Portrait of a Best-in-Class Supply Chain

What role does supply chain management play in your organization? When analyst firm Aberdeen Group asked that question of 800 supply chain executives worldwide, most (56%) regard SCM as a market strategy differentiator, a customer service differentiator or a profit center, rather than simply a cost of doing business. Nearly half (49%) indicate that escalating customer service demands are driving their supply chain transformations, which prompted Aberdeen Group to develop the following PACE (pressures, actions, capabilities and enablers) scenario to explain how companies progress from identifying a problem to focusing on a solution.

Pressures

• Escalating customer service demands

Actions

• Improving supply chain visibility
• Improving sales and operations planning
• Improving inventory optimization
• Improving order fulfillment

Capabilities

• Formalized supply chain risk management
• Centralized supply chain organization
• Executive position with end-to-end supply chain responsibility
• Closed loop integration of supply chain planning and execution
• Cross-functional metrics

Enablers

• Supply chain visibility tools
• Sales and operations planning tools
• Transportation management tools
• Inventory optimization tools
• Order fulfillment tools

Source: Aberdeen Group

See Also

• Wal-Mart Lays Down the Law on RFID
• Fleet Management Solution Saves Land O'Lakes $500,000 in Fuel Costs
• How to Green Your Supply Chain
• Supply Chain Solutions
• SCOR Goes Green