The restructuring of international supply chains due to geopolitical fragmentation & disruptions : A qualitative study on how Swedish SMEs are restucturing international supply chains.

Sammanfattning

After several decades characterized by increased globalization and international trade, which has created opportunities for firms to reach new customers and suppliers. Wars, conflicts, and the COVID-19 pandemic has challenged this trajectory. Increased geopolitical fragmentation and disruptions have forced firms to re-evaluate their supply chain strategies as traditional supply chain strategies focusing on operational efficiency and cost efficiency have proven to be vulnerable to disruptions and tensions. This has led to the increased adoption of strategies aimed at increasing resiliency and robustness of international supply chains. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have been particularly vulnerable, since their lack of financial and human resources has limited them to anticipate, make informed decisions and respond to external events. In this thesis, a qualitative method has been used, and theoretical data related to the topic was collected and reviewed as the theoretical foundation of the thesis. Based on previous literature on the subject, five dimensions emerged which formed the conceptual framework for empirical findings and analysis: risk perception, strategic responses, constraints, enablers, and outcomes & trade-offs. These themes are reoccurring throughout the thesis post the literature review and forms the red thread of the thesis, all being relevant to explore and form an understanding of how Swedish SMEs are restructuring their international supply chains due to geopolitical fragmentation and disruptions, the dimensions of the conceptual framework are also there to form an understanding of why the firms are implementing the strategies they do. The empirical data collection was conducted through interviewing seven people from seven different manufacturing SMEs, all working within purchasing. The data was then thematically analyzed and coded. The thesis finds and concludes that Swedish SMEs have increasingly proactively adopted resilient supply chain strategies to mitigate risks associated with geopolitical fragmentation and disruptions. The most significant strategies being diversification through multi-sourcing and multi-shoring, regionalization, strengthened supplier relationships, proactive risk management, and inventory buffer stocks.