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1 Introduction
The notion that companies have both a demand and supply chain that requires active management to maximize effectiveness and efficiency is well recognized ([5] Canever et al. , 2008; [25] Jüttner et al. , 2007; [49] Walters, 2008). There is no major difference between the demand and supply chain when it comes to the chain of organizations involved, from customers to suppliers, but regarding the processes considered ([20] Hilletofth et al. , 2009). The demand chain comprises all the demand processes necessary to understand, create, and stimulate customer demand ([6] Charlebois, 2008; [25] Jüttner et al. , 2007; [50] Walters and Rainbird, 2004), and is managed within demand chain management (DCM). The supply chain, on the other hand, comprises all the supply processes necessary to fulfill customer demand ([16] Gibson et al. , 2005; [32] Lummus and Vokurka, 1999; [33] Mentzer et al. , 2001), and is managed within supply chain management (SCM). In this sense, the demand and supply chain often can be seen as different perspectives on the same chain of organizations ([23] Jacobs, 2006).
Despite the fact that DCM and SCM are of fundamental importance to every organization, one of them is usually prioritized in many companies ([20] Hilletofth et al. , 2009), and they also tend to be dealt with separately. Thus, a demand- and supply-led business model can be distinguished in most industries ([25] Jüttner et al. , 2007). Companies embracing the demand-led business model (demand chain masters) focus on coordinating and managing the demand processes (DCM) to obtain a competitive advantage by providing superior customer value while companies embracing the supply led business model (supply chain masters) focus on coordinating and managing the supply processes (SCM) to obtain a competitive advantage by providing comparable customer value at lower cost. Irrespective of business model, the dominating side of the company tends to set the business agenda (what to sell, where to sell, and how to sell), while the other side supports it ([49] Walters, 2008).
The difference between these business models is the choice of emphasis and both of them can be appropriate depending on market characteristics ([8] Christopher et al. , 2006), as well as on how the company would like to compete ([19] Hilletofth and...