Explaining Firm Performance During the COVID-19 With fsQCA: The Role of Supply Network Complexity, Inventory Turns, and Geographic Dispersion

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected firm performance. As a result, many studies have examined the significance of supply network complexity. Our paper uses the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) method to investigate the causal relationships among the supply network complexity, geographic dispersion, inventory turns, and firm performance. Using a sample of 263 Chinese listed firms, we find that no single factor is necessary to achieve high firm performance during COVID-19 and reveal four paths to produce high performance: operational level driven, supply base complexity driven, and customer base complexity driven with supplier distance, and supply network complexity absence. Furthermore, our findings suggest that supply-based complexity-driven and customer-based complexity-driven can improve firm performance, but not all supply network complexity dimensions can improve firm performance. Hence, firms need to choose the suitable path based on their specific situations.