Implementing Supplier Relationship Management in the Manufacturing Sector of Ghana: A Factor And Principal Component Analysis

Abstract

This study investigated how to implement Supplier Relationship Management to the manufacturing sector of Ghana; using selected manufacturing companies the in Eastern and Volta regions of Ghana as case study. Accelerated product cycles, vastly more sophisticated supply chains, rapid pace of process and systems change, and the need to work seamlessly with offshore suppliers have made effective supplier relationship management more demanding and more critical than ever before. However in Ghana, it has remained an uncharted territory for most manufacturing firms in Ghana. It was therefore important to assess how to implement SRM in the manufacturing sector of Ghana. The case studies for this study were the management of Volta Star Company Ltd, Akosombo Textiles and the Intravenous infusions Limited. Based on the simple random, purposive, and quota sampling techniques 60 managers from these companies were sampled. Their views were analysed with Factor Analysis and Principal Component Analysis. These tools were used to establish the relative importance of the SRM elements in their applicability to the manufacturing sector of the country. The relative importance of the elements of SRM to the Ghanaian manufacturing sector appeared in the following order: Resourcing, Technology, Segmentation, Accountability, and Process and governance. This is the order of priority that must be given to the SRM elements in the implementation plans of manufacturing firms in Ghana.

Keywords: SRM, Resourcing, Accountability, Process and Governance, Segmentation