Product Recall Logistics

Narendar Sumukadas, University of Hartford

ABSTRACT
Product recalls in the managerial practitioner literature are frequently viewed from the marketing and public relations perspectives. While product recalls are treated as crisis management exercises with brand implications, the underlying supply chain management (SCM) implications are often glossed over. Yet, these implications are vital.

Meanwhile, the SCM literature boasts much research on reverse logistics and the management of reverse flows. Yet, the "how to's" of managing product recalls are surprisingly well concealed. A large emphasis of the SCM literature is on product "returns," and less on product "recalls."

A product recall situation shares many attributes of a product return situation. Yet, some characteristics differentiate it from the general reverse logistics case - the element of surprise; large, unanticipated reverse and forward flows; time-urgency; crisis management; marketing reputation and perceptions management. In this paper, we attempt to formulate a holistic model combining these multiple perspectives.

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Updated 03/19/2014