The BAR's special issue: The Role of Supply Chain in Accounting and Finance Research - Call for Papers

Call for Papers

The British Accounting Review Special Issue and Workshop

The Role of Supply Chain in Accounting and Finance Research

Overview and Rationale

The supply chain linkage has become a critical economic lifeline for modern corporations. With the participation of various parties, including suppliers, buyers, carriers, financial institutions, and technology providers, managers strive to coordinate the alignment of cash flows with product and information flows within the supply chain to enhance efficient cash flow management (Wuttke et al., 2013) and maximize the valuation of participating companies (Pfohl and Gomm, 2009). This close working relationship leads to a heavy dependence on each other for revenue, prompting firms to invest significantly in cultivating their customer-supplier relationship. Nonetheless, the recent events of the COVID-19 global pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war have highlighted the vulnerability of this linkage to severe disruptions from public crisis and geopolitical risk, as well as market conditions and regulatory shifts, causing substantial losses, risks, and uncertainty throughout the supply chain (Ernst & Young research, 2023). The scope of supply chain linkage extends beyond operational activities to encompass financial decisions, accounting functions, and other related functions. Therefore, a thorough analysis of the complex and dynamic relationships between corporations and their trading partners along the supply chain is crucial to fully understand various corporate policies and decisions.

In the current post-pandemic economy, the dynamic and uncertain nature of supply chain relationships has become increasingly important. To manage these relationships effectively, firms are utilizing advanced technologies, such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and advanced analytics, while also responding to stakeholder demands by implementing sustainable practices in their production and sourcing processes (MIT, 2020). At the same time, firms are faced with geopolitical uncertainties and environmental risks. The high degree of economic interdependence between firms and their trading partners underscores the crucial influence of supply chain relationships on shaping corporate outcomes and decisions. The effects of these new challenges and developments on the role of supply chain relationships in the corporate decision-making process remain underexplored and warrant further research in accounting, finance, business, and other disciplines.

A Survey of the Literature

The origins of supply chain finance research are in the 1970s with studies examining how changes in trade credit and inventory policies affect cash flows (Budin and Eapen, 1970) and the correlation between inventory policy and trade credit financing (Haley and Higgins, 1973). Earlier research also investigates the influence of a firm’s interactions with its customers and suppliers on its optimal capital structure (Titman, 1984; Titman and Wessels, 1988). In recent years, there has been a growing interest in supply chain research, with a focus on multidisciplinary approaches that encompass operations management, production economics, and logistics. These disciplines recognize the pivotal role of supply chain in streamlining and ensuring a firm's efficient operation, as demonstrated by a multitude of literature reviews in these fields (Gelsomino et al., 2016; Xu et al., 2018; Parida et al., 2021; and Zhou et al., 2022).?

There has also been a growing interest in supply chain in the economics, finance, and accounting disciplines on whether and how economic linkages facilitate shock or risk transmission along the supply chain, including systematic risk (Osadchiy et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2021), idiosyncratic shocks caused by natural disasters (Barrot and Sauvagnat, 2016; Hendricks et al., 2020), credit risk (Agca et al., 2021), productivity spillovers (Serpa and Krishnan,2017), macroeconomic shocks (Kesavan and Kushwaha, 2014), and weather-related shocks (Pankratz and Schiller, 2023). Other studies report that firms suffer from lower sales and profits after major customers have experienced a bankruptcy (Houston et al., 2016), horizontal mergers and acquisitions (Fee and Thomas, 2004), an increase in customer or supplier unionization (Chen et al., 2021; Leung et al., 2020), a corporate income tax increase (Fang et al., 2021), a CEO turnover (Intintoliet al., 2017), and socially responsible activities (Arya and Mittendorf, 2015). These studies underscore the substantial externalities that firms face as a result of their relationships with their supply-chain counterparts. Furthermore, several studies explore the strategic advantages that firms gain from their associations with their supply chain partners, including tax avoidance (Cen et al., 2017), the spillover effect on suppliers from a trading partner's initial public offering (Kutsuna et al., 2016), the impact of payment schemes on a firm’s inventory decisions (Chen et al., 2013), and the effect of supply chain risks on firm capital investment and partnerships (Ersahin et al., 2022a).

A particular strand of accounting and finance studies focus on firms’ trade credit decisions, a vital aspect of supply chain management. Major theoretical contributions to this area include Ferris (1981), Cun?at (2007), and Fabbri and Menichini (2010). Several empirical studies have investigated the role of factoring in financing small and medium firms (Klapper, 2006), the influence of supplier bargaining power on trade credit supply (Fabbri and Klapper, 2016), the use of trade credit as an alternative source of funds for firms in inadequately developed financial markets (Fisman and Love, 2003), the relationship between trust and trade credit provision (Wu et al., 2014), the effects of supplier competition on trade credit financing (Chod et al., 2019), the correlation between monopoly power and credit provision (Fisman and Raturi, 2004), trade credit stabilization of production networks (Ersahin et al., 2022b), and trade credit extension (Petersen and Rajan, 1997).

The economic implications of major customers or customer base concentration have been a significant issue in the context of the supply chain. While a concentrated customer base has been linked to higher accounting returns (Patatoukas, 2012), evidence also suggests lower supplier profitability and higher customer profitability (Hui et al., 2019), inferior firm performance during increasing policy uncertainty (Leung et al., 2021), and a higher cost of equity and debt capital (Dhaliwal et al., 2016; Campello and Gao, 2017). Furthermore, a concentrated customer base can influence CEO compensation (Chen et al., 2022), litigation?related information disclosure (Cen et al., 2018), corporate misconduct (Chen et al., 2023), and social performance (Dai et al., 2021). While some studies have investigated the factors that determine customer base concentration, there is still a need for further research to better understand the reasons behind firms’ decisions to diversify or narrow down their customer base (Leung et al., 2021).

Objective and Scope

The purpose of this Special Issue in?The?British Accounting Review?is to offer a forum for scholars in the accounting, finance, and other fields to explore the implications of supply chain relationships for firm performance, strategies, and decision-making processes, especially given the current dynamic state of globalization, digitalization, climate change, and geopolitical risk. The proposed special issue provides a platform for BAR to assemble cutting-edge research from various fields that explores, both theoretically and empirically, various aspects of supply chain management. We encourage submissions of fully-developed papers from authors with an interest in supply chain. Possible topics for this special issue include, but are not limited to:

·???????Firms’ resilience during supply-chain disruptions;

·???????The geopolitical risks involved in supply chain management;

·???????Supply chain management during the COVID-19 pandemic;

·???????ESG and sustainability of supply chain partners;

·???????Climate risk and green supply chain finance;

·???????The impact of global pandemics or epidemics on supply chain management;

·???????The influence of big data, digitalization and FinTech on supply chain management;

·???????Strategic considerations for supply chain financing;

·???????The propagation of shocks throughout the supply chain;

·???????The formation and termination of supply-chain relationships;

·???????The implications of customer base concentration for firm performance and policies;

·???????The factors that determine customer base concentration;

·???????The relationship between trade credit, supply chain flexibility, and firm performance;

·???????The factors that influence the use of trade credit;

·???????The financial reporting and information disclosure related to supply chain partners;

·???????Relationship-specific investment;

·???????The role of financial analysts and auditors in supply chain management;

·???????The credit risk associated with supply chain participants;

·???????The disclosure of a firm’s customer and supplier information and identities;

·???????The effects of concentrated customer and supplier power;

·???????Currency risks in supply chain management;

·???????Operational risks, technology failures, and data breaches in supply chain management;

·???????Legal and compliance issues associated with supply chain partners;

·???????Other relevant issues such as supply chain management in specific industries, including the retail sector or the manufacturing sector.

About The British Accounting Review (BAR)

The British Accounting Review?(BAR, https://ees.elsevier.com/bar/), established in 1969, is the official journal of the British Accounting and Finance Association. With a 2020 CiteScore of 7 and Impact Factor of 5.577, BAR ranks highly among accounting journals, taking the 2nd and 3rd places, respectively. Furthermore, BAR holds a 3rd place ranking and an A* rating from the Chartered Association of Business Schools Academic Journal Guide and the Australian Business Deans Council Journal Quality List.

Guest Editors

Mark Jacobs , Professor of Operations and Supply Management, University of Dayton, USA

Woon Sau Leung , Senior Lecturer in Finance, The University of Edinburgh Business School, UK

Masyuka Susai , Professor of International Finance, Shiga University, Japan

Jeffrey Zhang , Professor of Finance, University of Dayton, USA

Ralf Zurbrugg , Professor of Finance and Business Analytics, University of Adelaide, Australia

Academic Committee:

Dr Tracey Dodd , Senior Lecturer in Management, University of Adelaide, Australia

Mark Jacobs, Professor of Operations and Supply Management, University of Dayton, USA

Hugo Lam , Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management, University of Liverpool, UK

Duc Khuong Nguyen , Professor of Finance, IPAG Business School (Paris), France

Woon Sau Leung, Senior Lecturer in Finance, The University of Edinburgh Business School, UK

Masayuki Susai, Professor of International Finance, Shiga University, Japan

Jiong Sun , Associate Professor of Supply Chain Management, Purdue University, USA

Shuo Wang , Lecturer in Financial Accounting, The University of Edinburgh Business School, UK

Qun Wu, Associate Professor of Finance, University of Nevada at Reno, USA

Wantao Yu , Professor of Supply Chain Management, University of Roehampton London, UK

Ting Zhang, Professor of Finance, University of Dayton, USA

Xiaofan Zheng, Professor of Finance, University of Manitoba, Canada

@Ralf Zurbruegg, Professor of Finance and Business Analytics, University of Adelaide, Australia

Manuscript Submission Information:

Authors are encouraged to initially submit their work for consideration to be part of an online paper development workshop, organized by the University of Adelaide. Guest editors and academic committee members will provide feedback to those authors who attend the workshop. The workshop is free to attend and has no registration fee. While participation in the online workshop is not mandatory, it may assist authors develop their work prior to the journal submission deadline. The workshop submission deadline is January 1, 2024, with the workshop scheduled for March 1, 2024. Potential contributors are requested to submit their work by the deadline to the email:[email protected].

The submission deadline for the special issue of BAR is June 1, 2024. Only fully developed papers will be considered for the special issue of the BAR. All manuscripts must adhere to the journal's standards for original contributions and publishing quality, and will undergo a rigorous double-blind review process.?

For any inquiries regarding the submission process, please feel free to email:[email protected].?

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