How do Swedish multinational corporations design their supply chain strategies to enhance resilience in response to global disruptions?

Abstract

The thesis examines how Swedish multinational corporations (MNCs) design their supply chain strategies to strengthen resilience against increasing global instability. The study focuses on how corporations balance efficiency and flexibility in a global business environment characterized by geopolitical tensions and disruptions. The thesis uses a qualitative research approach based on 14 semi-structured interviews at two MNCs operating in different industries. Drawing on global value chain (GVC) theory, transaction cost economics, supply chain configuration theory and supply chain resilience literature, the analysis shows that both corporations redesign their supply chain strategies in response to uncertainty. Nonetheless, resilience strategies differ depending on industry conditions and operational capabilities. The thesis identifies four recurring strategies: flexibility, redundancy, diversification and collaboration with external partners. One corporation emphasizes structural resilience through regionalization, multisourcing and internal coordination. The other corporation focuses on operational flexibility, inventory buffers and adaptive sourcing arrangements. The findings show that resilience depends on continuous adjustments, but also creates trade-offs related to flexibility, coordination and supply chain dependence. The thesis contributes to existing research by providing an empirical and comparative perspective on how Swedish MNCs design supply chain resilience strategies in practice.