Examining possible antecedents of IT impact on the supply chain and its effect on firm performance

Our study examined the impact of information technology (IT) on the supply chain through a survey of 225 large for-profit US firms. Specifically, it involved the determination of IT antecedents to IT impact on the supply chain and the effect that these relationships had on overall firm performance. The respondents were primarily chief information officers and other top IT executives. The factors in the study were validated using confirmatory factor analysis. A model featuring the IT antecedents, IT impact on the supply chain, and firm performance was evaluated using a structural equation analysis. The data used fit well with the hypothesized relationships in the model, as all links were significant. The findings here suggested that the antecedents, IT department technical quality, IT plan utilization, and top management of IT positively affected IT impact on the supply chain. The results also revealed a positive relationship between IT impact and firm performance. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.