Identifying Factors Influencing supplier's satisfaction in food distribution firms

Manufacturers have found the great role of suppliers in achieving competitive advantages. In recent years, satisfaction of suppliers in supply chain has been considered in some researches. In fact, it is told that manufacturers and suppliers should cooperate in their activities and become each other’s trusted partners. This paper seeks to find the factors influencing a suppliers’ satisfaction. The goal is achieved by reviewing the existing literature and then designing the proper questionnaire for Iranian food industry. The questionnaires are analyzed using PLS approach. The results show that the factors trust, communication and payment policies directly influence the satisfaction of a supplier and the factors conflict management and purchasing policies have indirect influence on supplier satisfaction.