A plethora of logistics and supply chain management (SCM) definitions have been developed over the years evidencing different emphases and approaches among practitioners across different industrial sectors, geographical areas and functional backgrounds (Stock and Boyer, 2009). In addition, a range of often quite complex logistics and SCM language and terminology has evolved concomitantly (Croom et al., 2000; Tan, 2001; Cousins et al., 2006). Given that there are many bodies of literature associated with the field (e.g. operations, transport, purchasing and supply, operational research) this should not come as a major surprise (Zinn and Goldsby, 2014). There is less debate and a higher level of consensus in the literature about the meaning of the word “logistics”, however regarding SCM, Lambert (2004) noted there is a great deal of confusion regarding exactly what SCM involves. Kotzab et al. (2011, p. 233) stated that “there is a dearth of evidence in relation to the extent to which SCM – as defined in the academic literature – is implemented or even understood in practice”. As some have noted, logistics and SCM academics maintain angst about finding a relevant and unified theory of SCM (Mentzer et al., 2001, 2004; Sweeney, 2011). Larson and Halldórsson (2004) set out a taxonomy of four possible perspectives on logistics vs SCM – traditionalist, unionist, intersectionist and re-labelling – based on a survey of logistics educators from North and South America, Europe and Asia. Surprisingly, little research has been carried out since then to explore the extent to which elements of this taxonomy are important to practitioners and have been adopted in practice. Understanding these issues is paramount for academics to provide research-led solutions to various issues in this applied discipline. This paper addresses this tension and gap to develop a more thorough understanding of logistics and SCM in practice with a specific reference to the taxonomy. It does so with a particular emphasis on the extent to which logistics and SCM principles and concepts are adopted at a strategic level by firms, as well as with a view to identifying the critical success factors (CSFs) and inhibitors to success in this context. Following this introduction, the literature review provides an overview of the evolution of logistics and SCM, as well as of the relationship between them based largely on the four perspectives taxonomy of Larson and Halldórsson (2004), discusses the strategic role of logistics and SCM in this context and develops our three research questions (RQs). The three-phase methodology employed to generate insights into these questions is presented next, followed by an explanation of the empirical research in each phase and the main findings. We then discuss key insights generated by the research and finally conclude the paper with the main implications for theory and practice and directions for future research.