"Management is on the verge of a major breakthrough in understanding how industrial company success depends on the interactions between the flows of information, materials, money, manpower, and capital equipment. The way these five flow systems interlock to amplify one another and to cause change and fluctuation will form the basis for anticipating the effects of decisions, policies, organizational forms, and investment choices." (Forrester 1958, p. 37) Forrester introduced a theory of distribution management that recognized the integrated nature of organizational relationships. Because organizations are so intertwined, he argued that system dynamics can influence the performance of functions such as research, engineering, sales, and promotion.

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to describe the state of logistics performance measurement in corporations based in the USA. Design/methodology/approach -A triangulation approach is used, including, a Delphi study involving more than 100 practitioners, academics, and consultants identified as logistics experts; personal interviews conducted with 55 executives of 20 firms identified by the Delphi study; and a questionnaire mailed to supply chain and logistics executives at over 3,300 firms in 25 industries. Findings -Most US firms do not comprehensively measure logistics performance. The focus continues to be on performance within the organization and not on performance between and across firms.Research limitations/implications -Self-report surveys completed by a single respondent from each firm introduce subjectivity and bias to the study. The sample frame of organizations may not represent the universe of US companies, nor can findings be generalized to other countries. Practical implications -There are great opportunities for logistics cost reduction and performance improvement within firms and across the supply chain. Firms can and should collaborate with their trading partners to implement appropriate measures of logistics and supply chain performance. Originality/value -This paper provides a benchmark for organizations assessing the quality of their logistics performance measurement practices and helps identify opportunities for significant improvement.

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Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to analyze the longitudinal efficiency of branch operations of a third party logistics (3PL) company for comparative performance measurement and internal benchmarking. Design/methodology/approach -Data envelopment analysis (DEA) is used for measuring the performance of a branch of a 3PL company for 36 months using internal data. Findings -Despite increasing revenues, the branch suffers diminishing efficiencies in recent months. Indirect expenses are identified as a major source of inefficiency.Research limitations/implications -The 3PL company has over 600 branches. However, due to the availability of data and the regulation on information disclosure for publicly traded companies, this study includes information on only one branch. Originality/value -The contributions of this study include demonstrating a novel framework for internal benchmarking with longitudinal data, providing actionable managerial insights, and the use of internal data, which is not accessible to the general public.