Issue Archives: Quarter 1 2009
Now's the time for an India strategy
A growing consumer market and tax-law changes make it an ideal time for multinational companies to start setting up supply chains in India.
What do we really mean by supply chain management?
In this brief excerpt from his book, Future Logistics Challenges, Leif Enarsson of Sweden's Gothenburg University wonders why after all these years we still haven't arrived at a common definition of supply chain management.
How to build better relationships in China
Your usual ways of doing business and managing suppliers may not be effective in China. Here's advice on developing and maintaining strong supplier partnerships in this important trading nation.
Cost-saving strategies for contracts
When was the last time you reviewed your outsourcing agreements? Taking a fresh look at those contracts can help you cut costs in tough economic times.
The "Long Tail" of e-commerce standards
The Long Tail concept dictates that only 80 percent of a group will agree on using a particular standard. For electronic commerce, that's a problem given the emergence of competing formats for data transmissions. New technologies may offer a solution.
The software question: To buy or build?
Candy makers Just Born Inc. and The Hershey Company took different approaches to network optimization: One used a customized software package, while the other chose a commercially available solution. Here's why they made those decisions.
Columns
Afterword
A sensible response to rising costs
A currency fluctuation here, a commodity shortage there, and what has long seemed a perfectly sound approach to business suddenly makes no sense at all.
Career Ladder
Recruiters: A valuable career resource
No one's job is guaranteed, and it is a good idea to start the search process now so that you will be prepared in case your situation changes.
Direct Connection
We're here for you—in good times and in bad
Before you think about cutting back on your support of CSCMP, consider that it's precisely when times get tough that you need the support of your association.
Monetary Matters
Despite slowdown, L.A./Long Beach ports still reign
When the global economy improves, will congestion in the two San Pedro Bay ports return, or will shippers and carriers be wary of replicating the conditions that led to congestion in the early part of the decade?
Perspective
Where do you want be next year?
If you don't give some thought to the road ahead, you might find yourself stuck at a dead end when the economy does turn around.
Supply Chain Executive Insight E-Newsletter
Each month the Supply Chain Executive Insight e-newsletter will include brief articles about developments that are often overlooked by other supply chain publications. We will present you with summaries of the latest research as well as new ideas on how to make your supply chain operations more effective. And we'll offer commentary that sheds light on what's happening in supply chains today.Sign up now!
Free Articles From The Current Issue
Who keeps the engines of global commerce running?Although what supply chain professionals do every day impacts commerce everywhere in the world, their role in corporate success and competitiveness generally has remained in the background.
Emerging consumer markets: the new drivers of global economic growth
Consumption is still largely concentrated in North America and Western Europe, but consumers in emerging markets are stepping onto the world stage in greater numbers.
Global trade trends down as local consumption slowly grows
Global trade levels declined by 1.3 percent in Quarter 3 of 2011 while domestic consumption continued to grow.
Time to come home?
To offshore, nearshore, or "reshore"? A total cost of ownership (TCO) analysis can answer that question. For some companies, TCO analyses are suggesting that manufacturing close to the point of consumption is the best choice.
A hard look at the soft side of performance
Supply chain scorecards typically focus on operational metrics. But if companies want to capture a true picture of supply chain success, they need to measure employees' interpersonal performance, too.
Most Read Articles
Sponsored Links
Perspective
Power to the (supply chain) people
When the unexpected happens, let the managers on the frontlines make decisions to quickly address developing situations.
Forward ThinkingPower to the (supply chain) people
When the unexpected happens, let the managers on the frontlines make decisions to quickly address developing situations.
The high price of supply chain disruptions
A study sponsored by the consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers has quantified the financial impact of a supply chain breakdown, and it isn't cheap.
Forward Thinking
How much CO2 is in your OJ?
According to PepsiCo, each half-gallon carton of its orange juice results in the release of 3.75 pounds (1.7 kilograms) of CO2 into the atmosphere.
Forward Thinking
Retail revolution: Data synchronization comes to Russia
Metro Group AG says it is the first retailer to synchronize item-level store data with key suppliers in Russia.
Forward Thinking
The case for intelligent supply chain design
Researchers have found that manufacturers that have designed their supply chains for their particular type of products achieve a higher return on assets than manufacturers that do not.
Forward Thinking
U.S. companies now use fewer overseas suppliers
Preliminary results from a study by the data-analysis firm Panjiva confirms what many have suspected: U.S. companies cut their global supply base last year in response to the worldwide economic downturn.
Forward Thinking
Europe still hiring supply chain talent
What are supply chain professionals making in the United Kingdom these days? Salary surveys conducted by Purcon Recruitment Services, tell the tale.
Forward Thinking
Foldable design cuts containers down to size
f a venture by a pair of engineering professors from the Indian Institute of Technology and a former banker succeeds, ocean carriers and equipment leasing companies will be able to fold up the big steel boxes for storage.
Forward Thinking
Little green schoolhouse
Signaling the growing interest in the connection between environmentalism and supply chain management, colleges and universities on every continent are now teaching "green" supply chain management and logistics courses.
Departments
Dialogue: A Conversation With a CSCMP MemberRespect for the past, ideas for the future
In her leadership role at one of India's oldest logistics companies, Bhairavi Jani is helping to reshape the country's supply chain landscape.
Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment
Upcoming professional education programs around the world
CSCMP Notebook
CSCMP Notebook
News and ideas for success from CSCMP
