Introduction
An efficient supply chain management does not merely confine to technology, but it relies on the course of action. Frequently, supply chain development schemes are approached as “technology” schemes rather than company projects. Complications in the supply chain vary depending on the size of the company and also in relation to the number of manufactured items. The beginning and endpoint of a supply chain are the consumers. The elements involved in a supply chain are consumers, the planning, purchasing, inventory, construction, and transportation departments that surround the company. The supply chain should be strategic and properly equipped.
A perfect supply chain needs the exercise of scientific and technological investments like the use of enterprise resource planning suites. “Supply chain management is typically viewed to lie between fully vertically integrated firms, where the entire material flow is owned by a single firm and those where each channel member operates independently. Therefore coordination between the various players in the chain is key in its effective management” (Ganeshan & Harrison 1995). The study consists of the trends of technology in SCM development in the present days, elements of technology impact on the logistic system in terms of supply chain management in TCF industries impact of technology mistakes on supply chain management, and various recommendations to rectify the same.
Trends of technology in SCM development nowadays
Supply chain management is the dynamic supervision of the supply chain actions is that a view to take full advantage of the client standards and attain competitive benefits. The supply chain will give the idea of the product reaching the customers. The idea of supply chain management is mainly based on two points. Each product that arrives at the customer’s destination reflects a concerted effort of the firm that manufactures it and the work that goes behind its attempt to market it. These associations are together referred to as supply chains.
Another point is that as supply chain systems have survived for an extensive period, nearly all business entities have only limited consideration to the occurrences is thin their business walls. Only some of the business people credible to recognize the importance of the customers. If they do not notice this value, then there will be a clash among the supply chain systems. It characterizes a mindful attempt by the supply chain administrations to expand and widen the supply chains in the most successful and well-organized manner. Supply chain behavior includes the whole thing from product growth to promotion, besides the information structure required to bring together these actions.
There are numerous tendencies in the area of supply chain management. All these will contribute the best to the business interactions between the customer and the company.
Analysis
The associations that create the supply sequence are connected collectively by means of substantial information flows. These conversion, progress, and proper storage space for the commodities and resources are the most important constituents of an efficient supply chain system, and they are the most detectable part of supply chain management. Supply chain management has a need for instantaneous modifications in the managerial arrangement.
The trends in supply chain management include augmented contest and globalization of dealings. The velocity of modifications in the marketplace, goods, and machinery is growing, making the circumstances where executives must formulate verdict on shorter time with lesser efforts and the lesser cost. Fresh opponents are going towards the market, which is conventionally maintained and conquered by local business organizations. The customers are also asking for the speedy delivery of the products as possible, and the products and services are matched with their well-being.
Supply chain management trends in the international and Australian market
“The current trend toward the globalization of supply chains renders many managers confused as to what globalization really means. Often, the term is little more than a battlefield of semantics, of little value to the individual tasked with managing value creation and cost reduction processes in the movement of goods. Clearly, globalization infers the cross-border movement of goods and the emergence of global competitors and opportunities across competing supply chains within an industry” (Mentzer et al. 2006, p.2).
There will be cross-border complications in a country in a particular view of the supply chain management, but it has to make the solutions to overcome the problems with the distribution chains globally. The other various trends coming up under this supply chain management other than globalization include the mounting cross-border resources and mutual overhaul store for the organizational purpose. There will be a group effort for various series of the supply chain with the low rate dealers. There is a recent trend in the global teams to organize among themselves and are building major international functions. This trend is creating awareness among the global team to put their efforts to attain the comprehensive best from the business. The problems associated with various companies are there in an upward mode in this supply chain.
The Australian market is trying to achieve good supply chain systems and looks forward to keeping the supply chain management in a good way where they can target the global business and can come to the top spot in the global market. The Australian economy has sustained a jolt with the recession in the US, and it has weakened because of that in the recession period. They are trying to make a flexible situation in the supply chain systems. This point of elasticity cannot be gained without the management of the business in the worldwide distribution systems. The SCM has ascended to a top-class reputation as different from its opening in logistics.
Recommendations and conclusion
These trends in the SCM will promote several advantages for the business people as they generate better assortment dimensions, lesser levies, and enhanced cultural and communications surroundings for their manufactured goods. There will be various disputes when the supply chain management system becomes global. It is formed by the distribution chain of bigger parts. There are other concerns implicated as multi-currencies, dissimilar policies, and special rules. “A supply chain software can offer tremendous value to any company that relies on the smooth planning and execution of related operations to achieve long-term profitability and maintain a solid competitive edge” (Benefit of supply chain management, 2010).
Integration of technology in SCM
Several technologies have been incorporated into the supply chain management systems across the managerial and well-designed borders. It can be further classified as strategic, tactical, and functional systems. This technology and the skills are providing a greater opportunity for the success of supply chain management globally. “Before the Internet, companies were limited because they were not able to receive or to send updates, feedback, or other important information in a timely fashion. Additionally, companies were limited in their ability to work with global partners because of language barriers and time differences. Using the Internet to handle most of the elements involved in supply change management, including procurement and communication, makes the exchange of data and the running of the supply chain faster” (Supply chain technology, 2010).
There will be some blocks from the vendors and also from the employees for integrating the technologies in the supply chain management as it will decrease their strength.
Elements of technology and their impact on the logistic system in terms of supply chain management in TCF industries
The key concept of the supply chain is the combination of the various activities and the tasks of the supply chain in the organization, which are external and internal to the organization. The market has made many economic developments in supply chain management. The success of any product in the market depends on the effectiveness of the supply chain rather than the manufacturing process and the quality. The proper way of the reach among customers is a severe problem that is to be faced in the economic market condition.
Analysis
The logistics management system is the process of making use of the systems in performing various management activities relating to the shipment and using the host computer as an important interface. The logistic management system is the system that comprises the various logistics tasks for managing the shipment process. Logistics is one of the vital actions in today’s market condition, and the cost that is incurred by the various organizations are in billion dollars, and they contribute to the much GDP growth in the organizations.
The logistics system is designed in such a manner as the combination of the various facilities in the transportation at home. The logistics operations involve the warehouse and the distribution channels for the manufacturing of the same. The supply chain is the collection of the various complicated systems of logistics, where they are the collection of raw materials and the goods that are useful for the manufacturing of the final product and to the final distributors. “For example, in make-to-assembly (MTA) systems components and semi-finished products are manufactured in a push-based manner while the final assembly stage is pull-based.
Hence, the work-in-process inventory at the end of the first stage is used to assemble the finished product as demand arises. These parts are then assembled as soon as customer orders are received” (Ghiani et al. 2004, p.5).
Technology has much impact on supply chain management; the supply chain management in the market is dependent on the trends in the market and on the latest technology. The history of the supply chain shows that the majority of obsolete technology is untouched by the market today. “Supply chains include a company’s entire manufacturing and distribution process.
They involve every step of the production from planning to manufacturing to handling defective goods. The overall goal of these chains is to keep the process running smoothly at all times and to keep all of the components (i. e. vendors, warehouses, etc.) connected.” (Supply chain technology, 2010).
The various technology in supply chain management today are customer relationship management, customer service management, demand management and control, management of the flow in the market, supplier relationship, commercialization of the products, return management. In addition to that, the customer has a strong way of the usage of the software services ERP software and the e-commerce software for the operations.
The ERP software is the enterprise resource planning software that clubs the various activities in the organizations like the planning, procurement, organizing, and managing the resources effectively and efficiently with the least outflows. “The key objective of an ERP system is to integrate information and processes from all functional divisions of an organization and merge it for effortless access and structured workflow. The integration is typically accomplished by constructing a single database repository that communicates with multiple software applications providing different divisions of an organization with various business statistics and information” (ERP, 2010).
The ERP is the main functional unit and the technology which controls the various process within the organization. Supply chain management is vitally dependent on resource planning technology. This mainly integrates the various kinds of the business process in the organizations into a single unit.
E-commerce is another significant technology that is usually found much faster and easier for operations. E-commerce is electronic commerce where operations are much easier. The two major concepts of e-commerce are B2C and B2B in the market. B2B is the coordination and the supply of the materials and the products from business to business. B2C is the business and the providing of them to the customers.
Both business-to-customers and business-to-business play a vital role in the various stages of the operations. “A casualty of the dot-com bust was the buzzword “C-Commerce” for Collaborative Commerce – a vision of the future that buyers and suppliers would collaborate seamlessly online. With collaborative tools like wikis now populating other portions of today’s cyberspace, the buyer-supplier collaboration envisioned earlier is likely ready for prime time” (Dominick 2006).
The other technological tools contribute much to the developments of the system and the operations. Customer relationship management is the main tool that helps in maintaining the relationship between the customers and in getting the customized product from the same and in maintaining a cordial; relationship with the clients, the customer service management is one in understanding how the services become effective to the customers and how they can be helpful in getting the profitability and the reputation to the organization. The technology also deals with the various kinds of management of the goods known as demand flow management which contributes to understanding the demand factors. This helps in getting the commercialized product for the sales and the procurement of the product according to the tastes and the preferences of the customers.
Recommendations and conclusions
- The technology should be updated each quarter in the organization.
- Continuous support should be provided to the technology and the resources.
- The alternative should be found out at each stage of the development of the technology.
- The employees in the organization should be made aware of the invention of the technology and the trends.
The analysis and the discussions on supply chain management and the various factors contributing to them show how important they are and the various benefits the organization can achieve while incorporating the same. The supply chain management technology updations are significant for the successful operations in the organization.
The impact of technology mistakes on supply chain management
Supply chain management is a very difficult task. It enhances the overall productivity of the organization if they are managed accurately and controlled well. If any technological mistakes have arisen at the implementation of the supply chain, it will adversely affect the overall profitability of the firm. The importance of supply chain management has been raised during the past ten years.
The SCM widens the contemplation of functional incorporation, which is away from all the corporations in the supply chain management. The individual member inside the organization assists in improving the competitiveness of the supply chain, which develops the competitiveness of the supply chain members. Also, this proactive strategic approach to managing the supply chain management is critical for the survival of the company.
Analysis
The competitive advantage of any of the companies normally arises when a particular firm is competent to deliver goods and services by way of the same quality at a lower charge than that of the other participants in the same field. Every organization will have its own competitive advantage. This assists the firm in building better-quality worth to the firm along with its clients, competitors, and society. SCM is the model that is altering company and company relations. It reproduces the comprehension that the merchandise pipeline for a company widens from the seller right in the course of delivery to the consumer. “Six issues must be recognized for maximizing supply chain management. These are
- Logistics skill.
- International sourcing and sales.
- Vendor penetration.
- Tailored versus standard practices.
- accounting silos.
- Organization silos” (Craig 2010).
In the modern-day scenario, extensively used SCM is client reply, quick feedback, shared planning, supportive activities that are united by mode of the united forecasting and development, allotment of an assortment of data, mutual inventory supervision, joint register supervision, and joint power to bring to an end wastes all the way through the supply chain and make better consumer service for acquiring competitive benefit for the supply chain members in addition to the supply chain as an entire.
Therefore, we can say that the real fight is not a company against another company. However, it is a supply chain against another supply chain. For executing the most successful supply chain management within the organization, the managers have to mainly recognize the behavioral guidelines that are employed in the organization. So that at the time of executing the most successful supply chain management system, the following cultural basics that are correlated to supply chain activities have to be considered, such as dedication, trust, organizational compatibility, cooperative means, and at last, the top management support.
So any technological mistake is adversely affecting the overall profitability of the company. “Thus, Mentzer et al. (2001, p. 18) defined supply chain management as “the systemic, strategic coordination of the traditional business functions and the tactics across these business functions within a particular company and across businesses within the supply chain, for the purposes of improving the long-term performance of the individual companies and the supply chain as a whole” (Soonhong & John 2004). Due to the impact of globalization, the concept of technology has been changed a lot. A lot of major plays are coming into the market so that it will create a lot of negative impact on the company. The technological mistake on the SCM must be managed properly by way of incorporating up-to-date technology. The various recommendations to prevent the technology mistake of SCM are provided below.”
A Systems Approach to Supply Chain Management The key to improve performance is to treat the chain as a system, where efficiency is a by-product of system performance, not a precursor to system performance. The emphasis must be first on performance – delivering products (and components) reliably. Only when that objective is accomplished can managers focus on driving cost from the system” (Woeppel, M., 2010).
The supply chain management development must give attention to the origin reasons, not the symptoms. Employing an elegant process plan that incorporates the understanding of individual performance and procedure differences generates a pull scheme for the whole supply chain. Take care of the supply chain as an incorporated scheme and organize resolutions that generate a lasting outcome, not a series of speedy joins.
Recommendations
The various recommendations given for enhancing the Supply Chain Management as well as the best way to prevent the impact of technology mistakes in organizations are to improve the technologies, keep up a minimum stock level to stay away from interruptions in the job, train the workforce occupied in the SCM activities. The recommendations for the technical troubles faced by the organizations with respect to the SCM are as follows;
- Rapid and smooth delivery and acquisition systems must be continued within the organization.
- Excess stock of resources must be maintained in the firms to get rid of the chance of discontinuation in employment due to lack of resources.
- The choice of the supply chain partners must be made based on the key criteria.
- The entire workforce concerned in the SCM activity should be trained well so that their productivity can be improved.
- A sharp and continuous focus has to be given to the different strategies adopted by the competing organizations.
- All the key ingredients in the concept of Supply Chain Management should be given due importance.
- Execute the new technologies in the organization that helps smooth the functioning of the Supply Chain Management process.
Conclusion
Logistic management is one of the most chief segments of supply chain management, which assists in preparations, accomplishing, and directing the well-organized forward and reverse run and storage space products, service, and correlated data between spots between the start and endpoint.
The constraint for qualified SCM practitioners is enhancing almost in all areas of organizations and trade and commerce comprising of the constructing goods and service segments. With the intention of maintaining purchaser loyalty towards the product or service offered by the firm, the firm must be proficient at recommending it a sufficient time at adequate quality and quality. A technological mistake on the part of the supply chain management must be prevented in order to accomplish the profitability of the organization.
Reference List
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