Date of Conferral
11-25-2025
Date of Award
November 2025
Degree
Doctor of Public Administration (D.P.A)
School
Management
Advisor
Theresa Neal
Abstract
Poor-quality suppliers present a significant risk and cost liability across the manufacturing industry. Industrial automotive manufacturing leaders are concerned with this challenge because supplier quality directly affects production efficiency and accounts for over 70% of total production costs. Grounded in resource dependence theory, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry was to explore successful strategies supply chain leaders use to identify and address poor-quality suppliers to improve manufacturing processes and achieve cost savings. The participants were six purposefully sampled supply chain leaders in the U.S. industrial automotive sector who were experienced in successful supplier mitigation strategies. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and a review of public industry documents. Through thematic analysis, five themes were identified: (a) communication, (b) relationships, (c) key performance indicators (KPIs), (d) Six Sigma, and (e) supplier integration. A key recommendation is for manufacturing leaders to redefine supplier performance criteria by utilizing KPIs that specifically grade supplier communication transparency and their willingness to collaborate on process improvements. The implications for positive social change include the potential to stabilize employment and income within the local community workforce by promoting supplier development over costly relationship dissolution.
Recommended Citation
Hartleigh, Virginia May, "Effective Strategies to Address Poor-Quality Suppliers in the Automotive Industry" (2025). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 18818.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/18818
