Significance of Cross-cultural Trust in Streamlining Supply-chains for Global Enterprises

In high-velocity global markets, streamlining enterprise supply-chains and increasing trust can reduce high transaction costs. In this article, we integrate previous research studies on the evolution of supply-chains for global enterprises and the role of trust in inter-organizational transactions. We propose that the streamlining of supply-chains with low intermediation is most likely to be associated with the selection of tristworthy agents, deployment of trust-building interactions, and the institutionalization of trust in the participating enterprise. Future implications for researchers and practitioners include the study of resistance to change for implementing streamlined supply-chains. Growing Strategic Significance of Supply-chains In recent years, the management of supply-chains has taken on an increasingly signifi-cant and strategic role in the competitiveness of global enterprises. In 1997, American firms spent $862 billion, or about 10 per cent of the Gross National Product (GNP), on supply