Global
The Mindset Required for Sustainable Supply Chains
Supply chain and sustainability are two sides of the same coin. A standard teaching practice within supply chain is “lean thinking” that advocates for minimalist, one-piece flow to the tune of an ever-present waste reduction drumbeat. Unfortunately, this drumbeat isn’t always heard. The prevalence of waste in far-reaching corners of supply chains is in large part due to the sheer global scale of many manufacturers.
How to Digitize the Post-Sale Service Supply Chain
As the Ever Given jammed the Suez Canal, disruption rippled across the supply chain and cargo owners scrambled to determine whether their goods were trapped in one of the containers. Shippers and receivers found it challenging to come up with an authoritative answer.
The Technologies Driving ESG-focused Supply Chains
Over the past year I’ve had the chance to speak to a variety of senior business and sustainability leaders about supply chain topics and their implications on a range of ESG issues. What is apparent from these conversations is that the supply chain is increasingly considered to be one of the most impactful components of a company’s sustainability efforts.
Procurement’s Increasing CSR Role
Traditionally thought of as just being responsible for dollars and cents, the function of today’s procurement team goes much further than purchasing supplies needed to run an organization’s day-to-day operations. Beyond managing the entire supply chain process, their responsibilities have expanded in the wake of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) movement.
Sourcing's Big Opportunity in 2022: Reducing Scope 3 Emissions
Sustainability: It’s a word that certainly needs no introduction and one with global implications that reach far beyond that of the supply chain crisis we’re experiencing. Some devastating impacts of climate change are now unavoidable, and the topic of sustainability in procurement is heating up, too.
The Key to Mitigating Disruptions: Sourcing with Clean Data
Most people who have used any sort of business software offhandedly consider the importance of maintaining quality data, but few make it a priority. Too often in my world, organizations will meticulously enter supplier information into a spreadsheet and dust off their hands. They see ongoing data quality as a difficult to achieve “nice-to-have,” accept the risk of bad data, and carry on with other business demands, fingers crossed. Not everyone realizes, however, the magnitude of that risk, especially around supplier data.
How Outsourced Maintenance KPIs Deliver In-House Success
Most everyone relies on daily performance indicators to measure the quality of tools and assets, from large-scale business KPIs such as monthly foot traffic to the personal performance results like the battery life of headphones. While the wrong outcome can be frustrating in any scenario, weak performance in a facility can diminish critical ROI.
Sourcing in the Time of Remote Work
Although major world cities such as NYC and London have begun moving forward with plans to bring employees back to the office, it is an undeniable fact that the pandemic has changed how we work forever. Like it or not, remote work is here to stay in some form – most likely in the form of hybrid working, where a portion of one’s working hours are spent in the employer’s office and a portion remote.
Act Now to Address Inflation in 2022
Inflation is our call to arms.
Born from supply chain disruptions and shortages of commodities, renewed demand, cyberattacks and natural disasters, the annual producer price inflation for final manufactured goods jumped a whopping 7.8% in September 2021, up from 7.2% in August. With U.S. inflation hitting a 30-year high, there is no clear end in sight.
Is It Time to Add AI to Your Commodity Insights?
Over the last few years, we’ve seen artificial intelligence (AI) being used for a host of procurement applications, from spend analysis to supplier risk monitoring. Now, the same technology is increasingly being applied to commodity forecasting.
In the right situation, this can provide invaluable insights. AI makes it possible to look at larger, more complicated data sets over a longer period of time, helping to improve the accuracy of predictions and supercharge decision-making, near real-time.
Suppliers are Primary Stakeholders Too
The SOW services procurement value equation is straightforward: clear need + sufficient budget + right service provider + right price + excellent delivery = best outcome
If you look more closely at that equation you will realize the best outcome can only be achieved if the individual elements are in balance with each other. Consider the following:
Why Companies are Siliconizing the Timing Supply Chain
The siliconization of the timing industry began in earnest 15 years ago. Today MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical systems) timing companies have shipped over 2 billion units of silicon MEMS timing devices. They are used in 400+ applications from the most accurate wearables in the world, to 5G radios that operate in harsh environments, to automotive cameras that serve as the eyes of the mission critical ADAS systems.
Five Technologies to Future Proof Supply Chain Inspections
The COVID-19 pandemic has jolted digital transformation into overdrive, with technology adoption enabling businesses across industries to accommodate remote work and operations. But now more than 18 months into the crisis, businesses that source globally remain ensnared by rampant order delays, factory lockdowns, persistent transit challenges, rising costs and debilitating mass shortages.
How to Use Supply Chain Financing to Extend Supplier Payment Terms
All organizations are interested in improving their working capital. One popular method of doing this is through the reevaluation of supplier payment terms. There are clear benefits to paying invoices later – for the organization requesting the extensions.