In this chapter we cover basic understanding of supply chain and some of the things that we are going to cover include:

1-conceptual understanding of supply chains 

2-goal or objective of supply chains

3-importance of supply chains

4-issues associated with designing, planning and operating supply chains

5-cycle and pull/push the view of supply chains 

6-macro processes in a supply chain

7-examples from gateway, apple, zara, etc.
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What is Supply Chain Management?إضافة شرح

This module introduces viewers to the field of supply chain management. It describes the complex supply chain of a simple product, a bottle of water. 

The video also illustrates the importance of supply chain managers and their skill sets in our modern global economy for both manufacturing and service industries. 

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• What is the essence of Supply Chain Management (SCM)?

In defining supply chain management, the video also hopes to educate and inspire business students, young and old, about the opportunities available to those with supply chain management degrees.

What’s a Supply Chain? 

A supply chain is the collection of processes and resources required to make and deliver a product to the final customer.

What is included in a supply chain?

A supply chain is the network of all the individuals, organizations, resources, activities and technology involved in the creation and sale of a product, from the delivery of source materials from the supplier to the manufacturer, through to its eventual delivery to the end user.

Why supply chain management is important?

Supply Chain Management. Supply chain management involves optimizing your operations to maximize both speed and efficiency. Speed is important because customers value fast service. Increasing speed, however, can cause costs to skyrocket, so maximizing efficiency is equally important.

What is a supply chain role?

In commerce, supply chain management (SCM), the management of the flow of goods and services, involves the movement and storage of raw materials, of work-in-process inventory, and of finished goods from point of origin to point of consumption. ... Marketing channels play an important role in supply chain management.

What is the supply chain process?

Supply Chain Management - Process. Advertisements. Supply chain management is a process used by companies to ensure that their supply chain is efficient and cost-effective. A supply chain is the collection of steps that a company takes to transform raw materials into a final product.

What are the flows within a supply chain?

Supply Chain is the management of flows. There are Five major flows in any supply chain: product flow, financial flow, information flow, value flow & risk flow. The product flow includes the movement of goods from a supplier to a customer, as well as any customer returns or service needs.

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What is the difference between logistics and supply chain management?

Logistics Management is a small portion of Supply Chain Management that deals with the management of goods in an efficient way. Although, if we talk about Supply Chain Management, it is a broader term which refers to the connection, right from the suppliers to the ultimate consumer.

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What is the essence of Supply Chain Management (SCM)?

During the nineties, several authors tried to put the essence of SCM into a single definition. Its constituents are:

• The object of the management philosophy
• The target group
• The objective(s) and
• The broad means for achieving these objectives

The object of SCM obviously is the supply chain which represents a “. . . network of organizations that are involved, through upstream and downstream linkages, in the different processes and activities that produce value in the form of products and services in the hands of the ultimate consumer” (Christopher, 1998, p. 15). In a broad sense, a supply chain consists of two or more legally separated organizations, being linked by material, information and financial flows. These organizations may be firms producing parts, components and end products, logistic service providers and even the (ultimate) customer himself. So, the above definition of a supply chain also incorporates the target group – the ultimate customer.

As Fig. 1.1 shows, a network usually will not only focus on flows within a (single) chain but will have to deal with divergent and convergent flows within a complex network resulting from many different customer orders to be handled in parallel. In order to ease complexity, a given organization may concentrate only on a portion of the overall supply chain.

As an example, looking in the downstream direction the view of an organization may be limited by the customers of its customers while it ends with the suppliers of its suppliers in the upstream direction.

Fig. 1.1. Supply chain (example)

In a narrow sense, the term supply chain is also applied to a large company with several sites often located in different countries. Coordinating material, information and financial flows for such a multinational company in an efficient manner is still a formidable task. Decision-making, however, should be easier, since these sites are part of one large organization with a single top management level. 

A supply chain in the broad sense is also called an inter-organizational supply chain, while the term intra-organizational relates to a supply chain in the narrow sense. Irrespective of this distinction, a close cooperation between the different functional units like marketing, production, procurement, logistics and finance is mandatory – a prerequisite being no matter of course in today’s firms.

The objective governing all endeavors within a supply chain is seen as increasing competitiveness. This is because no single organizational unit now is solely responsible for the competitiveness of its products and services in the eyes of the ultimate customer, but the supply chain as a whole. 

Hence, competition has shifted from single companies to supply chains. Obviously, to convince an individual company to become a part of a supply chain requires a win-win situation for each participant in the long run, while this may not be the case for all entities in the short run. 

One generally accepted impediment for improving competitiveness is to provide superior customer service. Alternatively, a firm may increase its competitiveness by fulfilling a prespecified, generally accepted customer service level at minimum costs.

There are two broad means for improving the competitiveness of a supply chain. One is a closer integration of the organizations involved and the other is a better coordination of material, information and financial flows (Lee and Ng, 1998, p. 1). Overcoming organizational barriers, aligning strategies and speeding up flows along the supply chain are common subjects in this respect. 

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We are now able to define the term Supply Chain Management as the task of integrating organizational units along a supply chain and coordinating material, information, and financial flows in order to fulfill (ultimate) customer demands with the aim of improving the competitiveness of a supply chain as a whole.

After reading this chapter you will be able to 

• Appreciate what a supply chain is and what it does
• Define the different organizations that participate in any supply chain 
• Discuss ways to align your supply chain with your business strategy
• Start an intelligent conversation about the supply chain management issues in your company

Supply chains encompass the companies and the business activities needed to design, make, deliver, and use a product or service. Businesses depend on their supply chains to provide them with what they need to survive and thrive. Every business fits into one or more supply chains and has a role to play in each of them.
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There is a difference between the concept of supply chain management and the traditional concept of logistics. 

Logistics typically refers to activities that occur within the boundaries of a single organization and supply chains refer to networks of companies that work together and coordinate their actions to deliver a product to market. 

Also, traditional logistics focuses its attention on activities such as procurement, distribution, maintenance, and inventory management. Supply chain management acknowledges all of traditional logistics and also includes activities such as marketing, new product development, finance, and customer service.

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What is Logistics Management? Definition & Importance in Supply Chain

Lecture explains What is Logistics? and What is Logistics Management? Logistics in supply chain management is defined as “the art and science of obtaining, producing, and distributing material and product in the proper place and in proper quantities"