Abstract

Addressing most supply chain issues usually require the production of some form of representational maps. Producing such maps, however, is not a straightforward task. There are significant challenges to developing these maps, and most mapping methodologies also have major limitations. The result is that these maps frequently mispresent the supply chain, contribute to erroneous conclusions being drawn, and lead to sub-optimal solutions and outcomes. In this seminar, I use several case studies from my own research to demonstrate the manifestation of these issues. The seminar concludes with the proposal of a research agenda that seeks to address the shortcomings of the current mapping approaches and move this vital area onto stronger foundations for research and practice purposes.