Supply Risk Mitigation and Organizational Competitiveness of Indigenous Shipping Firms in Nigeria

Abstract

Purpose: This study examined of the relationship between supplier risk mitigation and competitiveness of indigenous shipping firms in Nigeria. Methods: The study adopted an explanatory research design and collected primary data in a cross-sectional survey. 3,608 registered indigenous shipping firms constituted the population of the study. The Krejcie and Morgan (1970) Table for sample size determination was relied upon to derive a sample size of 351. A structured questionnaire was used to collect primary data. The reliability of the instrument was confirmed via the Cronbach’s alpha test. The Spearman’s rank order correlation served as test statistic; and was facilitated by the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0. Findings: The study found that supplier risk mitigation relates with competitiveness of indigenous shipping firms. This is because supplier risk mitigation showed positive and statistically significant relationship with all the proxies of competitiveness. Implications to Theory, Practice and Policy: The study concludes that supplier risk mitigation relates to competitiveness; and that competitiveness of indigenous shipping firms in terms of responsiveness, operational flexibility, operational efficiency and market leadership depend on supplier risk mitigation. Hence, the study recommends indigenous shipping firms in Nigeria should Institute measures like switching suppliers, product substitution, shifting orders among suppliers, and bridging and buffering strategies to eliminate or reduce the occurrence of, or impact of supply risks.