Effective Supply Chain and Operations Management in Competitive Marketplaces

Relationship between supply chain management, operations management and organisational business objectives

The aim of this unit is to develop learners’ understanding of the concepts and models of effective supply chain and operations management in competitive marketplaces using case studies and real-world industry scenarios. Learners will develop an understanding of operational processes, techniques, planning and control systems.

1. Understand the relationship between supply chain management, operations management and organisational business objectives.

a)Critically explain the significance of effective supply chain and operational management in achieving organisational objectives.

b)Explain the relationship of supply chain management with other business functions in an organisation.

c)Critically analyse the key success factors that aid in developing an integrated supply chain strategy in an organisation.
 
2. Be able to critically analyse the role of technology in supplier relationships.

a)Critically evaluate factors and strategies that drive organisations to maintain supplier relationships.

b)Assess the use of information technology to create strategies to develop effective supplier relationships.

c)Recommend supplier relations systems to maintain relationships with suppliers.  
 
3. Be able to critically analyse the importance of logistics and procurement in supply chain management.

a)Justify the importance and use of logistics in supply chain management in an organisation.

b)Evaluate the effectiveness of procurement strategies and procedures in an organisation.

c) Critically analyse factors that may improve logistics and procurement strategies in an organisation.  
 
4. Be able to develop a systematic order of procurement and inventory control.

a)Design effective and economic order quantity for procurements in an organisation.

b)Critically evaluate the role of the principles of LIFO and FIFO in inventory control.

c)Evaluate the just in time systems of managing inventory
 
5. Be able to develop a strategy to improve an organisation’s supply chain.

a)Analyse factors involved in developing a strategy to improve an organisation’s supply chain.

b)Plan various supply chain strategies to improve an organisation’s supply chain.

c) Justify the choice of a supply chain strategy according to its suitability, feasibility, acceptability and overall performance benefits in an organisation.  

1. Supply chain and operations management relationship types: basic and critical understanding of relationship between supply chain and operations management types; alliances e g. strategic, adversarial, collaborative, developmental; business relationship e g. supplier, business to business, business to consumer; networks e g. personal, business; organisational; association eg. supplier association; supplier development; intermediation and disintermediation; Key success factors that support to develop an integrated supply chain strategy in an organisation: success factors identification and critical analysis; cost reductions and customer service; demand fulfilment; time compression; total ownership cost reduction; basic facilitators for effective supply chain management e g. inventory, facilities, information, transportation, pricing, sourcing, technology, customer services;

2. Critically evaluate factors and strategies that drives organisation to maintain supplier relationships: the conceptual understanding of information technology and supply chain and operation management; the impact of globalization; factors to adopt information technology; the impact of IT on supplier relationship;

3. Analyse and use information technology to create strategies to develop effective supplier relationships: the use of extranets, intranets, internets and virtual private networks to manage order processing, supply chain integration, tracking system and a comprehensive data interchange system on the web; supply and operational management information exchange; dependencies on digital platforms.

4. To propose and develop supplier relations systems to maintain relationships with suppliers: contribution to business objectives information technology in supply and demand management system; push and pull models; enterprise resource planning; efficient consumer response; vendor managed inventory; global supply chain and operations management

5. Critical explanation of the importance and use of logistics in supply chain management in an organisation: logistics e g. features in a changed global business organisational context; interrelationships with supply and operational chain management; logistics planning; control and functioning of product movement and storage; raw materials management; operational activities and marketing; product supply and information circulation; aspects covering product supply and use.

6. Evaluation of effectiveness of procurement strategies and procedures in an organisation: the key aspects of procurement; the selection of suppliers; policies of procurement; optimal procurement; quality; reliability

7. Critical analysis and discussion of factors to improve logistics and procurement strategies: factors of logistics and procurement strategy improvement; the role of external factors; internal factors as related to logistics and procurement; the role of stakeholders and beneficiaries; the
development of logistics and procurement strategies

8. Discussing design effective and economic order quantity for procurements at an organisations: definition, aims, objectives, features and importance of procurement control; procurement control strategies; factors of procurement control.

9. Critical evaluation of the role of principles LIFO and FIFO in inventory control: inventory management; shipment; lead time reduction; lean organisational control; online business communities; information sharing; online inventory management; LIFO (First-in-first-out), FIFO (Last-in first-out) and AVCO (Average cost or weighted cost) e g. definition, characteristics, capacities; effectiveness in changed global environments; roles in managing inflation, taxation and cost flow.

10. Evaluation of the system just in time systems of managing inventory: Just in Time (JIT) qualifications e g. definition, features, capacities, tools and procedures; transaction cost reduction; purchasing capacities improvements; purchase scheduling; order processing; tracking

11. Analysing factors and contextual environment of supply chain: strategic implementation of stock holding reduction strategies; waste reduction strategy implementation; labour cost reduction strategies; manufacturing facilities improvement; on time supply; customer service improvement; factors related to supply chain e g. marketing, financial, sales, manufacturing, human resources; operational

12. Planning and developing various options of supply chain strategies to improve an organisation’s supply chain: planning of effective SCM; managerial skill enhancements; the importance of effective planning and management; material management; logistics management; physical distribution management; upstream and downstream supply chain management

13. Justifying the choice of supply chain strategy: supply chain choice strategies; the assessment of strategies; strategic suitability; strategic feasibility; acceptability of strategies; supply chain performance improvement in an organisation

14. Developing metrics to monitor effectiveness and efficiency of a supply chain strategy: critical knowledge on supply chain strategy monitoring metrics; operational understandings; metrics or measurements of supply chain e g. Cycle Time, Inventory Turns, Fill Rate and DPMO; successful application of these metrics in production, procurement, inventory, distribution, customer service, warehousing, transportation

15. Plans to overcome barriers of supplying chain improvement strategy: strategic supply chain improvement barrier identification; problems of cash flow; lack of efficiencies in inventory management; distribution network inappropriateness; distribution strategy ineffectiveness;
logistical activity trade-offs e g. reducing transportation costs, inventory holding cost reduction; ineffective supply chain information sharing

16. Propose a resource and time plan: problem identification for SCM strategy implementation; strategic resource allocation plan; strategic time management plan; understanding the development areas of an organisation; comprehensive strategic management plan implementation for SCM covering areas as production management, distribution management, channel management, inventory management, customer service management, financial management, payment management, supplier management, and transportation management.