SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT IN RETIAL INDUSTRY: CONCEPTS, STRATEGIES AND WALMART CASE STUDY
Mian Wang
CID: 01090728
Imperial College Business School, MSc Management
ABSTRACT
With the rapid increase of operation cost and fast development of E-commence in today’s retail industry, traditional operation management models are antiquated. Companies attempt to enhance competitive capacity through management innovation, and an increasing amount of attention is paid to their supply chain management for the purpose of cost reduction, risk minimization and better customer satisfaction. Modern techniques like vendor partnership, operational innovations and information technology are adopted by retailers in order to manage their supply chain properly.
This paper aims at studying the characteristics of retail supply chain network and analyzing theories and techniques used in upstream, central operation and downstream of supply chain, using the methodology of literature analysis and case study. In the case study, this paper analyzes Walmart’s supply chain management practice, identifies potential problems and offers suggestion.
Keywords: supply chain, retail industry, modern techniques, Walmart case study
Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION
Retail industry is an important economic sector, which plays a significant role in expanding domestic demand, promoting employment, stimulating economic growth and increasing overall social welfare. With the progress of the industry, competitions among
Recognized as one of the leading computer manufacturers, Dell uses an astonishing supply chain through pull-to-order procurement and just-in-time inventory management. Their strategy is highly efficient and drives costs to a minimum while allowing for minimal lead times and production times of under 4 hours for each order as their suppliers maintain levels of inventory based on forecasts within Dell warehouses near Dell assembly
In order for IKEA to achieve design and sustainability objectives, they follow and balance four dimensions of design. The four different dimensions followed are form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price (Rafiq Elmansy, 2014). IKEA has already made changes by using cotton and water from sources that can be renewed. IKEA did this while posting strong sales figures. In 2014, its sales increased 5.9 percent from 2013 to $32.1 billion (Pantsios, 2015).
As we all know, the retail industry is very crucial and is highly competitive. As this company
The two supply chains of Walmart and Amazon are different from each other and are efficient at their own perspectives. Both the supply chains are highly efficient in reaching out the customers in different ways. Walmart’s supply chain is completely based on store based retailing whereas Amazon’s supply chain is based on online retailing. The various methods followed by Walmart in its supply chain are vendor management inventory, cross-docking and central warehousing. Amazon acts as a retailer, as a third party and as an agent in supply chain management while selling various products through online.
Target works on trying to find environmentally friendly ways get the product to the customers. They work on reducing their carbon footprint by working with experts on ways to improve their packaging and transportation. (Target Corporate 2016.) They also try to get their manufactures to use sustainable apparel and footwear products. They encourage their customers to follow manufactures suggestion by washing apparel in cold water to help reduce the usage of water and energy consumption. (Target Corporate 2016.) Targets products come from all over the world.
Reorders are placed at the time of review (T), and the safety stock that must be reordered is:
Tehindo consists of various key players in their supply chain configuration, which helps with the smooth and efficient flow of products and information throughout the company. Some of these key players in key positions include the various factories across Indonesia, the distribution facilities such as the wholesalers and retails and raw material suppliers of tea leaves in which are at 3 plantations across Indonesia.
The following research paper is based on The Home Depot Company, one of the largest home improvement specialty retailers in the United States. In addition, the analysis also includes supporting feedback obtained through an interview session with the Home Depot’s Operations Manager, Jaime. Jaime has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and has been employed by the company for eleven years. He possesses the knowledge and skills that are necessary to administer the supply chain management process for the 605 W. Morrison Rd. location store. The Home Depot has utilized several IT technologies that have helped the company gain core competencies in supply chain management processes. They have adopted the Omni-Channel Supply
Supply chain management is a practice that involves the planning, supervision, and implementation of strategies and controls to direct the movement of goods and services provided to customers. The intent of this essay is to incorporate a synopsis of existing literature and to provide the reader with a general understanding of how supply chain management correlates with the organizational design and structure of modern firms. The essay comprehensively reviews the components of supply chain management and their integration with functional areas within an organization. The information presented in this essay
Storage has always been an important aspect of economic development. For manufacturers, strategic warehousing offered a way to reduce holding or dwell time of materials and parts.
co-location, SC is dispersed | Orch delivers output at same time | Orch has 1 clear leader setting tempo
Supply chain management (SCM) is a core part of organizational effectiveness in order to achieve goals characterizes efficiency. Globalization and international agreement led Toyota to develop it is SCM process to increase outsourcing supply raw materials from foreign market that are low cost and high quality.
Supply chain management based on two basic core ideas. One is that every single product, which influences an end user, characterizes the accumulative determination of manifold organizations essentially. These organizations mentioned too cooperatively as the supply chain. The second core idea is that the existence of supply chain is long term and many organizations only pay concentrated on what was happening inside their “four fortifications”. Supply chain management is the accomplishments for exhaust the possibilities of customer value and triumph competitive benefit.
The global supply chain in the retail industry has witnessed changes and shifts which have led to opportunities and challenges for the involved players. This has occasioned shifts in trade and consumer behavior patterns. Among these are global growth patterns brought about by explosion of more cities and thus growth in infrastructure. There have been flexible supply chain trends which have enabled retail operators to adapt effectively to unexpected circumstances and changes. Moreover, globalization has changed the way retail supply chain is managed as more mature markets emerge to provide logistic and standard solution needs of the businesses. Conversely, near-shoring has
When supply chain managers are brought together it is the common goal to focus on the process of getting the consumers product though the forward supply chain as quick and efficiently as possible. However, there is a need to focus on the scope of the returns process too. “Companies can no longer afford to treat reverse logistics management as an afterthought. It needs to be a core capability within the supply chain organization. For years, most shippers paid little attention to returns” (Dowlatshahi, 2005). It has cost companies billions of dollars over the years and even harmed some of their brands. Though this may be apparent, the improvement of managing the returns of those goods has become the capstone of completing the full cycle of the supply chain from both forward and revers. In saying that, the attributed on managing the returns process is somewhat similar to that of the forward supply chain. This process is not always easy and convenient. Many known companies have failed because of an overload on return that were mishandled, causing a dilemma when making the attempts to reach expectations. To avoid failure the best practices, in reverse logistics have been proven to give those in leadership positions the functional ability to consider the overall establishment of clearly defining what profits and loss are being made. Technological advancements have too given the use of applications and inventory control analytical procedures to govern the increasing disposition of