Impact of freight logistics supply chain management on supply chain robustness and financial performance: Post-COVID-19 era

The study investigated the impact of supply chain management (SCM) practices on supply chain robustness (SCR) and financial performance (FP) in the freight logistics sector in South Africa post-COVID-19 era. Employing a survey research design and quantitative methodology, the research utilised a purposive sampling technique to recruit 500 professionals specialising in supply chain, operations, and finance from freight logistics firms across the Gauteng, North-West, and Mpumalanga provinces of South Africa. The study assessed various SCM practices, specifically focusing on capacity and skills management (CSM), customer relationship management (CRM), and supplier relationship management (SRM) as independent variables. The mediating variable was SCR, with FP being the outcome variable. Hypotheses were tested using Partial Least Squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). In the findings, both CRM and SRM demonstrated significant positive impacts on SCR, while CSM was statistically insignificant. Furthermore, SCR was found to have a significant positive effect on FP. A significant mediating effect of SCR on the association of CRM and SRM on FP was observed. The study is a groundbreaking attempt to provide insights into which SCM factors deserve attention when attempting to strengthen the robustness and FP of freight logistics supply chains.