By:  Martin Gooch

The literature that underpins value chain management comes from a wide variety of business management related areas.  This review begins with a broad overview of the relationship between value chain management and an increasingly diverse marketplace.  It also highlights factors surrounding the foundation and management of successful value chain alliances. 

The review then considers the links between organisational functions that are integral to the practice of value chain management.  A review of the attriburtes and benefits of benchmarking follows, illustrating the rapdi evolution of this management tool over the past decade.