Supply Chain Management Article Library

Aug 19, 2021  |  Articles

What is Supply Chain Management (SCM)?

What is Supply Chain Management (SCM)? Supply chain management (SCM) is the active management of supply chain activities to maximize customer value and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. It represents a conscious effort by the supply chain firms to develop and […]

Feb 28, 2018  |  Director's Blog

What Buyer-Supplier Collaboration Looks Like in Real Life….

I had the privilege of facilitating and witnessing first hand a great example of what a true strategic partnership looks like recently, when a large pharmaceutical brand met with a large global Contract Drug Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) at their site. […]

Feb 27, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Predictive analytics in procurement means using whatever data is available

Predictive analytics is still relatively new in procurement, but it’s increasingly important, particularly in organizations that have already been through the cycle of spend analytics, supplier leveraging, segmentation, and consolidation. Prediction requires a deep understanding of the technical and commercial […]

Feb 13, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Walgreen’s Acquisition of Amerisource Bergen is based on the need for integration to survive

The news of Walgreen’s potential acquisition of Amerisource Bergen is one of a string of recent announcements that signify efforts by channel players in the massive life sciences market to set up barriers to competition against behemoths by the likes […]

Feb 8, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Is the FAR getting in the way of Early Supplier Involvement in defense projects?

Product development within the U.S. defense industry tends to follow a waterfall-phased lifecycle development approach beginning at the concept level and concluding at the subsystem/component level. The concept level design phase is typically summarized in a system concept document. This […]

Jan 31, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Thoughts on Supply Chain Impacts (After Listening to Trump’s State of the Union)

I listened to all one and a half hours of Trump’s State of the Union address last night, and while it was certainly very positive in terms of the economy, it also left me with some unanswered questions about the […]

Jan 27, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Sorting out Risk in FinTech Source Chains

Most big banks (MUFG, Citi, Deutschbank, HSBC, JP Morgan, and others) have been forced to re-examine their external supplier relationships in a highly regulated environment.  This is old news.  But emerging technology is now beginning to create new ways to […]

Jan 26, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Emerging technologies impacting contract management in the Financial sector

A meeting of financial supply management executives, faculty, and IACCM thought leaders took place on January 26, 2018 in New York.  A number of different topics were discussed during this session, and the agenda was kept fairly open in discussing […]

Jan 25, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Resin prices vary a lot more than you think! RTi helps you understand why..

I had a great opportunity to meet with CEO Pete Suerken from Resin Technologies Inc. (RTi), yesterday, and share thoughts on how should-cost models are being actively used to drive improved visibility into the true costs of resin, paper packaging, and […]

Jan 18, 2018  |  Director's Blog

Off to another exciting year of student-industry engagement at NC State on cutting-edge supply chain projects

In a prior post on 2018 supply chain predictions, I shared how NC State’s Poole College of Management engages directly with industry through student-led projects.  I also predicted how this type of engagement would continue to grow in the future, […]