Tag: SCM

SCM is the tag for Supply Chain Management which encompasses all things Supply Chain including Procurement, Logistics, Planning, Business, Operations and more.

Seasoned Leadership in Action™! An Interview with John Heffernan, Chief Supply Chain Officer at ModusLink!

John Heffernan
John Heffernan, CSCO at ModusLink

At Supply Chain Game Changer we believe in sharing experiences and expertise from people in every industry and from across the globe.  As such we have introduced our “Seasoned Leadership in Action™” Interview series at Supply Chain Game Changer.  This interview is with John Heffernan, Chief Supply Chain Officer at ModusLink.

I met John on my first day at ModusLink.  He was presenting to the Board of Directors.  John was one of the Global Operations Executives for the company.   He had complete command of his facts, situation, direction and strategy.   He was so knowledgable that his expertise and experience came shining through in everything that he said.

As John and I continued to work together we knew that we needed to make serious, game changing improvements around the world.  John and I continued to positively challenge and build on each other’s ideas and thinking.  This culminated in the deployment of a phenomenal program and the achievement of world class, industry leading results.  We raised each other’s game to the benefit of all!

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Leadership Techniques To Inspire Your Team!

Lessons from Bad Bosses!
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Leaders and leadership techniques are worth their salt are those who inspire others to be great.

Whether you’re a sales manager or a CEO, bringing out the best in people you work with is key to the success of your organization.

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Commodity (or Category) Management – What is your Buying Strategy?

What’s the Difference Between Commodity Management and Category Management?
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In any company or industry that sells products the cost of the raw materials and components is often the single largest expense.  Despite the magnitude of this cost however there is a wide range of focus put on managing this expenditure from proactive and strategic to reactive and tactical. This is all managed by either Commodity Management or Category Management.

In some cases there is a great level of  planning applied before a single purchase order is placed.  In other cases buying decisions are made subjectively and with very little focus.  Further the experience in those buying these goods can vary significantly as well.

Supply Chain is about much more than just negotiating lower materials costs.  A well constructed Procurement Strategy will raise the value of the Supply Chain to your company.

How do you manage your materials spend?  Are you executing a Buying Strategy or are you just blindly placing purchase orders ?

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Welcome To The Supply Chain Game Changer ™ Blog!

The Supply Chain Game Changer ™ Blog!

Welcome to the Supply Chain Game Changer ™ blog.

The Supply Chain touches all of our lives whether it be in business or personally.  No matter what industry you are in or are touched by, all involve the movement of goods, services, and information.  So the most efficient functioning of the Supply Chain affects us all.  And it affects us in every aspect of our lives whether we are consumers, employees, or business leaders.

With a career spent in Supply Chain I’ve seen many ways of performing the processes involved in managing the Supply Chain.  Many of these processes are highly efficient.  Yet many more are highly inefficient.  Regardless, everyone strives to improve the way things are done.  And every experience has been an opportunity for growth.

Supply Chain Management

In this blog I’d like to share my experiences, and those of others, in improving, working in, managing in and being managed by the Supply Chain.  

There have been some remarkable achievements and there have been some missteps along the way.  However there are lessons to be learned and experiences to be shared in every case.  And I hope that this learning and shared experience will be of value as you seek to improve the Supply Chain you are a part of.

On top of that we want to share anything and everything related to Leadership, Change Management, Technology, Procurement, Purchasing, Distribution, Logistics, and much, much more.

Overall Supply Chain Game Changer can serve you as a guide as you do your jobs and as you progress through your career.  The issues and challenges that you face will be different for everyone on any given day.  There is something for everyone in Supply Chain Game Changer.

Additionally I invite you to comment and send me content.  By learning, not only from successes but from failures, we will all be better going forward.  There is a wonderful world of people and experiences that we can all learn from.

So again I welcome you to the Supply Chain Game Changer™ blog.

Let’s go!

What Exactly Is Supply Chain Management? 10 Different Definitions!

Starting a New Job? Be a Positive Impact Player to Succeed!

6 Reasons Supply Chain Employees Look For New Jobs!

I have seen many people join a new company and take a new job or leave for another company.  While I don’t have the precise statistics it is fair to say that as many as half of the people joining a new company will do well.  However atleast half of these people will struggle in their new roles and in their new companies.  Many will fail altogether.

What makes someone more or less successful when making such a career move?  What are the environmental factors which affect this outcome?  And most importantly what is it that the new employee does or doesn’t do that makes them succeed or fail?

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Cyber Security: The Weakest Link is Your Biggest Risk!

4 Pitfalls to Avoid When Selecting Supply Chain Technology!

We all know how important cybersecurity is now that technology powers commerce in such a significant way. But if you perform work as part of a supply chain, you know that the stakes are especially high with cyber security the weakest link.

Given that you’re part of a network of providers, vendors, transporters and managers, the impact of the weakest link in the supply chain cybersecurity “chain of custody” can be significant.

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Naming Your Project Will Rally Everyone To Your Cause!

Naming a Product or Company? It’s Not That Easy!
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“I’d like you to join our company.  One of the Projects you will lead is our ‘Productivity Initiative’ unless you will be naming your project. We need to transform all of our business processes and culture and improve our efficiencies everywhere.”

Wow!  What a great challenge and opportunity to make a difference.  But calling it the “Productivity Initiative”?  That was as inspiring as watching paint dry or grass grow.

“I’ll do it!  But we need to give this Project a NAME.  A NAME that will inspire people, motivate people, and capture the essence of the change and cultural transformation that we are looking for.  And this can’t be an ‘Initiative” … it has to be an ‘Imperative’ … this is not optional … we have to transform the business and we need everyone to rally around our cause!

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Network Optimization Success Criteria!

To DC Or Not To DC? That is the Warehouse Design Question!

Network optimization is a critical issue across all Supply Chains.  In Manufacturing, Distribution, Logistics and Retail the effectiveness of your network will make the difference between success and failure.

There are many environmental factors that must be taken in to account in order to define and optimize your network.  Your business may be growing or declining. You may be expanding into new channels, such as E-Commerce, or you may be pulling back.  And you may have just received a cash infusion allowing you to invest more, or you may have enormous cash and profit pressures forcing you to ratify your network.

Whatever your situation your network must continually be optimized.  Your facilities, whether owned, rented or outsourced, are the living organism which make up your network and define how your company goes to market.

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Omnichannel Customer Service Best Practices!

The Omni-channel Approach to Customer Experience!

The growing size of today’s consumer market sets the stage for entrepreneurs and companies of varying capacities to take part. The US consumer market alone was at $1.5 trillion in 2016. And this number is continuously increasing, including omnichannel customer service.

According to an article from AdAge, US Gen Y or millennials are also swiftly increasing their slice of the pie, spending more than $200 billion annually.

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McDonald’s Supply Chain Challenge: Switching from Frozen to Fresh Burgers!

KFC Ran Out of Chicken! What Supply Chain Lessons Can We Learn?
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Back in early 2018, McDonald’s – a pioneer in cold chain distribution – announced that it was testing out using fresh patties instead of frozen in burgers at 300 of its U.S. locations.

Which doesn’t sound like a huge deal, but for one of the world’s largest Supply Chains – one that’s been using frozen burgers in its stores for decades – it represented an interesting test case in how companies can use supply chain strength to pivot as the market changes.

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Driving the Need for Culture Change!

Creating the Culture to Break Barriers!
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You have determined that something has to change in your company! Customer satisfaction may be low.  Employee morale may be in the dumps.  Financial results and operating performance may be falling far short of your objectives. You need culture change!

Or maybe you don’t have any of these problems. But you view that your company is performing well now yet it is not well positioned to go to the next level and be successful in the future.

Or it could be any combination of these pressures.  Whatever the reason, you have come to the realization that the culture of your company must change to get the results you need!

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The Negotiation Before the Negotiation!

What Exactly Is Procurement? And What is Purchasing?

When preparing for a negotiation, it is common to identify the issues to be negotiated, decide on negotiating tactics to use on your supplier, think through what your supplier may say and practice saying the words you’ll use during the negotiation.

Those are all necessary components of negotiation preparation.

But, they are not enough. To truly reach your potential in a negotiation you need to understand some key things about your supplier. This article will focus on three major things you need to know about your supplier before beginning a negotiation.

How do you get to know them? You can research your supplier and/or you could – get this – ask your supplier contact!

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Artificial Intelligence in Energy Management! (Infographic)

The Internet of Things (IoT) – Welcome the Digital Supply Chain!

When you think of Artificial Intelligence, or AI, you might think of freaky, futuristic robots.  However as Fuel Fighter has found in its recent research AI is far more helpful than this futuristic, obscure and seemingly distant perception suggests. Artificial Intelligence in Energy Management is quickly becoming a part of our Energy industries, helping to develop more efficient and safe energy production techniques.

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Reverse Logistics and the Power of Your 3PL!

The Downside of Free Returns and Exchanges!

For many companies, reverse logistics has become an integral part of their business plan, offering them the ability to maximize the efficiency of their operations.

Generally, reverse logistics is defined as “the process of moving goods from their typical final destination for the purpose of capturing value, or proper disposal. Remanufacturing and refurbishing activities are also may be included in the definition of reverse logistics.”

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A Tale of Two Companies: Different Quality Management Beliefs!

Design in Quality First!

Company 1

The CEO came in to my office carrying a product and said, “The label is off centre on this item.  It has a quality defect.”  I responded, “Is that actually a quality defect?  Quality is a measure of conformance to a standard, and we have no standards.”  The CEO didn’t quite understand the distinction.  Certainly the item was mis-labelled.  But there was absolutely no Quality management process in the company.

Company 2

I toured all of the company’s facilities around the globe.  It seemed like we had a tremendous amount of resource working on quality.  But they were spending 100% of their time on inspection.  A report subsequently  confirmed my concerns.  Over 10% of our entire direct workforce was spending the vast majority of their time doing 100% inspection.   We had a Quality management system but it’s only principle was to inspect in quality.

Whichever the situation was, proper Quality management objectives required something to change in both cases!

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