November, 2014

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What Do We Do Now?

Supply Chain Shaman

'“What did you learn?” asked the client. I smiled and reflected. It was a thought-provoking question. The ROI study on supply chain planning was completed. We were reviewing the data that is showcased in the blog post Three Questions People are Afraid to Ask. The data is clear: best-of-breed supply chain planning solutions are faster to implement, have a better ROI and yield higher satisfaction than planning systems from ERP providers.

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Turkey Logistics: The Thanksgiving Supply Chain

Logistics Viewpoints

'Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, a time for family, friends, and turkey. Lots of turkey. Just how much turkey? According to the National Turkey Federation, over 730 million pounds of turkey will be consumed in the United States during Thanksgiving. Given that the average weight of a Thanksgiving turkey is 16 pounds, that is about 45 million […].

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Experts Discuss How to Streamline Global Supply Chain

Supply Chain Opz

'Companies of all sizes have been capturing the value from Global Supply Chain to increase the economies of scale and scope for years. Due to the rapid change in global business environment, managers find it difficult to gain the edge over competitors. In this article, we will show you tips from worldwide experts that you can use to streamline your global supply chain operations.

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Optimization or automation: Which do you need?

DELMIA Quintiq

'It’s easy enough to confuse automation with optimization. In both cases, you press a button, wait a few seconds, and whoops… there’s your result. But while the external actions look alike, the results are very different. What automation really automates. Automation automates what human planners do. So what do planners do? Planners oversimplify. To cope with the overwhelming complexity of supply chain planning, planners base their decisions on simple rules of thumb or heuristics.

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Tariffs on the Table: How to Brief the Board and C‑Suite With Confidence

“What should we do about the tariffs?” There’s no straightforward answer — every leader has a different expectation. CFOs want numbers. COOs want action. CEOs want strategy. And supply chain and procurement leaders need to be ready with the right response — fast. That’s why GEP has created a simple three-part framework that will help CPOs and CSCOs brief the board and C-suite with clarity and confidence.

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From Hurricanes to Overthrown Governments to Potholes: Transportation and Supply Chain Resilience

Talking Logistics

'When referring to supply chain resilience, the causes of disruption vary widely in scale and emphasize the unpredictability and severity of the events. We know transportation plays an important role in the supply chain – it’s the line in a flow diagram between the little buildings and smoke stacks – and transportation disruptions happen on a daily basis.

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Misnomer

Supply Chain Shaman

'Misnomer (n): A wrong name. The misuse of a term or name. Merriam-Webster Dictionary. I am a supply chain gal. I work with many organizations on their supply chain strategies. One of the important lessons I have learned in my lifetime of doing this work is to never be afraid to ask what a term means … especially when everyone in the room is comfortable.

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How to Avoid Dimensional Weight Pricing Cost Spike

Logistics Viewpoints

'This past June, the largest overnight delivery carriers (FedEx and UPS) announced that they would apply dimensional weight pricing to all shipments, effective January 2015. It is expected that shipping costs will increase 20 to 30 percent and affect over 70 percent of all shipments. What shippers are truly affected by the new pricing model? […].

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It’s Now Twice as Hard to Find Good Supply Chain Talent

Demand Solutions

It has been a tough job market over the last couple of years. But things have definitely gotten better, especially in the supply chain field. . Last year, Demand Solutions held our user conference at the Hard Rock Hotel in Orlando, Florida. I was struck by the juxtaposition of the rock star paraphernalia up on the walls with all the rock star supply chain pros we work with.

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My other truck is a sleigh

DELMIA Quintiq

'If you’re a trucker you’re not exactly Santa Claus, but once a year you have the same job and face the same problems – delivering lots of VIPs (Very Important Packages) to lots of addresses in harsh weather and within a very short time window. Could you do it? Smart Trucker Challenge: Holiday Edition gives you a chance to find out. The rules of the game are simple enough.

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How to Modernize Manufacturing Without Losing Control

Speaker: Andrew Skoog, Founder of MachinistX & President of Hexis Representatives

Manufacturing is evolving, and the right technology can empower—not replace—your workforce. Smart automation and AI-driven software are revolutionizing decision-making, optimizing processes, and improving efficiency. But how do you implement these tools with confidence and ensure they complement human expertise rather than override it? Join industry expert Andrew Skoog as he explores how manufacturers can leverage automation to enhance operations, streamline workflows, and make smarter, data-dri

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Big Data and Analytics for Oil and Gas Transportation

Talking Logistics

'Live Epsiode: Friday, November 14, 2014 at 12:00 ET. There has been a significant resurgence of the U.S. oil and gas industry in recent years, and U.S. is now second leading producer of oil (behind Saudi Arabia). Based on the current trends, North America could rival OPEC in oil and production. This growth along with the complexities found in the oil and gas industry can create significant transportation and logistics challenges.

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Your supply chain is costing you money – Reason #7 Making decisions based on bad data (supply chain data accuracy)

Kinaxis

'by John Westerveld. Over the years, working for and with numerous manufacturing companies, I’ve seen many supply chain practices that cost companies money. Over the next several weeks, I’ll outline these issues and discuss some ideas around how to avoid these practices. You can find the previous posts here: Reason #1: Offshoring without getting the full picture.

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Why a ‘single version of truth’ is key to a great supply chain

The Network Effect

'The journey from ‘good’ to ‘great’ is well underway across many global supply networks. While comprehensive benchmarks are still being normalized for comparative purposes, recent results that have been experienced by various customers of the new cloud-based platforms include reductions of 40% in inventory requirements for cycle and safety stock when compared to traditional ERP batch type processing, 5% decreases in lost sales, 99% customer service levels at retail, 5% reductions in material c

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Why Do CEO’s Too Often Struggle with Supply Chain Management Best Practices?

Logistics Viewpoints

'I’d been interacting with Mark Kuta, who works for Oracle in the Value Chain Planning group, and he sent me a book he wrote called Think Like a CEO. The book seems to be directed at sales people; the subtitle is “Sell to Any Company in Any Industry… Better and Faster than a Harvard MBA.” […].

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Breaking The Commerce Bottleneck: Your SAP Exit Plan Starts Now

Speaker: Jason Cottrell and Gireesh Sahukar

Retailers know the clock is ticking–legacy SAP Commerce support ends in 2026. Legacy platforms are becoming a liability burdened by complexity, rigidity, and mounting operational costs. But modernization isn’t just about swapping out systems, it’s about preparing for a future shaped by real-time interactions, AI powered buying assistants, and flexible commerce architecture.

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Avoiding a 2014 Holiday Supply Chain Meltdown Requires Managing Customer Expectations

Enterra Insights

'Some of us have blessedly short memories when it comes to recalling unpleasant events in our lives. Golfers are even … Continued The post Avoiding a 2014 Holiday Supply Chain Meltdown Requires Managing Customer Expectations appeared first on Enterra Solutions.

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The basics of customer-centric multi-channel retailing (Part 1)

DELMIA Quintiq

'Start where the customer can’t see. Back in university, I was fully engaged with the topic of multi-channel retailing thanks to a marketing professor who had a long-standing passion for everything retail and digital. I learned a lot about omni-channel retailing and the customer’s way of looking at it. The marketing classes helped me appreciate the why’s and what’s, but the how’s of multi-channel retailing remained largely unknown.

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The Network Effect in Supply Chain and Logistics

Talking Logistics

'About four years ago, UPS launched its “ We Love Logistics ” ad campaign, which helped raise public awareness about the logistics industry (and helped my family and friends better understand what I do for a living). I hope UPS does the same for communicating the value of networks to supply chain and logistics executives — not just physical networks, but digital ones too.

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Guest Blog: Women of the Supply Chain: Responsibility, Collaboration and Bathroom Lines

Kinaxis

'by Melissa Clow Josh Greenbaum , Principal, Enterprise Applications Consulting recently published an interesting blog that I would like to share with our readers. Josh has over 30 years of experience in the industry as a computer programmer, systems analyst, author, consultant, and industry analyst. He founded Enterprise Applications Consulting in 1998 and has been a pioneering independent analyst and consultant ever since.

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3 Ways Your Wholesaler ERP System Is Failing You

The supply chain is the world’s most complex logistics challenge, where efficiency and accuracy are critically important to ensure goods are accessible to consumers when needed. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems play a key role for wholesale distribution companies in this process, serving (among other things) as the inventory management software that attempts to ensure that the right products are available in the right quantities at the right time and place.

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What’s new in the automotive supply chain? (Hint: Inventory Replenishment Policies)

The Network Effect

'1965 Ford Mustang Assembly Line in Dearborn. This is an ongoing series of posts on new developments within the automobile supply chain, with examples of best practices. In my last post, I talked about why a network model makes so much sense. Today I want to explore how automobile suppliers are improving their operations via inventory replenishment policies.

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Why Businesses are Elevating Supply Chain Design from a Project to a Core Business Process

Logistics Viewpoints

'When I speak with new customers, many of them tell me how in the past they viewed supply chain design as an optimization project that was completed every three to five years, often by third-party firms. Now these large, multi-national businesses are bringing supply chain design in-house and adopting it as a core business process. […].

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Design for Postponement

SCM Research

'Today, I would like to draw your attention to one of my favorite articles in the field of supply chain management: Design for Postponement by Swaminathan & Lee (2003). The article identifies three key postponement enablers: First, process standardization, where the initial steps of a process are standardized across a product line and distinct personalities are added at a later stage (e.g., localized manuals or power supply modules of a printer).

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The basics of customer-centric multi-channel retailing (Part 2)

DELMIA Quintiq

'Start where the customer can’t see. In the first part of this blog series , I talked about the multi-channel retail experience and the critical prerequisite retailers need to fulfill to get started on this journey. In this post, I will explore how retailers can design their bottom line with the customer in mind. In the context of multi-channel retailing, the expression “putting the customer at the heart of everything we do” translates into: Providing value for the price a customer is payi

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Signal-Based Selling: How to Leverage 4 Key Buying Signals

As prospects define their problem, search for solutions, and even change jobs, they are generating high-value signals that the best go-to-market teams can leverage to close more deals. This is where signal-based selling comes into play. ZoomInfo CEO Henry Schuck recently broke down specific ways to put four key buying signals into action with the experts from 30 Minutes to President’s Club.

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What Role Does Global Trade Data Play in Today’s Supply Chains?

Talking Logistics

'Global Trade Data (aka “trade content”) is one of the “3Cs” of Global Trade Management , but its value extends well beyond facilitating import and export processes. Defining Global Trade Data, determining which supply chain processes benefit from it, and figuring out how supply chain applications integrate with and use the data aren’t always straightforward.

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Kinexions: Is “User Conference” the Right Description?

Kinaxis

'by Bill DuBois Being a presales consultant (…by day, Late Late Supply Chain Show host by night) during the last quarter of the year, there’s little, if any, time to reflect back on what was the most successful user conference in Kinaxis history. To be honest, my reflections didn’t start until I read Josh Greenbaum’s post, “ Women of the Supply Chain: Responsibility, Collaboration and Bathroom Lines ”.

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Why ERP reduces accountability and measurement in your supply chain, and how you can fix it

The Network Effect

'Assuming excellence in customer responsiveness is a given, in order to achieve excellence in operating performance all employees should have a solid education and understanding as to how their roles and responsibilities contribute to their supply network outcomes in addition to their budget or financial performance. And more importantly, accountability must become a key component to any organizational and measurement alignment.

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Two Ways Supply Chains Can Remain Strategic to Business

Logistics Viewpoints

'Supply chain management is a critical function at any business that involves production, distribution, or inventory management. But being a critical function does not make it strategic in the traditional Michael Porter definition of providing a unique, valuable and sustainable competitive advantage. So, how can the supply chain management function elevate itself to that of […].

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From Reactive to Resilient: Charting Your Supply Chain Maturity

In this webinar, supply chain industry experts share insights and best practices for enhancing supply chain efficiency, resilience and adaptability. Watch the webinar to learn strategies to develop supply chain maturity and save on costs. Delve into the stages of supply chain maturity, from foundational management to advanced optimization and innovation.

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Human Rights in the End-to-End Supply Chain

SCM Research

'“Certification programs have their merits and their limitations. With the growing availability of social media, analytics tools, and supply chain data, a smarter set of solutions could soon be possible”, as Robert Handfield and I argue in our paper, just published in Supply Chain Management Review. We believe that an evolution from company thinking to supply chain thinking will now help to make businesses more socially responsible: “Traditional solutions that focus just on a b

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FMCG Supply Chain Consultants – Gok, Martha and Jamie.

Enchange Supply Chain Consultancy

'My aging Toyota Land Cruiser is about to clock up an impressive 300,000km on roads that are of variable and low quality. Luckily, the car is built like a tank and comes with bull bars on the front or what I like to call a “Dacia Catcher”. (Dacia as in Thatcher not Dacia as in Facia; will Captain Slow of Top Gear ever learn?). Now is the time I have to get the car ready for the bi-annual roadworthiness inspection and this year I thought I would change the servicing garage.

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Insights from Elemica reveal 2014 Frankfurt

Talking Logistics

'What do the Germany World Cup Team and the Boston Red Sox have in common? That was my opening question to the executives attending last month’s Elemica reveal 2014 Conference in Frankfurt. The answer: Both teams illustrate that past performance is no guarantee of future results. The German team overcame disappointments in 2006 and 2010 to win the World Cup this year, while favorites Spain (the defending champion) and Brazil (the host country) were humbled by the competition.