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 at center stage

Supply chain at center stage

October 31, 2007
DC Velocity Staff
No Comments

For most of the history of commerce, managing transportation was a primary focus of what we today call supply chains, said Don Bowersox during an education session at the CSCMP conference. It was not until the 1950s that business managers began to develop "total cost awareness." Then came customer service, outsourcing, globalization, customer service, and integrated supply chain management. Bowersox, who is professor of business administration and dean emeritus at Michigan State University as well as one of the profession's pre-eminent thought leaders, offered his views at a session on the evolution of supply chain management.

What's developing now, Bowersox said, is the concept of responsive supply chain management. "The supply chain is not an organization, but a strategy," he said. It provides a framework for organizing the pieces of the supply chain into collaborative relationships. "The supply chain is about leveraging relationships," he said. He added that developing collaborative relationships on a broad scale was not possible until the development of enabling technologies.

Supply chain managers are important to business success, he told his audience. "We don't always recognize how important we are."

But Wall Street may. It's taking a growing interest in how well—or how poorly—businesses manage their supply chains. Why? Charles Poirier, a partner in the consulting firm Computer Sciences Corp., told an educational session later in the conference that investors "see that a supply chain can increase shareholder value."

Poirier reported on a study conducted by CSC jointly with Michigan State University that asked managers to rate their own supply chains in eight categories. Using the results, the researchers divided companies into three categories: leaders, followers, and laggards. One of the key factors differentiating the laggards from the leaders, he said, was that laggards focus primarily on controlling supply chain costs, while leaders have turned their supply chains into a means of generating new revenue. Leaders recognize that looking solely at costs "leads to diminishing returns," he said. But only about 25 to 30 percent of companies have looked at revenue generation through their supply chains, he said.

Supply chain managers can affect revenue through efforts to improve customer service and to get better forecast accuracy with improvements in sales and operations planning as well as through collaborative analysis of data with customers and suppliers. "What separates the leaders is that they are breaking down silos," Poirier said.

  • Related Articles

    Sustainability takes center stage at PackExpo

    Innovation, education take center stage at 5th annual Raymond Manufacturing Day event

    Logistics takes center stage in Europe as Brexit deadline looms

  • Related Events

    LINk2021: The Retail Supply Chain Conference

Recent Articles by DC Velocity Staff

CMA/CGM to add LNG-powered ships to U.S. service

North American entries rank high in Toyota Material Handling design contest

IBM survey says digitalization trends will sweep trucking industry by 2030

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

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • 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?

  • Old Dominion adds nine freight service centers to handle business growth

Now Playing on DCV-TV

20210226acd usa vs

MAX Mobile Workstation in action in leading 3PL improves efficiency in operations. Watch it now!

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
MAX Mobile Workstation, from ACD USA, Inc., is ideally suited for data collection and many tasks that workers handle throughout the Distribution Center, Manufacturing Plant, Cross Dock, and more.  This customer testimonial from Goldhofer shows the high quality industrial design and functionality of MAX, which is...

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