A cross-county contextual comparison of the understanding of the term 'Logistics Platform' in practice

Logistics platforms represent a modern approach aimed towards fostering and facilitating logistics activities and business exchange with associated flows in a specific geographic area. Though a widespread buzzword in political and business circles the logistics platform still lacks a clear definition and thorough understanding of the concept in its entirety. We examined the understanding of that term among various types of organizations in Slovenia and Poland. Cross-sectional and inter-state research was conducted in Slovenia and Poland. Web-based survey responses from four different types of organisation were obtained, namely: logistics companies; production or service non-logistics companies; branch association/state agency/chamber interest groups; educational institutions. This paper seeks to raise awareness of the implementation complexity of this particular inter-organisational concept, namely logistics platforms. From a practitioner viewpoint, knowing that different stakeholder groups could have differing perceptions of the concept's content is important.