We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • ::COVID-19 COVERAGE::
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC.
    • Podcast
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Dispatches
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC.
    • Podcast
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Dispatches
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
Home » supply chain master: a definition
newsworthy

supply chain master: a definition

July 1, 2009
Mark B. Solomon
No Comments

What defines a supply chain ômaster"? According to consulting firm Accenture, itÆs the ability to take an end-to-end view of the supply chain, to integrate the supply chain into the companyÆs overall business strategy, to develop the proper metrics to correlate performance and expectations, and to be superior in two or three disciplines, or domains.

The survey, AccentureÆs ôHigh-Performance Supply Chainö study, was conducted across a field of 1,500 practitioners in more than 20 countries, the largest such survey Accenture has conducted in nearly six years. It was designed to offer a window into the qualities of a ôsupply chain ômasterö and the performance advantages that can be gained by achieving the distinction.

According to the survey, masters have a big-picture vision of their supply chain but focus their execution and investment in specific areas where they will stand apart from their competition. In the past, supply chain excellence had been driven by a ôone-size-fits-allö strategy, says Bill Read, a partner in AccentureÆs supply chain management practice. Today, the focus is on ôtargeted and more customized strategies,ö Read adds.

Another trait of the ômasters,ö says Read, is that they do not demonstrate a slavish devotion to an industryÆs best practices. What emerged from the survey, he says, is that ôbest practices for an industry may not be the best for you.ö

The survey examined mastery of six functions: sourcing and procurement, supply chain planning, fulfillment, manufacturing, innovation and product development, and service management. It found that masters of supply chain planning achieved 10 percent greater forecasting accuracy than their counterparts did; that service management masters attained 33 percent better turns on ôsparesö inventories, and that masters of sourcing and procurement delivered 2.5 times more value for every dollar they spent on procurement than companies that havenÆt achieved ômastersö status did.

Supply Chain Services
KEYWORDS Accenture
  • Related Articles

    The master supply chain builder: interview with Kathy Wengel

    ProShip Receives a 2016 Supply & Demand Chain Executive Green Supply Chain Award

    LLamasoft Wins Supply & Demand Chain Executive Green Supply Chain Award for Second Year in a Row

  • Related Events

    LINk2021: The Retail Supply Chain Conference

Marksolomon
Mark Solomon joined DC VELOCITY as senior editor in August 2008, and was promoted to his current position on January 1, 2015. He has spent more than 30 years in the transportation, logistics and supply chain management fields as a journalist and public relations professional. From 1989 to 1994, he worked in Washington as a reporter for the Journal of Commerce, covering the aviation and trucking industries, the Department of Transportation, Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court. Prior to that, he worked for Traffic World for seven years in a similar role. From 1994 to 2008, Mr. Solomon ran Media-Based Solutions, a public relations firm based in Atlanta. He graduated in 1978 with a B.A. in journalism from The American University in Washington, D.C.

Recent Articles by Mark Solomon

Coming together for road safety: interview with Joshua Girard

Off the rails

Freight rate spikes shaking up the C-suite

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • Walmart launches plan to build micro-DCs inside dozens of retail stores

  • Relaxed regulations for drone parcel delivery to take effect in March

  • Gartner survey signals increased investment in resilience over the next two years

  • Increasing Urgency for Vaccine Supplies Drives Launch of New Vaccine Manufacturing Resources on Thomasnet.com

  • What Level of Automation is Right for Your Warehouse?

Now Playing on DCV-TV

8d8b16e1 4a2e 4b15 90bf 18232a1f444a

BulkPak® Innovation—The Future of Supply Chain Sustainability

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
Durable, sustainable packaging is in high demand. ORBIS BulkPak® containers protect product during picking, assembly, processing, storage and distribution applications in a wide variety of industries. Listen to Bob Nussbaum, Director of Engineering, Ryan Klement, Senior Product Manager, and Bill Gregg, VP of...

FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

  • Time to rethink your lift truck power

  • Warehouse Management System Project Toolkit

  • Solving Talent Management Challenges Now and In the Future

  • Shaping Up Last Mile Delivery to Surpass Customer Expectations

View More

Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • ADVERTISING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • STAFF
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright ©2021. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing