Chain coordinators’ strategic leadership and coordination effectiveness: New Zealand-Euro agri-food supply chains

Abstract

Purpose - Although suitable leadership styles are crucial for chain coordinators (CEOs,managing directors and head of departments) to achieve the effectiveness of supply chain coordination (operational and social performances contributing to financial performance), the potential caveats in New Zealand-Euro agri-food supply chains are the lack of theoretical as well as empirical investigations that scrutinize the linkages between leadership styles, their interactions and the effectiveness of supply chain coordination. The purpose of this study is therefore to address the above knowledge gap. Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation modeling and interaction effects are applied to the data collected from chain coordinators working in the selected New Zealand-Euro agri-food supply chains (dairy, meat, fruits and vegetables). Findings – The results indicate that a participative leadership style is more strongly correlated with the effectiveness of supply chain coordination than a directive leadership style. The directive style is also significant, which leads towards the adaption of strategic leadership practices. Interaction effects further conclude that companies perform better when their chain coordinators apply strategic leadership practices. Moreover, operational (service quality and product quality) and social (trust in and satisfaction with supply chain partners) performances are the key determinants of financial performance (increased sales, profit and market share). Practical implications – The results enhance the understanding of chain coordinators and help them to achieve coordination effectiveness among agri-food supply chain partners. Thereby, it directs to establish the best practices for contemporary international agri-food supply chains. Originality/value – This study provides in-depth analysis to develop a comprehensive theoretical framework, which helps to confirm the complicated linkages between the underlying constructs with the specific characteristics of New Zealand-Euro agri-food supply chains. Consequently, the results also clarify the earlier ambiguous findings from other industries and countries.