A knowledge management architecture in collaborative supply chain

Recent advances in the field of computer networks and Internet have increased the significance of electronic commerce. Through electronic networks, companies can achieve integration by tightly coupling processes at the interfaces between each stage of the value chain. Electronic linkages in the value chain have been fundamentally changing the nature of inter-organizational relationships. Organizations are redesigning their internal structure and their external relationships, creating knowledge networks to facilitate communication of data, information, and knowledge, while improving coordination, decision making, and planning. This study is devoted to examining the types of knowledge flow in collaborative supply chain, and proposing a knowledge management architecture to facilitate knowledge management in collaborative supply chain. Three cases are presented to outline how different industries build their e-business model under different architectures. Also, knowledge flows are discussed in these e-business models. These case studies reveal the benefits that organizations can achieve through the implementation of electronic commerce technologies in collaborative supply chain. The results also show that different network type of supply chain, the amount of transaction, and the main collaborative function in the supply chain will lead to different type of knowledge flow and the tools adopted, and ultimately different knowledge management system.