Information technology decisions, operations management and change: RFID and supply chain collaboration

There is a growing need for supply chain partners to work together in improving their

performance and systems of operation. New information and communication technologies

can be used to improve operations and facilitate closer relationships, but they also have the

potential to undermine relations and create tensions. RFID’s represent the first major

improvement in traceability technologies that potentially supersedes barcodes. Our study

develops a simulation model that moves beyond a purely technical analysis of RFID

integration, towards an assessment that is also able to accommodate the social and cultural

dimensions of the process, thus providing a dynamic and holistic roadmap for such change.