Bcg Report
The first in a series of special reports on operations in business
Special Report
Creating the Optimal Supply Chain
http://www.bcg.com • http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu
Contents
Creating the Optimal Supply Chain
As global competition and advancing technology render borders irrelevant and link companies more closely, supply chains — the network of suppliers, plants, distributors, retailers and others that participate in the sale, delivery and production of goods and services — are growing increasingly complex. No longer simply the domain of the warehouse manager or logistics director, supply chain management is viewed by most companies as a mission-critical element. In this special report, experts from Wharton and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) discuss strategies for maximizing the value of supply chains, avoiding inefficiencies, managing the omnipresent risk of disruption, and evaluating the pros and cons of supply chain enterprise systems.
‘You Can’t Manage What You Can’t Measure’: Maximizing Supply Chain Value
1
Low-cost country sourcing, outsourcing, customization, globalization and more are adding tremendous complexity to supply chains across the globe. But even as companies are rapidly adopting supply chain management strategies in an effort to keep up, experts from Wharton and BCG report that many still lag when it comes to measuring how well they are doing, and balancing the trade-offs involved in keeping service levels high and costs low.
Avoiding the Cost of Inefficiency: Coordination and Collaboration in Supply Chain Management
5
The process of getting the right product to the right place at the right time at the right price — the traditional touchstones of supply chain success — remains a challenging and often elusive goal. According to experts from BCG and Wharton, two key supply chain elements that are often taken for granted — coordination and collaboration — can mean the difference between the merely functioning and the profitable when
Special Report
Creating the Optimal Supply Chain
http://www.bcg.com • http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu
Contents
Creating the Optimal Supply Chain
As global competition and advancing technology render borders irrelevant and link companies more closely, supply chains — the network of suppliers, plants, distributors, retailers and others that participate in the sale, delivery and production of goods and services — are growing increasingly complex. No longer simply the domain of the warehouse manager or logistics director, supply chain management is viewed by most companies as a mission-critical element. In this special report, experts from Wharton and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) discuss strategies for maximizing the value of supply chains, avoiding inefficiencies, managing the omnipresent risk of disruption, and evaluating the pros and cons of supply chain enterprise systems.
‘You Can’t Manage What You Can’t Measure’: Maximizing Supply Chain Value
1
Low-cost country sourcing, outsourcing, customization, globalization and more are adding tremendous complexity to supply chains across the globe. But even as companies are rapidly adopting supply chain management strategies in an effort to keep up, experts from Wharton and BCG report that many still lag when it comes to measuring how well they are doing, and balancing the trade-offs involved in keeping service levels high and costs low.
Avoiding the Cost of Inefficiency: Coordination and Collaboration in Supply Chain Management
5
The process of getting the right product to the right place at the right time at the right price — the traditional touchstones of supply chain success — remains a challenging and often elusive goal. According to experts from BCG and Wharton, two key supply chain elements that are often taken for granted — coordination and collaboration — can mean the difference between the merely functioning and the profitable when