UK companies are trailing behind their European counterparts in integrating the IT processes of their supply chain partners, research shows.

Only 30 per cent of UK IT managers feel their company has successfully integrated the IT processes of external partners, compared with 85 per cent of managers in Germany and 63 per cent in France.

A lack of integrated systems and data can cause extra costs, take longer to bring new products to market, and lead to an inability to respond quickly to change, says the survey, conducted by Vanson Bourne for vendor Sterling Commerce.

Supermarket giant Tesco is adopting common IT systems around the world to make it easier to integrate with its suppliers’ infrastructures. Tesco.com IT director Jon Higgins says the global supply chain is becoming much more complex.

‘There is a clear competitive advantage for companies that can integrate their systems to exploit this,’ he said.

The increased complexity of supply chains can be attributed to a rise in outsourcing and mergers and acquisitions, says AMR Research analyst Nigel Montgomery.

‘It may be that the complexity of the supply chain is moving ahead faster than the attempts to integrate the systems,’ he said.

The survey also found that less than half (47 per cent) of managers believe their company has effectively integrated internal IT processes across the business.

‘In the globalised business environment, companies that can collaborate closely with supply chain partners from all over the world will out-compete their rivals,’ said Chris Hayes, of Sterling Commerce.