Next generation humanitarian supply chain: the emergence of orchestration and choreography

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate how and when orchestration and choreography are employed to support coordination in humanitarian logistics. Focussing on the World Food Programme's (WFP) led logistics cluster (LC) and the United Nations Humanitarian Response Depot (UNHRD), the study explores how structural design factors, enabling mechanisms and motivating drivers influence orchestration and choreography during disaster response. Design/methodology/approach An embedded case study design, using semi-structured interviews, was undertaken with logistics experts involved in the LC and UNHRD hubs. Reflexive thematic analysis was undertaken to understand how orchestration and choreography occur in practice and what factors support their effectiveness. Findings The LC offers a predominantly orchestrated model, especially where urgency, scarce logistics assets and disrupted infrastructure require centralised coordination. UNHRD, on the other hand, reflects a more blended approach, combining central governance with partner autonomy and peer-to-peer collaboration. Clear structures and formal mandates, institutional leadership, expert service provision and information visibility emerge as key enablers. Participation was driven by access to funding, common services, shared goals, and mutual benefits. The findings show that choreography is more likely where stable systems, trust and partner capacity already exist. Research limitations/implications The research is drawn from selected WFP-related contexts, and findings may not fully capture coordination dynamics in all humanitarian settings. Future research may explore local and informal choreography, informal coordination and comparative cases across various humanitarian settings. Practical implications The framework helps practitioners identify when centralised orchestration is necessary and when decentralised choreography can be supported. It provides guidance for balancing central oversight, partner autonomy, shared services and local capacity in HL response operations. Originality/value The study generates a dynamic framework that integrates orchestration and choreography into the 3Cs model (coordination, cooperation and collaboration), expanding the theoretical lens on humanitarian logistics (HL) coordination. It expands previous conceptual models by showing how centralised and decentralised modes interact in practice during disaster response.