A little of everything can go a long way
When products don't sell very much, conventional wisdom calls for reducing assortments and tailoring them to local conditions. But the opposite approach—stocking small quantities of each product at every store and centralizing replenishment decisions—has been shown to increase sales and reduce inventories without raising costs.
The tax factor in global site selection
Before you pick a location for a manufacturing plant overseas, consider the impact of foreign enterprise income taxes.
At Kraft, cash is king
When Kraft Foods needed to cut costs and free up cash, its supply chain organization rose to the challenge. Better inventory turnover played a leading role in boosting cash flow by 20 percent.
Get out your calculators
The new International Financial Reporting Standards may require you to change the way you value inventory and measure other performance indicators.
A smarter way to spend your money
When executed properly, a spend management strategy can save cash and accelerate return on investments—even in a down economy.
Which customers are most profitable?
Do you know what individual customers contribute to earnings per share? Here's how to determine the impact of each customer or customer segment on your company's profitability.
Can you be green and profitable?
Profitability and sustainability don't have to be mutually exclusive. By considering environmental issues when setting financial objectives for a supply chain network analysis, companies can successfully balance the trade-offs between them.
Is your consultant worth the price tag?
Here's a formula to help you determine whether hiring a consultant for your project will give you a solid payback.
Running inventory like a Deere
By restructuring the supply chain for one of its divisions, John Deere cut inventory and reduced freight costs to better manage assets and enhance shareholder value.
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
ASICS keeps pace with growing demandASICS America's single distribution center couldn't keep up with surging demand for its athletic shoes and apparel. Changing its distribution pattern and adding another warehouse helped the company manage both current sales and future growth.
Supply chain versus the volcano
The disruption to air traffic caused by Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano is a reminder of why we should prepare for both expected and unexpected supply chain risks.
Dealing with our oil addiction
Will the Deepwater Horizon disaster spur us to develop new sources of energy?
There's more to performance management than metrics
Getting people to consistently perform at a high level requires more than implementing an incentive program.
Keeping it personal in a digital world
While electronic communication has become a permanent part of our daily lives, face-to-face communication is still important for supply chain success.
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Perspective
Commentary: Do-it-yourself diesel
Although diesel-powered trucks are our best option right now, it makes sense to develop other fuel sources—even if it means manufacturing it ourselves.
Forward ThinkingCommentary: Do-it-yourself diesel
Although diesel-powered trucks are our best option right now, it makes sense to develop other fuel sources—even if it means manufacturing it ourselves.
Globalization a top concern for supply chain managers
It's a big world out there, and supply chain executives know they need to master it. That's one of the takeaways from the latest Ohio State University Survey of Career Patterns in Logistics, presented at CSCMP's 2007 Annual Conference in Philadelphia.
Forward Thinking
Shopping study could shape grocery replenishment
The study turned up some surprising insights that challenge the conventional wisdom about consumer behavior.
Forward Thinking
Poor logistics performance hampers economic growth
A new study issued by the World Bank identifies "trade logistics"—the capacity to connect to international markets to ship goods—as a critical factor in a country's potential for economic growth.
Forward Thinking
Fraud strikes four out of five companies worldwide
A recent survey conducted for the risk consulting company Kroll found that four out of five companies have experienced some sort of fraud in the past three years. In every industry sector, companies have lost many millions of dollars to fraud, according to Kroll's latest Global Fraud Report.
Forward Thinking
Present-day pirates
The general public rarely hears about ocean shipping, but thanks to National Geographic, millions of readers are getting a look at a problem that's unknown even to many importers and exporters: piracy.
Forward Thinking
Toy recalls: Who's really to blame?
Wherever recalls of Chinese products have cropped up, it's been widely assumed that suppliers were at fault. But that may be untrue in many cases, say two Canadian researchers.
Forward Thinking
Breaking the supply chain language barrier
More than 20 supply chain practitioners, consultants, and academics came together earlier this year to develop mutually agreed definitions for a number of supply chain metrics.
Forward Thinking
Put an end to long-term forecasting?
Toss aside the conventional wisdom that says detailed, long-term forecasts are essential to balancing demand and supply. Short-term forecasts can produce more accurate results with a lot less work, a new white paper argues.
Forward Thinking
The human element
For international supply chain projects, cultural sensitivity, mutual respect, and clear communication can be as important as technology and engineering.
Forward Thinking
Benchmarking "do's" and "don'ts"
How can companies get the greatest benefits from benchmarking and best practices in their supply chains?
Forward Thinking
It's about time
Back when most people were hailing quality as the definitive source of competitive advantage, George Stalk had another idea: Although cost and quality matter, the real key to success is time.
Forward Thinking
The ups and downs of new product launches
Companies often fail to anticipate problems when they launch new products, according to André Kuper, a project manager for Hewlett-Packard Co.
Departments
Dialogue: A Conversation With a CSCMP MemberCitizen of the world
A wealth of experience on four continents has given South Africa's Abré Pienaar a global outlook that's balanced by an appreciation of local sensitivities.
Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment
Upcoming professional education programs around the world
CSCMP Notebook
CSCMP Notebook
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