Rethinking Your Supply Chain Strategy

Rethinking a supply chain strategy is not a trivial problem. Supply chains tend to be rather complex entities, and the act of thinking strategically about them, what we call supply chain 'strategizing', reflects this complexity. The absence of an established answer in the supply chain management literature regarding how to rethink the supply chain strategy of an organization further compounds what is already a daunting problem. Between 2006 and 2016, a team of researchers at MIT's Center for Transportation and Logistics (CTL) explored the problem of supply chain strategizing, as part the Supply Chain 2020 Project. After a decade of research in collaboration with world-class organizations, significant progress was made. Many questions remain open, and will continue to be explored by an offshoot of the SC2020 Project, called the MIT Supply Chain Strategy Lab.But we feel it is time to share with the community of supply chain managers the insights we have derived so far on how to re-think the supply chain strategy of an organization. That is the purpose of this text.

Collaboration in supply chains means managing the chain beyond traditional or transactional methods. It involves rethinking the way your business is managed, both internally and externally, and the ways in which employees and partners relate to each other. Stuart Emmett and Barry Crocker's book explains how a relationship-based approach to supply chain management can transform business; how to organise your business internally for effective supply chain relationships and how to transform your external supply chain using relationship marketing, customer relationship management and supply chain partnerships. One of the key distinguishing characteristics of a high performing supply chain is the presence of strategic trust. With strategic trust, the parties have access to each other's strategic plans; relevant cost information and forecasts are shared; risks and rewards are addressed openly. This book explains how to embed a culture of inter-company trust and to realise the benefits of improved supply chain relationships.

Supply Chain Strategy and Financial Metrics is a step-by-step guide to balancing the triangle of service, cost and cash which is the essence of supply chain management. Supply chains have become increasingly strategy-driven, and this Supply Chain Triangle approach puts the supply chain at the heart of the strategy discussion instead of seeing it as a result. Supply Chain Strategy and Financial Metrics fully reflects the 'inventory' or 'working capital' angle and examines the optimisation of the supply chain and Return on Capital Employed. Including case studies of Barco, Casio and a selection of food retail companies, this book covers building a strategy-driven KPI dashboard, target setting and financial benchmarking. Regular examples and diagrams illustrate how different types of strategies lead to different trade-offs in the Supply Chain Triangle. This ground-breaking text links supply chain, strategy and finance through financial metrics, therefore creating value for the shareholder. Online supporting resources include worksheets covering basic financial concepts such as cash flow and working capital, with example data sets and guidelines/exercises to make it interactive.

Much has been written about Covid-19 victims, how scientists raced to understand and treat the disease, and how governments did (or did not) protect their citizens. Less has been written about the pandemic’s impact on the global economy and how companies coped as the competitive environment was upended. In his new book, "The New (Ab)Normal", MIT Professor Yossi Sheffi maps how the Covid-19 pandemic impacted business, supply chains, and society. He exposes the critical role supply chains play in helping people, governments, and companies to manage the crisis. The book draws on executive interviews, pandemic media coverage, and historical analyses. Sheffi also builds on themes from his books "The Resilient Enterprise" (2005) and "The Power of Resilience" (2015) to enrich the narrative. The author paints a compelling picture of how the Covid-19 virus is changing many facets of human life and what our post-pandemic world might look like. This must-read book helps companies to redefine their business models and adjust to a fast-evolving economic landscape. The stage is set In Part 1 of the book, “What Happened,” the author looks at how companies fought to mend the global economic fabric even as the virus ripped more holes in it. Part 2, “Living with Uncertainty,” views the crisis through a supply chain risk management lens derived from Yossi Sheffi’s previous books. This perspective shows how companies create corporate immune systems to quickly recognize and manage large-scale disruptions. The ongoing pandemic is creating a new normal in life, work, and education—covered in Part 3, “Adjustment Required.” Consumer fears about the contagion as well as government mandates require businesses in industries such as retail, hospitality, entertainment, sports, and education to create “safe zones” for workers and customers. Many elements of the book – especially in Part 4, “Supply Chains for the Future” – show how the virus accelerated preexisting trends in technology adoption. China was the epicenter of the pandemic; it also was the first nation to be disrupted and recover. Part 5 of the book, “Of Politics and Pandemics,” explains why reports that companies are abandoning China in favor of other offshore manufacturing centers do not reflect reality. Fundamentally, The New (Ab)Normal is about businesses trying to create a better future in a time of extreme uncertainty – a point emphasized in Part 6, “The Next Opportunities.” The outlook is not necessarily gloomy. The advance of technology is accelerating, a trend that can level the playing field between small and large companies. Nimble small businesses are using a growing array of off-the-shelf cloud computing and mobile apps to deploy sophisticated technologies in their supply chains and customer interfaces. The New (Ab)Normal Another new normal is working from home. Remote working enables individuals to live anywhere and companies to recruit talent from anywhere. Education, especially higher education, faces a major disruption (and major opportunity) that is likely to shake the high-cost model of in-person education in favor of online or hybrid education. Regrettably, the book recognizes one trend accentuated by Covid-19--the growing inequality, and anticipates that the new normal will be more stratified.

Rethinking Supply Chain outlines how organizations can close the gap between the supply chain capabilities they have and the supply chain capabilities they want. The supply chains built pre-covid are no longer suitable in the current volatile business environment. Rethinking Supply Chain explores why and how organizations can upgrade their supply chains to level 5 maturity, enhancing them to be more sustainable, strategy-driven and resilient. It outlines the dangers of using outdated supply chain practices, sharing what goes wrong when organizations run level 5 complexity and variability with a level 1 capability. It shows how organizations can improve their strategic planning, supply chain design, sales and operations planning and business planning processes to respond to new dynamic levels of variability and complexity. It is supported by practical frameworks and roadmaps. This book outlines why supply chain reconfiguration is needed, how to define a business case for change and the steps needed to drive effective transformation. Rethinking Supply Chain also explores how to integrate sustainability into the heart of supply chain design and operations and examines the trade-offs organizations must navigate, depending on whether they wish to be at par, differentiate or dominate on sustainability drivers.

John Gattorna and Deborah Ellis are long-term collaborators on the design and management of enterprise supply chains. Dr John Gattorna has been one of the most influential voices in the development of the modern supply chain. His long-held vision of the supply chain as the central nervous system of an organisation and as a major source of competitive advantage if done well has inspired both supply chain professionals and CEOs. To support this vision, he has led the development of frameworks and tools to guide design using customers as the sole frame-of-reference, thus ensuring precise alignment between enterprise supply chains and the markets/customers they serve.In 2018 John was awarded the Council of Supply Chain Management (CSCMP) Distinguished Service Award for his contribution to the profession, and in the same year was inducted into the CSCMP Hall of Fame. Deborah Ellis has consulted with leading companies for over 20 years on logistics and supply chain strategy. Like John Gattorna, the emphasis of her work has been on developing tailored supply chains that generate market advantage. She has worked with him, and partnered with clients, to apply, refine and extend the frameworks and methodologies that simplify the supply chain task, while generating value for the customer and the business. Since 2017 they have together presented the Global Supply Chain Thought Leadership Retreat Series for senior supply chain executives in the Asia Pacific, South Africa and Europe. These by-invitation-only events have been very well received, and this book has evolved from the research and discussions associated with those events.

Comprehensively teaches the fundamentals of supply chain theory This book presents the methodology and foundations of supply chain management and also demonstrates how recent developments build upon classic models. The authors focus on strategic, tactical, and operational aspects of supply chain management and cover a broad range of topics from forecasting, inventory management, and facility location to transportation, process flexibility, and auctions. Key mathematical models for optimizing the design, operation, and evaluation of supply chains are presented as well as models currently emerging from the research frontier. Fundamentals of Supply Chain Theory, Second Edition contains new chapters on transportation (traveling salesman and vehicle routing problems), integrated supply chain models, and applications of supply chain theory. New sections have also been added throughout, on topics including machine learning models for forecasting, conic optimization for facility location, a multi-supplier model for supply uncertainty, and a game-theoretic analysis of auctions. The second edition also contains case studies for each chapter that illustrate the real-world implementation of the models presented. This edition also contains nearly 200 new homework problems, over 60 new worked examples, and over 140 new illustrative figures. Plentiful teaching supplements are available, including an Instructor’s Manual and PowerPoint slides, as well as MATLAB programming assignments that require students to code algorithms in an effort to provide a deeper understanding of the material. Ideal as a textbook for upper-undergraduate and graduate-level courses in supply chain management in engineering and business schools, Fundamentals of Supply Chain Theory, Second Edition will also appeal to anyone interested in quantitative approaches for studying supply chains.

LEVERAGE YOUR SUPPLY CHAIN FOR MAXIMUM PROFIT Do you have a global supply chain strategy designed for the long run? About 90 percent of global demand is not fully met by local supply, and global supply chains will soon account for 25 percent of multinational firms' performance--meanwhile, supply chains need to become 43 percent more global in the next decade just to maintain a firm's competitive edge. Written by three of today's leading experts on the subject--each from Michigan State University, the uncontested world leader of supply chain management--Global Supply Chain Management gives you the know-how and tools to dramatically boost supply chain efficiency by making it a core element of your overall corporate strategy. Global Supply Chain Management takes you step by step through the process of creating and managing a global supply chain strategy and aligning it with the conditions of your industry. Learn everything you need to know about developing a core strategy plus strategies for each of the critical supply chain functions: LOGISTICS--Integrate logistics strategy and tactical activities PURCHASING--Manage the transition to purchasing globally OPERATIONS--Systematically design, direct, and control processes MARKET CHANNELS--Effectively connect your supply chain to customers With in-depth case studies and data showing how American Express, AB InBev, Dell, FedEx, Daimler, Microsoft, Nestlé, Nokia, and several other prominent companies have applied global supply chain strategy to increase profits and growth, Global Supply Chain Management helps you take action to drive similar success in your company. If you're serious about competing today--and in the future--you must integrate and leverage strategic supply chain management into your overall corporate strategy. Global Supply Chain Management provides everything you need to build a strategy designed for the long run. PRAISE FOR GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT "This book does a superb job of using a total value perspective and integrating business functions into a strategic framework for global supply chain management that can be leveraged for success." -- Leif Johansson, Chairman of the Board of Directors of AstraZeneca, Ericsson, European Round Table of Industrialists, and the International Advisory Board of the Nobel Foundation "Written by a superb team of world-leading authors on global supply chain management, this book provides a great framework for companies to leverage global supply chain functions and processes, measurements, and tools to achieve sustained strategic advantage in the global marketplace." -- Michael Lawton, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Executive Vice President of Finance of Domino's Pizza, Inc. "In our company, we have come to recognize the strategic importance of building and maintaining a global supply chain. This book does an excellent job of identifying a framework for considering the implications of an integrated model for global supply chain management. It's clear that the authors have tremendous experience, and they have shared their insights in an innovative and integrative way." -- John Shull, Vice President and Global Procurement Officer of Steelcase Inc. "Global supply chains are critically important to companies in delivering products and services that satisfy customers. Hult, Closs, and Frayer provide an excellent model for how to drive the strategic and operational dimensions of global supply chain management to maximize end-customer value." -- Claes Fornell, Chairman of the Board of Directors of CFI Group Worldwide and ForeSee, and founder of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI)