Unveiling the Impact of Digitalization on Supply Chain Performance in the Post-COVID-19 Era: The Mediating Role of Supply Chain Integration and Efficiency
Muhammad Irfan
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThis research addresses the impact of digitalization on supply chain performance, with a focus on the mediating roles of supply chain integration and efficiency. Generally, the manuscript is well organized, making it easy for readers to proceed through the different sections. However, some parts need more explanation. Below comments would be addressed to increase the equality of this manuscript.
1. The research motivation with a focus on the impact of digitalization on supply chain performance networks and research contributions can be highlighted in the abstract and introduction sections.
2. The literature review can be improved by reviewing more recently published works to demonstrate a clear research gap. The output of this section must show the characteristics of the current research compared to the previous studies focusing on digitalization for supply chain performance improvement.
3. A comparative analysis is required in the analysis of the results section to highlight the contributions of your work.
4. A conclusions section is needed for this manuscript. After discussing the implications of this study, the authors should add a conclusions section to summarize their work along with providing research limitations and suggestions for future researchers.
Comments on the Quality of English LanguageNA
Author Response
Please see attached file.
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsDear Authors,
1- The abstract fails to introduce the context of the research. Hence, the authors are requested to add a brief context before explaining the methodology.
2- Explain the sampling technique in the abstract.
3- The hypotheses development is thorough and detailed.
4- In the methodology, explain the sampling technique.
5- Furthermore, add the questionnaire in the appendix of the research.
6- Minor spell check and proofreading would be beneficial for the manuscript.
Good Luck.
Comments on the Quality of English Language
Minor editing of English language required
Author Response
Please see attached file.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 3 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe current research is in doamin of supply chain management based on TCE (Williamson, 1981), RBV(Barney 1991) and DCV theories (Teece et al 1997). There is already research done on the themes of digitization, supply chain capabilities, and firm performance.
1. I have found the lack of contextual gap which elucidates the significance of conducting this study. Now it is post COVID-19 era so why authors are conducting research in context of COVID 19. Further, digitization is very broad and generic term. Authors need to dig out specific digital technologies that can address some specific supply chain problem in contextual terms. Moreover, supply chain integration is also widely discussed topic. Authors need to talk on other dimension of supply chain integration, rather broader theme of supply chain integration.
2. Please give reference why 1st step moderation is used as it seems like mediated moderation analysis but there is no mediated moderation analysis done in analysis part,. Also there is lack of literature given on such relationship in manuscript. I suggest to cite following articles for moderation and role of IT in supply chain integration and associated performance outcomes.
Huo, Baofeng. "The impact of supply chain integration on company performance: an organizational capability perspective." Supply Chain Management: An International Journal 17, no. 6 (2012): 596-610.
Yu, Y., Huo, B., & Zhang, Z. J. (2021). Impact of information technology on supply chain integration and company performance: evidence from cross-border e-commerce companies in China. Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 34(1), 460-489.
Irfan, M., & Wang, M. (2019). Data-driven capabilities, supply chain integration and competitive performance: Evidence from the food and beverages industry in Pakistan. British Food Journal, 121(11), 2708-2729.
Irfan, M., Wang, M., & Akhtar, N. (2020). Enabling supply chain agility through process integration and supply flexibility: Evidence from the fashion industry. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 32(2), 519-547.
3. Please comment why authors not tested relationship of supply chain integration to supply chain efficiency. In this way, structural path model can be established to find out new insights into serial mediation.
4. Harman one factor is now outdated method of finding CMB. Use other methods like Kock also along with Harman single factor
Overall quality of writeup and language is very good.
Author Response
Please see attached file.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 4 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors1. The expression of the motivation is not clear, so the reviewer can not find it for a long time.
2. The author has introduced a lot in the introduction, but what is the real data of the situation at present
3. In the reference section, the author introduces the research hypothesis, but the content written by the author cannot clearly identify the gap between the author's literature and other literatures.
4. The paper adopts the method of data survey to determine whether the author's data is representative and whether the selection of sample size can be satisfied. It appears not so good.
5. The author adopted a Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach. However, in the author's paper, we can't see how the author modeled it, and the results behind it are difficult to believe.
6. Neither direct influence nor indirect influence can be see nwhat the author's original equation is, so I hope the author can supplement the equation.
7. What is the conclusion.
8. The implications should be fully presented.
9. The paper should pay attention to the unity of the layout process, such as Table 1 and Table 2
Comments on the Quality of English LanguageNeed polish
Author Response
Please see attached file.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 5 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsDear author(s), I would like to express my appreciation for the opportunity to review your paper titled "Unveiling the Impact of Digitalization on Supply Chain Performance: The Mediating Role of Supply Chain Integration and Efficiency." The subject matter is both compelling and timely, warranting scholarly attention as it contributes to the broader discourse on the influence of digitalization on supply chain performance.
The overall quality of the paper is commendable, characterized by the proficient use of technical language within the field.
The study is firmly rooted in a sound theoretical framework. However, I believe that several improvements are necessary for the paper to reach its full potential.
Major Points:
*Keywords
The organization of keywords should adhere to a structured sequence, either from general to specific or vice versa, rather than their current random arrangement.
***Introduction
The "1. Introduction" section appears somewhat brief and occasionally distracting. I recommend that the authors consider addressing the following question in this section: "What real-world problem does the study focus on, and why is it academically relevant?" Furthermore, I strongly suggest that the authors enhance the fluidity of their writing, leading the reader towards a better understanding and offering a valuable tool to scholars and practitioners. In its current form, this section lacks cohesion, but I trust that the authors can revise it in accordance with my suggestions.
*Literature Review and Hypotheses Development
I appreciate the use of figures to illustrate the relationships between concepts. Nevertheless, I propose that the author(s) create a more comprehensive figure that combines both theoretical concepts and the actual proxies used to represent them. This would facilitate the reader's comprehension by presenting both the conceptual and methodological aspects in a single figure.
Additionally, I recommend the authors strive for better integration between the various sections of this manuscript.
*Methods/Results
Regarding the mediation analysis, referencing only Baron and Kenny (1986) might be somewhat limiting. I suggest that the authors consider including recent studies that have employed this technique in their references. Some examples include:
Gallardo-Vázquez et al. (2019), https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205614
Zampone et al. (2022), https://doi.org/10.1108/JAAR-06-2022-0151
Vilkas et al. (2022) https://doi.org/10.1108/JBIM-03-2021-0182
Minor Points:
Notably, all references do not adhere to the Journal Author's guidelines. I urge you to revise them to save the typesetter's time. Moreover, the current version of the paper contains numerous grammatical errors and typos. Therefore, I strongly recommend a thorough proofreading process to rectify these issues, ensuring the text is polished and free from errors.
Overall Opinion of the Reviewer
In summary, the paper is intriguing and offers original findings. However, a substantial revision is required before it can be considered for publication in Sustainability. I wish the authors the best of luck with their ongoing research on this topic, and I hope that these comments prove valuable in enhancing the paper's quality. I eagerly await the revised manuscript.
Sincerely,
The Reviewer
Comments on the Quality of English LanguageThe current version of the paper contains numerous grammatical errors and typos. Therefore, I strongly recommend a thorough proofreading process to rectify these issues, ensuring the text is polished and free from errors.
Author Response
Please see attached file.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Round 2
Reviewer 3 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe manuscript is a novel contribution to the scholarly literature on supply chain and is perfect in its present form.
Reviewer 4 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsMy comments have been cleared.
Comments on the Quality of English Languagegood
