Analysing Strategies for Resilient Supply Chains with a Circular Economy Approach

The manner in which customers and organisations buy goods and services have changed dramatically in recent times. Globalisation policies, reduction of trade barriers, development of new technologies (e.g. mobile technologies, the internet, the digital economy, Industry 4.0) etc. have contributed to promote change in operations and their supply chains in order to enhance their competitive advantage and level of responsiveness to a dynamic business environment. Furthermore, regulations, sustainability issues and the circular economy are creating new opportunities and challenges to improve operational and strategic performance.

However, disruption in the supply chain can have a very critical negative effect on its performance, with short, medium and long term consequences. Natural disasters, human conflicts, unexpected changes in national policies, global pandemics, political crisis, regulations, new technologies, etc. can dramatically disrupt global supply chains of different industries.

Modern organisations need to formulate and implement successful strategies to enhance supply chain resilience and rapidly overcome the challenges of unexpected disruptions. This is also very relevant for organisations that are seeking to take advantage of a dynamic circular economy environment in which products are designed to have an extended life cycle, contributing to reduce the impact on climate change.

Therefore, the aim of this PhD research project is to analyse innovative strategies to design more resilient supply chains within a Circular Economy environment. Global supply chains can be considered as complex systems that operate within a dynamic business environment. Part of this research involves defining the appropriate methodology to analyse this complex system.

Entry requirements

This project could be applied to different industries, depending on the background or experience of the PhD applicant.

The PhD applicant should have a relevant engineering or science background, preferably with knowledge or experience in operations and supply chain management. This could include an MSc in a relevant area. This PhD research project requires applicants who are willing to learn new research methods, modelling techniques and software, and to acquire knowledge outside their current academic/professional background.

How to apply

Formal applications can be submitted via the University of Bradford web site; applicants will need to register an account and select ‘Full-time PhD in Engineering’ as the course, and then specify the project title when prompted.

About the University of Bradford

Bradford is a research-active University supporting the highest-quality research. We excel in applying our research to benefit our stakeholders by working with employers and organisations world-wide across the private, public, voluntary and community sectors and actively encourage and support our postgraduate researchers to engage in research and business development activities.

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These are lawful measures designed to address systemic and structural issues which result in the under-representation of Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic students in PGR studies.