goal of that dissertation is to prove that cloud computing adoption will
benefit SCM. Through observations, this study, predicts that cloud computing
adoption will lead to more dynamic SCM. Even though positivism is associated with
quantitative data, it is still applicable for that dissertation. The reason, as mentioned
on case study philosophy section, is that the case study is a research strategy which
consists of a variety of data collection methods such as archives, interviews,
questionnaires, and observations. In other words it is a mixture of quantitative and
qualitative evidences and thus why positivism model was followed for that study.
Case Study Selection
The descriptive case studies report have been selected to describe in details the benefits of
using cloud computing application for SCM purposes and also to take learning from that and
generate a theory. The selection has been made after careful consideration of elements such
as, the particular industry where cloud solutions is being used and also the challenges the
particular industry had to deal with. The case studies reports are particularly analysing
distribution, transportation, service provider, manufacturing and retail industries. The supply
chain process where cloud computing solution was adopted had also taken into
consideration. The selection has been made to analyse different industries in order to gain
multiple perceptions of cloud computing and SCM practice. Also, case studies from different
industries offering a robust framework for data collection and increasing the power of the
data collection process (Remenyi, Williams, Money, & Swartz, 1998; R. Yin, 2009). Finally,
considering the variety of data that case studies reports are providing, the main aim of that
study has been achieved.
Limitations
Choy (2014), Collis & Hussey (2009), Griffin (2005), Hancock (1998), Hsieh (2004) and
Tiernry & Clemens (2006) have mentioned the qualitative research limitations. They’ve
identified three main limitations of qualitative research:
 the inability to manipulate independent variables,
 the risk of improper interpretation and,
 the lack of power to randomize.
As mentioned in a previous section, case studies have been chosen to undertake
dissertation’s aims. Case studies, though, have certain limitations identified from Collis &
Hussey (2009, Eisenhardt & Graebner (2007), Eisenhardt (1989) Rowley (2000) and Yin
(2009). They’ve mentioned that, case studies are lacking in rigor, controllability, deductibility,
repeatability and generalizability. They also mentioned that, if the researcher attempt to build
theory from case studies, that theory might be narrow and idiosyncratic. Consequently,

19. 15
they’ve mentioned that if the selected case studies have certain limitations, the results of the
research cannot be used to make generalisations.
In order to moderated research limitation, reliable and up to date resources have been used.
Building a solid literature puts the dissertation in a high position as the results validation
becoming more reliable and durable. On top of that, multiple case studies from several
industries have been used and thus make the evidence created to consider, at some point,
robust and reliable.

20. 16
Research Findings
Table 1: Case Studies Key Points
Company Industry Key challenges
Methodology-
solutions
Results
BT Telecommunicati
ons
-Improve security of
enterprise voice
networks(CISCO,
2013b)
BT Assure Analytics
cloud service, a visual
tool that identify and
mitigate voice and data
threats(CISCO, 2013b)
1) Enabled enterprise
customers to gain visibility and
control of voice network and
accelerated security problem
resolution time from weeks to
minutes.
2) Gained competitive edge as
first provider to offer single
voice and data security
visualization dashboard to
enterprise customers
globally(CISCO, 2013b)
Indoff Office product
sales and
distribution
-Provision new servers
rapidly in response to
user demands
-Support open Bring
Your Own Device
strategy for mobile users
(CISCO, 2012)
Used cloud Servers in
virtualized environment
to
1)eliminate data center
sprawl while minimizing
power usage and
2) provide redundant
backup for robust
business continuity
(CISCO, 2012)
1)Reduced power
consumption by up to 20
percent
2)Cut software maintenance
costs by 35 percent
3) Massive data storage
(CISCO, 2012)
Canadian
Pacific
Transportation Move from inefficient,
outsourced mainframe
IT
services to an in-house,
private cloud
implementation in order
to manage costs
effectively
(VCE, 2013)
Established in house
cloud servers
1) Improved system-wide
operations and customer
responsiveness
2) Reduced IT costs
(VCE, 2013)
City of
Charlotte
Government -To provide excellent
caller experience
-To reduce costs
(CISCO, 2013a)
Migrated from on-
premises servers for
communications and
contact center to cloud
services
(CISCO, 2013a)
1) Delivered excellent caller
experience to citizens
2) Freed City's IT team, it to
focus on citizen service
3) Lowered total government
cost
(CISCO, 2013a)

21. 17
The BT case study (CISCO, 2013b)
BT is one of the world’s leading telecommunications companies with customers in more than
170 countries. Their main priority is to provide quality service to their customer while
maintaining security. The hacking activity growth hit many of BT customers and thus, the
protection from the act of hacking has become a top priority. In order to address this
problem, BT IT team tried to develop “an intelligent visual data analysis engine that would
improve situational awareness and identify voice and data threats in real time”(CISCO,
2013b). After careful consideration of all the available options in the market, BT saw that the
only option which can carry out that challenge was a cloud based solution. Cloud-based
solution was the only option that could offer the best data security and voice space which
were the top requirements for BT. By adopting a cloud solution; BT became the industry that
can provide enterprise-wide security solution for both data and voice. “As the first and only
service provider to offer a single voice and data security view, BT now has a distinct
competitive advantage in the telecom market”(CISCO, 2013b). Jeff Schmidt Global Head,
Business Continuity, Security and Governance BT Global Services (CISCO, 2013b) said
about that: “Now we can offer our customers enterprise-wide voice security, regardless of
their service provider. We can give them utmost visibility and control of one of the largest
assets that they have in their corporation.”
The Indoff case study (CISCO, 2012)
Indoff is a leading organisation in Material Handling, Commercial Interiors, Business
Products, Promotional Products, Commercial Printing, Appliances, and Energy
Solutions(CISCO, 2012). As company’s customers begin to increase, Indoff was suffering
from data center sprawl. Indoff deployed a large number of serves to overcome that situation.
However, those servers were running a huge number of applications and the IT department
dealt with control issues. As company’s customers continued to increase year by year, that
lack of control was becoming more intense. Indoff also had to deal with one more challenge.
Indoff established the Bring Your Own Device service which allows sales professionals to
work based on their individual needs. In other words, mobile users can access their email
and business application from any device they prefer such an iPad, Android tablet,
smartphone, or laptop. That application requires massive data storage and security and
Indoff servers could not afford that. By the time, Cisco introduced cloud servers that seemed
the only solution which could afford the massive storage need and also could provide the
appropriate data control. Indoff decided to take the risk and invest on new technology.
Today, 90 percent of Indoff’s IT architecture runs on Cisco cloud servers(CISCO, 2012).
Indoff created a flexible, scalable private cloud system which has reduced power
consumption by up to 20 percent. Apart from the data storage capacity, the biggest gained
benefit by establishing a private cloud is the speed. In response to user demands, the cloud
solution allows Indoff’s IT to create an additional server up within a day rather than in four-
weeks that used to be before. Cloud servers also create data backup and write all of the data
to disk. Indoff IT manager(CISCO, 2012) said that: “Now, we’re actually prepared for that
ultimate disaster in which everything just disappears.”

22. 18
The Canadian Pacific case study (VCE, 2013)
Canadian Pacific is a railway organisation, operating in Canada and the U.S., with direct links
to eight major ports(VCE, 2013). Canadian Pacific future goal was to grow its share of
profitable intermodal traffic. They recognised that in order to achieve their goal they had to
develop a more responsive supply chain management which could manage cost more
effective, streamline processes and deliver higher quality. They knew that they had to
develop faster, more agile and quicker supply chain in order to respond customer
requirements. After evaluating various options company chose to move to in-house private
cloud implementation. Today, SCM procedures such as inventory scheduling, tracking
solution, financial applications and customer relationship management are running on
cloud(VCE, 2013). Due to cloud implementation Canadian Pacific is already seeing huge
improvement in productivity as well as in customer satisfaction as is now be able to respond
on customers’ requirements on 24x7. Considering that, the new cloud system offers flexibility
and simplified provisioning capabilities, Canadian Pacific can grow and mature faster in order
to keep pace with customer needs. It also important that Canadian Pacific doesn’t really
worry for data security as if an incident occurs at one data center, the company will be able
to quickly bring up the other.
The City of Charlotte case study (CISCO, 2013a)
The City of Charlotte, North Carolina established cloud services in order to provide more
efficient citizen service as well as public safety. The occasion was the selection of the city to
host the 2012 Democratic National Convention. Given that the City had only 18 months to
complete the necessary tasks to support the 2012 Democratic National Convention, it had to
act quickly and efficiently. Bellverie Ross, senior program manager for the City of
Charlotte(CISCO, 2013a), speculated that the City’s contact center would receive huge
number of phone calls, as during the Democratic National Convention 50,000 delegates,
members of the press, and visitors would be in the city. The City saw that challenge as an
opportunity to develop its telecommunication infrastructure, not only for the 2012 Democratic
National Convention, but also for its imminent economic growth.
The City asked industry analysts for their recommendations, and after careful consideration
of all the available options, the City decided to migrate from on-going premises systems to
cloud services. Now the City is able to provide a variety of integrated services for its citizens
such as the new bill payment system via telephone. Through the new telecommunication
system, residences can now get informed for their balance owed and payment due dates
with just a call; as all their records are stored in the cloud. The City’s contact centers
remained also available for residents and visitors so they could obtain information at 24 hour
basis(CISCO, 2013a).
Although cost savings were not the primary driver for the hosted premises in cloud, the City
saw a significant reduction of government’s services cost. In addition, City’s IT departments
are focusing on new projects rather than spending time on telecommunication systems
maintenance. As a future plan, the City has decided to invest and transfer all its services to

23. 19
cloud premises, in order to increase its operational efficiency and to improve citizen
satisfaction(CISCO, 2013a).

24. 20
Data Analysis
That study is researching on how the leverage of cloud computing leads to more dynamic
supply chain management. In order the research question to be approached in the best
possible way, it was decided to combine the available literature review, on cloud computing
and SCM, and four industry examples, where cloud computing has been adopted for SCM
purposes. Current economic conditions are rising market uncertainty and under those
circumstances, organisations should take steps to address market’s fluctuations. Developing
a more dynamic SCM will help organisations to survive from the unpredictable market
fluctuations. The dynamic SCM is crucial and is the only way organisations to stay
competitive. Number of studies suggests that cloud computing is the only available
technology can transform SCM to more dynamic. Studies ought organisations to apply cloud
computing solutions for SCM purposes in order to become more dynamic.
Literature Review Analysis
The first stage of dissertation was to develop a deeper understanding on how SCM can
become more dynamic. Literature review chapter attempted to give a detailed picture on
terms such as supply chain, supply chain management, cloud computing and cloud supply
chain. Data analysis chapter attempts to combine the available studies on cloud computing
with industry examples in order to discuss cloud computing potentials on SCM. The benefits
of cloud computing solutions are many, and it is very difficult analyse them all, although most
of them are presented in summary on literature review chapter. Thus, the data analysis
chapter is mainly discussing how cloud computing improves SCM visibility and customer
relationship management through real time data analysis.
Through an extensive research on the available studies, that dissertation identified that,
analysing data in real time is the organisations biggest challenge. If organisations manage to
analysing data in real time would improve their SCM efficiency. Most organisations own SCM
software that is struggling to analyse real time data. On literature review chapter there is a
detailed analysis of those software mentioning why they cannot meet the real time data
need. Cloud computing software, on the other hand, can analyse real time data. In the
market there are several cloud based solutions which mentioned on literature review chapter.
According to the available studies on cloud computing and SCM, if organisations adopt cloud
computing solutions for their SCM, activities such as planning and forecasting, distribution
and inventory will dramatically become more efficient. Studies identified that dealing with real
time data for those particular SCM activities will benefit an organisation in many different
ways. Analysing real time data will greatly affect organisations with big retail supply chains.
From one hand, retailers need to ensure they have the right product, in the right location, at
the right time. On the other hand, organisations need to track profitability, on-time delivery,
and customer feedback. That requires systems with real-time intelligence and only cloud
computing applications can offer that potential.
Through the research, has been identified that organisations today lack in supply chain
visibility, accuracy and collaboration. In order to address those issues, organisations can
establish cloud platforms. Cloud platforms provide real time connection to every part of
supply chain, spreading information around the supply chain. Every part could access that
information anytime and thus, companies can improve their supply chain visibility and

25. 21
collaboration. All organisations’ partners, suppliers and retailers would be on the same
platform and thus, the efficient collaboration between them will dramatically increase.
Through cloud platforms, organisations will increase their customer engagement as they will
provide a transparent view of their whole system. Engaging customer network will help
organisations to manage many different customers faster so they can improve their customer
service. Putting the entire supply chain network on the same page will increase rapidly the
businesses responsiveness. Real time platforms, also, facilitate companies’ accuracy as it
allows them to manage their inventory and products shipments. Logistics tracking is
becoming more accurate as cloud platforms can keep companies and customers informed
through real time updates.
Establishing a dynamic SCM requires agility. Companies recognise that in order to survive
under the current market conditions dominated by uncertainty, they should develop agiler
SCM. Cloud computing has the potential to improve SCM agility thanks to its compatibility
and simplicity. By establishing external cloud servers, organisations could easily add or
remove very fast any customer or any supplier/partner. Market fluctuations could be easily
addressed with cloud based solution and thus, companies will not rely that much on market
forecasting. In addition, a dynamic SCM could significantly improve organisations decision
making. Cloud computing platforms allow organisation to solve complex problems agile and
fast. Aspects such as data security and capacity are equally important and are improving
SCM performance as well.
The depth research of the available studies on cloud computing and supply chain, allows the
author to develop its view of how cloud computing leads to more dynamic supply chain.
Based on the available literature and authors opinion, the adoption of cloud computing is the
only solution leads to more dynamic supply chain. However, in order to strengthen and
expand author’s opinion, that dissertation is analysing four different examples from the
industry where different organisations have established cloud computing solutions for their
SCM.
The previous chapter is presenting in details the major challenges which every organisation
faced; the selected solutions and the benefits of that particular solution. That chapter is
attempting to analyse thoroughly every case in order to show how cloud computing improves
SCM.
Case Studies Analysis
BT Case Study
BT’s main challenge was to provide quality service to their customer by improving voice and
data security. They identified that the only way to do that was to be able to collect and
analyse real-time data, and thus they chose to adopt cloud based solutions for their network.
Before discuss the benefits gained from that, it is useful to discuss what the available
literature on cloud computing says about how cloud computing can address that challenge.
Several studies mention that cloud computing can increase data security and reduce
significantly the risks. Cloud computing allows organisations to save their data on cloud
servers and so, if any devise damage the data are going to be still accessible as are also
saved on organisations cloud servers and not only on the damaged device. Studies also

26. 22
mention that organisations who will select to run a public cloud model they don’t have to care
about any software issues as the cloud provider company would take care of it. Cloud
providers have more experience and they can handle any software or hardware issues faster
than companies. As a result, companies will increase dramatically their responsiveness and
speed. As mentioned on literature review analysis sector, cloud computing solutions will
improve organisations decision making as it allows them to analyse real-time data and take
their decision faster.
Going back to case study, it is observed that what studies mention about the potential
benefits of cloud computing solutions, is confirmed. BT announced that by the adoption of
cloud computing solutions they managed to improve their services as they can provide
systems with better visibility and data security. BT also, became the first provider which can
offer voice and data security to its customers which has increased rapidly its sales and
customer satisfaction.
Indoff Case Study
Indoff’s major challenge was to create an agile, flexible and highly responsive system which
can provide new servers rapidly in response to user demands. Indoff identified that with their
existing system was extremely hard to control their servers as every time user demand was
high they had to add new server in the system. Servers’ number increased dramatically and
the power consumption was really high. Due to high server number, Indoff was lacking in
data security also. In addition, Indoff’s Bring Your Own Device service requires high data
security and the existing system couldn’t offer that. Indoff decided to completely change its
system by establishing cloud servers. Many studies available on literature mention the
benefits of cloud servers and it would be useful, before analyse the case study, to review
those benefits.
Scalability and flexibility are really important potentials of cloud computing. Scalability means
that the cloud computing service could be highly adjustable by its user at any point in time.
For instance, if an organisation needs more capacity to storage data, with just a minor
command could expand its system capacity. The same happens when an organisation needs
less capacity. Cloud computing solution can offer great flexibility to the user as it has the
ability to adjust computing power according to users’ needs. Cloud computing system also
offer high data control. Cloud servers could act like data distribution centers and control data
bandwidth and traffic efficiently. As mentioned on BT case cloud computing can also offer
great data security.
Indoff completely transformed its system by adopting cloud servers. The case study
mentions that the greatest benefit gained is speed as Indoff can now spin up new servers
really fast. Usability of Indoff system has increased highly. Now, all the data are saved in one
location and everyone can have access and work on them. The new system has the ability to
keep only one central copy and everyone can work on that at the same time. Due to that,
Indoff’s Bring Your Own Device service became more friendly and intelligent as it enables
employees to chat whilst working at the same document. Indoff also announce that, because
of the new system, they managed to reduce system’s maintenance cost and power
consumption.

27. 23
Canadian Pacific Case Study
Canadian Pacific major challenge was to manage their cost effectively and be more
responsive to its customers. Canadian Pacific faced with growing competitive challenges and
they identified that in order to stay ahead of its competitors they should develop faster, more
agile, and more responsive SCM. Canadian Pacific also recognised that it had to develop the
relationship between the company and their customers. After careful consideration of all the
available options, Canadian Pacific decided to deploy cloud based solutions for several SCM
activities such as inventory scheduling, tracking solution, financial applications and customer
relationship management.
Through the extensive research that dissertation identified that running SCM activities, such
as inventory scheduling, tracking solution and customer relationship management, on cloud
could rapidly increase customer satisfaction and productivity. Customer relationship
management activity is great of importance especially today where companies are more
demand driven. Implementing customer relationship management on cloud platforms
enables organisations to track customers’ interactions, for a particular product or service,
really fast. Not only that, but customers relationship management platform allows companies
to track any data, such as orders, discounts, competitors and much more. As customer
management relationship platforms offers a dynamic working system with little cost,
companies can increase customer satisfaction, act faster and become more efficient while
reducing their costs.
Inventory management activity, also, became really important today. Most of companies are
using RFID7
technology in order to track or identify a product. Integrate RFID technology with
cloud data management system offers a unique potential. Companies can track any object at
any point of their supply chain. Tracking the items/goods at any point across the supply chain
could considerably reduce order mistakes and consequently increase companies’ efficiency.
Case study mentions that Canadian Pacific has dramatically improved system operations
and customer responsiveness while reducing IT costs. By transforming their SCM system
into cloud, Canadian Pacific managed to develop an agile, flexible and more dynamic supply
chain. Companies’ customer satisfaction increased significantly due to customer relationship
management cloud platform, which enables the company to deal with customers’
requirements in 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Canadian Pacific now is running a highly
dynamic and responsive SCM which can mitigate the impact of uncertainty. The company
has announced that is already seeing 30% improvement in productivity. The companies’ data
are all saved on cloud servers and so they do not have to worry about any unexpected
incident.
The City of Charlotte Case Study
The city of Charlotte established cloud based solutions to its telecommunication system in
order to provide great experience and fast service for its citizens. City of Charlotte is not
profitable organisation and that proves that cloud computing solutions could benefit users in
many other ways apart from profit. The city of Charlotte had been selected to host the 2012
Democratic National Convention. The City’s contact centers had to support higher call
7
RFID (radio frequency identification) is a technology that uses radio frequency electromagnetic fields
in order to identify an object. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/rfid

28. 24
volume than normal. The City, observed that its current telecommunications system can only
support certain call volume and that would decrease contact centers efficiency and speed.
Also, City’s IT department wasn’t experienced enough to handle any unexpected issue
during the event. Thus, City decided to implement external cloud servers which can increase
contact centers speed and responsiveness. The City saw that challenge as a way to invest
on a service that, in the future, would benefit its own citizens’ experience as well.
Analysing the available studies on cloud computing, speed and responsiveness are elements
that can dramatically increase through cloud based systems as cloud based solutions have
the ability to minimise IT delays. As mentioned before, cloud servers can be an ideal data
distribution center allowing users to access data faster. Another aspect which is important to
be mentioned is that, organisations with either low IT experienced or without IT department
can implement cloud servers without worrying about its maintenance. Those particular
organisations can implement external cloud servers and that implies that cloud providers
would take care of any hardware or software issue.
After implementing cloud solution, the city of Charlotte benefited in several ways. The City
managed not only to carry out the event successfully, but also to develop a
telecommunication system which could deliver an integrate caller experience to citizens for
the future. The time which used to be needed to serve a caller has reduced significantly and
also the telecommunication system can serve more callers at the same time. Therefore,
citizens’ satisfaction has increased dramatically, as case study mentions. In addition,
assigning implementation and maintenance of the telecommunication platforms in external
cloud providers, City’s IT team can now focus on citizens’ service. The City also announced
that its total annual costs have already reduced by US$100,000.
Main Challenges
Through the research on how cloud computing could turn SCM to more dynamic, number of
challenges have been identified. As the main objective of that dissertation is to analyse the
benefits of cloud computing solutions in SCM, there is only a short reference of the main
challenges.
 Collaboration: Cloud supply chain links together all the organisations’ partners,
retailers and suppliers. Considering that many organisations have large number of
participating partners, to link them on the same platform could create complexities
and control issues(Lindner et al., 2011).
 Competitiveness: Especially large corporations are using unique SCM in order to
distinguish themselves from their competitors. Those organisations want to ensure
that by transforming their existing SCM into cloud one would retain their uniqueness
and would also keep their competitive advantage(McCrea, 2013).
 Security: Saving all companies data in one central location which could be accessible
from anyone could lead to lost intellectual property. A central server where important
data would be stored, its likely to be targeted from hackers (Choo, 2010).

29. 25
Conclusion
This dissertation was set out to explore how the leverage of cloud computing leads to more
dynamic supply chain management. By using the available literature and real industry
examples, this dissertation sought to create an integrated picture of how cloud computing
can impact supply chain management.
Through literature review and case studies analysis is proven that cloud computing can
dramatically improve SCM performance. Case studies are proven in practice that cloud
computing can be implemented at any stage of the SCM. While researching the available
literature on cloud computing, the author identified that cloud computing could completely
change the world and particularly the SCM activity. The case studies came to prove that,
what literature says about cloud computing potentials is completely feasible if organisations
take the necessary steps to move into the cloud. For example, adopting cloud for SCM
activities such as customer relationship management could dramatically increase customer
satisfaction. Implementing cloud computing solutions could also improve communication and
collaboration across the whole supply chain.
The study offers a new insight into how cloud computing impact SCM. However, encounters
a number of limitations that need to be mentioned. The study used only secondary data and
consequently the research quality is heavily dependent on researcher's knowledge and
interpretation(Watt, 2007). Research findings relied only on the available literature and four
case studies. Hence, the findings might be valid only for those particular case studies.
Moreover, there is a minor possibility that the results may differ if another researcher
replicates the study using qualitative data (Mack, Cynthia, Kathleen, Greg, & Emily, 2005).
Authors Predictions and Further Studies
After extensive research on cloud computing and SCM, the author predicts that in the near
future all organisations are going to adopt cloud computing in order to improve their SCM
performance.
Finally, this dissertation can be a point of reference for future studies as it presenting in
details how cloud computing can benefits SCM. As an expansion of this dissertation could be
a new study which could interview organisations, which already adopted cloud computing, in
order to identify particular SCM cloud computing applications in more details. A study where
mentioning in more details the major challenges and barriers of cloud computing adoption for
SCM could also be a potential expansion.

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