Is AI good or bad? Many articles portray Artificial Intelligence (AI) as heralding a new chapter in the development of civilisation or doom-laden. Although in development for more than 70 years, its potential is now being more broadly discussed. It was recently reported that a software firm demonstrated a Non-disclosure Agreement negotiation, completed in minutes, between the software company and … Read More
‘V’ words describe the strategic role of supply chains
What are the 3Vs? In the late 1990s, the functions that are now viewed as the Supply Chains group – Procurement, Operations Planning and Logistics, had their major objective as cost reduction. But some argued this was a short term approach and a more strategic view of the disciplines and the role of supply chains was required. To emphasise the … Read More
Supply Chains group provides Customer Care with profits
Customers are necessary in commercial organisations But what is the collective view about customers inside the business? It is driven by the chief executive, guided by corporate performance measurements that are approved by the board of directors – ‘we behave how we are measured’. This can result in a mixed message. Companies may promote that they are ‘customer focussed’ or … Read More
What Supply Chain routes do product materials travel?
‘Chain of custody’ for materials The approach when mapping your organisation’s supply chains is to typically start with relationships between your business and its Tier 1 suppliers; then, as data and information become available, map suppliers at Tier 2 and below. But, if organisations that provide the raw materials map their supply chains the process is reversed. Using the apparel … Read More
Drivers to change trade lanes that serve Supply Chains
Is the current reality just transitory? Forecasting is a worthy activity, because it requires people to think about the future. However, be careful about accepting forecasts until you know how the forecast is structured and source of the data used. For supply chains, which are geopolitical in structure, the forecasts say that changes will happen, but the unknown is where … Read More