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Strategic Supply Chain Management Leadership Program

Learning Objectives

Module 1 – Supply Chain Management (SCM)
(13 Sessions)

1. Supply Chain Management

  1. What is a Supply Chain?
    • Understand the strategic importance of SCM in the global context.

  2. What is Supply Chain Management?
    • Appreciate the breadth and depth of SCM, in terms of the four
      perspectives on SCM vis-à-vis purchasing.
    • Describe the supply chain functions and institutions.
    • Identify and critique the candidate’s organization’s perspective on SCM.

  3. Case Preparation
    • Apply “best practices” in preparation for case analysis.

2. Supply Chain Mapping

  1. Supply Chain Mapping vs. Process Mapping
    • Compare and contrast supply chain and process mapping.

  2. The Purpose of Supply Chain Mapping
    • Understand the various purposes of supply chain mapping.

  3. Characteristics of Supply Chain Maps
    • Explain, using text and diagrams, the characteristics of supply chain maps.

  4. Supply Chain Mapping Example
    • Create a supply chain map for the candidate’s organization.
    • Identify problems or improvement opportunities on a supply chain map.

  5. The SCOR Model
    • Explain how the SCOR model for supply chain mapping is used by an organization.

3. Vertical Integration and Outsourcing

  1. Vertical Integration and Outsourcing – Zara, IT for Fast Fashion Case, and Exercise
    • Consider issues concerning upgrading information technology in a supply chain situation.
    • Address an organization’s SCM strategy and its impact on supply chain operations.
    • Examine an organization that has developed the supply chain capabilities to support its overall strategic objectives.
    • Appreciate that supply chain decisions depend on the context, and that there is no "one best way" to develop supply chain capabilities.
    • Address the issue of make-buy decisions, and appreciate that such decisions must consider issues of governance and other strategic concerns.

4. Supply Chain Performance Measurement

  1. The Financial Contributions of SCM
    • Discuss the corporate financial contribution of SCM.

  2. The Strategic Profit Model
    • Link SCM initiatives to the strategic profit model.

  3. Cash-to-Cash
    • Link SCM initiatives to cash-to-cash modeling.

  4. Benchmarking
    • Identify an opportunity to use benchmarking at an organization.

  5. The Balanced Scorecard
    • Create a supply chain-oriented balanced scorecard for your organization.

5. Supply Chain Inventory Management

  1. Supply Chain Inventory Management – Barilla SpA (A) Case
    • Understand the notion of vendor-managed inventory for improving supply chain effectiveness.
    • Consider the bullwhip effect, its sources and possible ways to reduce it.
    • Discuss system implementation issues in the context of inventory management. In particular, discuss potential conflicts between logistics-related considerations of efficiency and effectiveness, and other internal and external concerns of power, decision making authority, culture, and incentives.
    • Promote a complete channel perspective, i.e. a strategic SCM perspective, when implementing changes to a supply chain situation.

6. Matching Supply and Demand & Cycle Time Reduction

  1. Cycle Time Reduction
    • Understand the unique aspects of production planning for short life-cycle products with highly variable demand.
    • Address ways of matching supply and demand in uncertain environments.
    • Consider the idea of minimizing risk via the use of risk-based production sequencing.

  2. Matching supply and demand – Sport Obermeyer Case, and CTR Exercise
    • Address issues of sourcing overseas, such as forecasting, risk, culture, long manufacturing cycle times, and sourcing inputs.
    • Recommend possible cycle time improvements in supply chain operations.
    • Consider the capabilities required to succeed in such an environment from the points of view of the retailer and the offshore supplier.
    • Identify and understand the causes of excessive cycle times.
    • Estimate the impact of cycle time on pipeline stock and safety stock.
    • Recommend strategies for cycle time reduction at your organization.

7. Developing Supply Chain Capabilities & Inter-organizational Information Systems

  1. Inter-organizational Information Systems (IOIS) – ITC eChoupal Initiative Case
    • Address the development of new supply chain capabilities in a novel situation.
    • Consider the application of information technology in a difficult and unconventional supply chain situation.
    • Understand the principles that can enhance the implementation process and reduce the risk of failure in similar settings.
    • Address the balance between corporate concerns and societal benefits, and consider how the two can be jointly enhanced in a single supply chain.
    • Consider how to leverage newly developed supply chain capabilities.

  2. Inter-organizational Information Systems, and RFID and Wal-Mart
    • Determine supply chain information requirements by using structured interview techniques.
    • Evaluate the suitability of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems for your organization.
    • Evaluate the costs and benefits of radio frequency identification (RFID).

8. Supply Chain Relationships

  1. Methods for Conducting Business
    • Recognize partnership facilitators in your own organization.

  2. The Transactional, Relational, and Portal Approaches
    • Understand the differences between the transactional, relational and portal approaches to conducting business.

  3. Power and Dependence
    • Apply portfolio methods such as Kraljic’s purchasing portfolio and Cox’s power matrix to your own organization.
    • Discuss behavioral dimensions (e.g. power and conflict) in supply chains.
    • Develop a step-by-step approach for creating supply chain partnerships.

9. Supply Chain Strategy

  1. Supply Chain Strategies – Ford Motor Company Case
    • Examine issues of supply chain redesign, in particular in situations where there are legacy systems already in place.
    • Consider the degree to which particular approaches to supply chain design are universally applicable. That is, address the notion of the "one best way."
    • Address potential implementation issues in supply chain redesign, especially as it impacts current supply chain partners.
    • Compare vertical integration to virtual integration in supply chains.
    • Address the issue of whether Dell Computers and its direct business model is the new "best way" to organize supply chains.

  2. Supply Chain Strategies – Debriefing the Supply Chain Game
    • Address the relationships between various supply chain considerations, including forecasting, aggregate planning, inventory control, and supply chain design.
    • Experience the ongoing tension between various supply chain decisions (e.g., adding factory capacity, adding warehouse capacity, setting order quantities, setting reorder points, transportation methods, etc.).
    • Appreciate the balance between solid quantitative analysis and the ongoing intuitive monitoring of a supply chain situation.
    • Compete for the best final cash position by drawing upon available team resources such as supply chain knowledge, personal experience, analytical and monitoring ability, organizing skills, and intuition.

10. Supply Chain Risk Management

  1. Risk Efficiency and Flexibility
    • Describe the differences between increasing velocity, pooling risk, and postponing differentiation.
    • Identify drivers of risk in your supply chain.

  2. Risk Mitigation and Strategies
    • Recommend supply chain risk mitigation strategies for your organization.
    • Perform a supply chain risk assessment for your organization.
    • Conduct a supply chain security audit at your organization.

11. Design for Supply

  1. Design for Supply – Hewlett-Packard Company Case and Exercise
    • Consider the potential of product design as part of a postponement strategy.
    • Address issues of risk pooling in reducing the costs from variability and uncertainty.
    • Consider the value of postponement over different stages of the product life cycle.

12. Social Responsibility in Supply Chain Management

  1. ISM Principles of Social Responsibility
    • Specify some of the aspects of social responsibility in supply chain management.
    • Identify supply chain stakeholders.
    • Understand the ISM principles of social responsibility.

  2. Supply Management Audit for Social Responsibility
    • Conduct a social responsibility audit at your own organization.