Supply Chain Management – Put Simply
The term supply chain management is used repeatedly and we often hear that you can make profits only if your SCM is efficient. So, what exactly is SCM? SCM is the art as well as science of managing the supply chain that includes the methodology used to procure raw materials and deliver the final product or service to customers. The basic components that make up SCM are planning, sourcing, manufacturing, delivering and returning.
In case of the first, that is planning, the main thrust is that a proper strategy has to be devised to manage the resources that are used to manufacture and deliver your product or service to the consumer. Also, a proper plan has to be put in place to monitor the supply chain. Now, it is important to ensure that the strategy that you device can be implemented in reality, in terms of the cost and feasibility.
The next step is sourcing. This involves selecting the vendors from whom you would source the raw materials required for your product or service. Following this, you would need to create a template for the delivery of the goods, the pricing, feedback, placing a repeat order and so on. A process would have to be put in place for managing the inventory and delivering it to your manufacturing unit as and when required.
Next comes manufacturing. This involves making the product, testing it, packaging it and preparing it to be delivered to your final consumer. At this stage, a quality check is also a necessity to ensure that your product meets the required standards.
Following this, you would need to deliver the product or service to the consumer. This includes taking orders and ensuring timely delivery of the final product or service. It also involves ensuring that the product that reaches the consumer is in good condition.
Now, consumer satisfaction is of utmost importance and this can be achieved only if the consumer can give you the requisite feedback and if a channel is created for returning products that are defective. With this in place, you can rest assured that your supply chain basics are in place.
Subscribe to the comments for this post