Defining Supply Chain Management

Based on the characterization of a supply chain, supply chain management (SCM) can be defined as a process oriented approach to procuring, producing, and delivering end products and services to customers. It includes sub-suppliers, suppliers, internal operations, trade customers, retail customers and end users. It covers the management of materials, information, and fund flows [2],... 

Summarizing, demand is not a given input quantity to be fulfilled in the traditional supply chain management sense but is defined more differentiated as a mix of fixed contract demand to be supplied and spot demand providing company a degree of freedom in making active sales target decisions. 

Mentzer JT, DeWitt W, Keebler JS, Soonhong M, Nix NW, Smith CD, Zacharia ZG (2001) Defining Supply Chain Management. Journal of Business Logistics 22 (2) 1-25... 

The dissertation consists of 5 chapters in addition to this introduction. Chapter 2 lays the foundation by establishing the role of production network design within supply chain management. To this end key terms are defined, the role of Advanced Planning Systems in production network de-... 

To manage SCs, a broad body of (scientific) literature has emerged since the 1980s. Supply chain management (SCM) aims at the planning, execution, and control of all transformation processes in a defined SC such that the SC s performance is optimized. The main focus of SCM is on the coordinated planning of the SC processes. Rjr planning,... 

The basic quality tools can be used in maity different applications. One of these applications is supply chain management. The tools will be defined and then the application of the tools to supply chain management will be demonstrated. The tools that will be covered are ... 

But how is supply chain management (SCM) defined by professional organizations The Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP), a professional society, states on its website ([22]) that... 

Several definitions have been put forward over the last 40 years but what is known as modern logistics is generally viewed as a business planning framework for the management of material, service, information and capital flows. It includes the increasingly complex information, communication and control systems required in today s business environment. It fits into the supply chain as defined by Mentzer et al. as a set of three or more entities (organizations or individuals) directly involved in the upstream and downstream flows of products, services, finances andjor information from a source to a customer (see Figure 4.1). ... 

I remember the early days of supply chain management, when we typed our own letters, mailed them in paper envelopes, and went to our office for a conference call. Today, we communicate globally in real-time anywhere. E-mail has replaced inter-office mail and our handheld devices define where we will have our next conference call. So much has changed. 

The fntnre of a snpply chain lies in the definition of these out-side-in processes. It will drive new business models. Just as Amazon, Apple, Dell, and Walmart used supply chain management to define new bnsiness models of the past, new leaders will seize these shifts to power innovation. 

It is significant to note that each of these three companies pioneered both product and process innovation over the course of the history of supply chain management. They spawned new business models. For Apple to be successful, it required the definition of ilUnes. Dell defined a make-to-order online business model. P G s work on customer-driven supply chains drove market share. 

Leaders are still seeking a clear definition of supply chain excellence. Despite 30 years of investment in supply chain management, the definition is not clear, ft remains a holy grail. In interviews, we asked, "What company defines supply chain excellence "... 

Many companies, early in their understanding of supply chain management, will erroneously define agility as a shorter... 

Mentzer, John X, William De Witt, James S. Keebler, Soon-hong Min, Nancy W. Nix, Carlo D. Smith Zach G. Zacharia. 2001. Defining Supply Chain Management ... 

Before defining the DDSC concept, it is very important to review the concept of Supply Chain Management, as it will serve as the foundation to build the DDSC concept. To that end, the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP 2009) defines Supply Chain Management as follow ... 

Wanke et al. (2010) argue that the perception of logistics systems being complex is confirmed by several authors, but it is not always clear what does it mean. They defined complexity in logistics in terms of quantifiable scales and based on the notion of numerous actors or parts that are interconnected and can be captured by measures such as the company s gross revenue, its number of supphers, active customers, number of employees, number of employees involved in supply chain management, active stock keeping tmits (SKUs), number of distribution centers, orders processed and new product launches per year. 

They proposed that logistics complexity is a driver to define the way a company manages and emphasizes the different supply chain objectives and decision areas, and based on this, a contingency approach for supply chain management is required, where different contextual conditions drive the way the supply chain choices are made and management activities are performed, as opposed to a best practice approach where there would be some universally applicable principles that would be appropriate regardless of the particular conditions under study. 

One example of contingency approach applied to supply chain management comes from Fisher (1997). He proposes a framework to define what is the best supply chain for a company s product He argues that the first step in devising an effective supply chain strategy is to consider the nature of the demand for the products. To that end, many aspects are important for example, product lifecycle, demand predictability, product variety, and market standards for lead time and service. He proposes to classify products on two categories They are either primarily Functional or primarily Innovative, as summarized below ... 

In the first two steps, the academic literature currently available is reviewed and also explored practical experience firom the author, who has more than 17 years of practical experience in leading and developing logistics and supply chain management projects worldwide to identify and define the components of a Demand Driven Supply Chain. 

The supply ehain operations reference (SCOR) model is an industry standard approach to define, design, and improve supply chains (Stewart, 1997). The Supply Chain Council has developed and endorsed the SCOR model as the cross-industry standard for supply chain management. 

Lummus, R.R., Vokurka, R.J. (1999). Defining supply chain management A historical perspective and practical guidelines. Industrial Management Data Systems Journal, 99(1), 11-17. 

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