Adopting Security Practices for Transport Logistics: Institutional Effects and Performance Drivers

The field of transport logistics security has garnered extensive attention by both academicians and practitioners due to the adverse effects that security related breaches can have on the global supply chains. Organizational responses to such incidents vary; some companies are proactive while other companies are reactive. Many companies find it difficult to invest in transport logistics security because justifying investments on a pure financial basis may be untenable. Demonstrating the financial implications is cumbersome because estimating the probability that a security related incident of a specific magnitude will occur at a certain time and at a certain location is a rather intractable task. Drawing on the institutional theory and the recently developed competitive isomorphism argument, this manuscript proposes that five specific sources of pressure impel firms to adopt logistics security practices: government, customer, peer, norms, and performance. We develop a conceptual model describing the motivational forces behind the adoption of security practices in the context of transport logistics. In addition, we argue that the saliency of motivational forces varies by type of security practices and over the life-cycle of security practices. Theoretical and managerial implications are provided.