Kestutis Slaitas

Strategy for the Reverse Supply Chain: Applicability of the Lean and the Agile Concepts Kestutis Slaitas

The reverse part of the supply chain becomes more and more important due to the legislation, environmental concerns, higher volumes of returns, etc. As a result, companies cannot see the reverse supply chain as the additional costs only and have to think strategically. The right strategy for the reverse supply chain can help to achieve the competitive advantage. However, there are not so many researches made about strategies for the reverse supply chain yet, contrarily to the forward supply chain. Therefore, the need to adopt strategies for the reverse supply chain appears. This book focus on the lean and the agile concepts applicability for the reverse supply chain. The combination of the scientific literature review and the multiple case studies revealed the criteria for the selection of the strategy for the reverse supply chain, as well the driving forces and challenges. The analysis showed the parts of the reverse supply chain where the focus on customer satisfaction or cost reduction is required. The findings should be useful both to the managers and the academic professionals in the field of Supply Chain Management.