Global Value/Supply Chains (GV/SCs) have been subject to several challenges during the last years, due to the rise of some macro-trends that are affecting the cross-border production networks. Specifically, international geopolitical tensions, digital transformation, sustainability, and made-in effects are shaping (and will continue to shape) the evolution of GV/SCs.

According to UNCTAD (2020), two scenarios are more likely for the future of GV/SCs:

• diversification, which implies the adaptation of GV/SCs to the trends through a geographic reconfiguration of some activities and the adoption of digital technologies aimed at increasing their resilience;
• regionalization, which implies a shortening of the chains through some reshoring initiatives, aimed at reducing the exposure to international risks and accommodating the challenge of sustainability and made-in effect.

This project aims at understanding how macro-trends are affecting the participation of Italian companies to GV/SCs, by providing evidence on the reconfiguration and relocation strategies adopted by Italian companies in different industries, as well as on the mechanism that triggers managers in field to reshape the footprint of their GV/SCs when they are subject to pressures (such as the sustainability challenge or the threat of unexpected disruptions) that give birth to trade-offs.

More specifically, the project will be developed along three different research lines:

1. Macro-economic analysis, aimed at studying the impact of Italian participation to GVCs on the competitiveness of made-in-Italy, employment and environment, using inter-country input-output databases, econometrics and network analysis as main methodologies.
2. Meso-economic analysis, aimed at studying the global footprint reconfiguration and the reshoring choices of Italian companies across different industries and their impact on the competitiveness of the made-in-Italy and on the attractiveness of the national territories, using national surveys, descriptive statistics, and econometrics as main methodologies. Governance issues and criticalities will be taken into account as well as the most appropriate and strategic resources and capabilities in these processes.
3. Micro-economic analysis, aimed at studying the mechanisms affecting the decision-making process of supply chain managers who are responsible to reshape the footprint of their companies in situations of trade-offs, using experimental economics, logistics assessments, case studies and quantitative models as main methodologies.

Università partner: Università degli studi di Napoli Federico II, Politecnico di Bari, Università degli Studi di Bergamo