MBA 550 wk 5

MBA 550 wk 5

Supply Chain Efficiency
MBA550
University of Phoenix
John Fritch, Facilitator
February 23, 2009

Supply Chain Efficiency
For any company to succeed, having a quality product is not enough. Companies must develop a supply chain process using industry best practices in areas of demand management, sales and operations planning, and inventory control. The sources of best practices can be both domestic and global practices of supply chain management proven to produce streamlined and efficient distribution systems; systems capable of reducing overall costs of planning, manufacturing, producing, and distribution of goods.
The first step for an organization in developing this supply chain process is to determine what the existing supply chain management practices are and benchmarking these against the top supply chain best practices in their industry; next, identifying any apparent weaknesses and seeking opportunities to improve supply chain processes. Developing of a supply chain process must also include considerations for ethical practices between the stakeholders to ensure a company’s reputation is not sacrificed in the process.
This holistic approach is critical to developing a supply chain process. Together, the key course concepts and the benchmarks of successful companies as indicated in the following paragraphs, illustrate the critical components necessary for an effective supply chain process and management.
Compare and Contrast
Domestic and Global Best Practices in Supply Chain Management
While 82% of companies are concerned about supply chain resiliency, just 11% are actively managing this risk. This action gap is one of the greatest weaknesses of current corporate global supply chain strategies; it threatens the continuity of a company’s business and sets the stage for gross margin erosion due to under-managed supply chain uncertainty and risk. (Aberdeen, 2006, p.1)
Due to the lack of management in supply chain strategies, identifying...