The Path to Profitable Growth is Paved with Supply Chain Core Benchmarks

Do you know how your company matches up with the competition? This question may appear to be deceptively simple. Yet, if you want to end up with the correct answer, it's important to have the right data and tools.

Benchmarking your company against the competition is a great way to reassess the supply chain and make sure your company is utilizing best practices that can lead to profitable growth. For example, a recent survey by the Supply Chain Consortium shows that respondents who are taking the initiative to benchmark and research ocean provider rates are seeing a decrease in those rates.

The Supply Chain Core Benchmarks: Understanding Key Metrics report was compiled from the 2010 survey and surveys of previous years to gain keen insight into how companies in various industries compare to each other.

One interesting tidbit that I found in the report: DC cost as a percentage of revenue is trending downward, compared to the previous year, indicating that improvement directed at cost reduction in the supply chain have been effective. Some of these improvement activities include increasing the number of distribution operations and developing better strategies to strengthen DC productivity.

Likewise, companies appear to be communicating more effectively with their vendors. The survey reveals that more organizations are now employing the "perfect order" metric with vendors, as compared to previous years.

You can start learning more about how your company matches up to others in your industry by using the worksheet in the Supply Chain Core Benchmarks Report as a guide.

Is benchmarking a priority for your organization this year? If so, how are you measuring core benchmarks?

Jim
Tompkins Associates