In search of profitable growth in volatile and unpredictable environments: the role of supply chain structural adaptability

Purpose This research examines the long-held belief in the adaption-related literature that a firm’s ability to adapt organizational structure to changing environments is related to superior performance. We create and test a construct that reflects an organization’s ability to change structure, which we call Supply Chain Structural Adaptability (SCSA), rather than relying on proxies (e.g. structural form or organizational modularity) used in prior studies. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative data was collected from 218 firms to test our conceptual model. Findings We find that SCSA has a mixed effect on profitable growth under various environmental conditions. Originality/value We find evidence that refutes two widely held assumptions in organization research, namely, that structural form serves as a reasonable proxy for structural adaptability and that the benefits of adaptive capabilities always increase as environmental dynamism increases.