APICS Column

Jun 2, 2004

Aligning Demand and Supply Management

Supply chain managers are increasingly being relied on to deliver greater returns to shareholders – and are also being held responsible for “supply chain glitches” that negatively impact a company’s… 

Apr 1, 2004

Leading Change in Supply Chain Management

Any company that has undertaken the mission of implementing an integrated supply chain management strategy knows that one of the greatest challenges it faces is the significant change in internal… 

Mar 1, 2004

Lean Implementation Is Tough!

Lean Business Solutions publishes free e-newsletter discussing applications of lean thinking in the workplace. Recently a reader by the name of Marty Laurent who has a lot of experience in… 

Feb 1, 2004

Managing Maverick Spend at Deere and Delphi – An Interview with Jon Stegner

Many managers today are struggling with how to turn their procurement organization around and reduce their maverick spend (spending outside the procurement process); different approaches are being adopted. Jon Stegner,… 

Jan 1, 2004

The RFID Power Play

In June 2003, Wal-Mart gave the edict that its top 100 suppliers would need to tag pallets and cases with RFID chips by January 2005. The deadline is now 2006… 

Nov 1, 2003

Can You Trust the Trust in Supply Chain Relationships?

One of the most misunderstood and ripe areas for development in the area of supply chain relationships is in the area of trust. Trust (and its cousin, Collaboration) seems to… 

Oct 2, 2003

Managing Supply Chain Relationships

As we begin the new year, many companies are standing back and re-evaluating the health of their supply chains. In this column, we continue with the eight-part series on transforming… 

Jul 2, 2003

So You Want to Involve Suppliers in New Product Development?

Congratulations! You’ve reengineered your product development process and manufacturing’s inputs are finally integrated early enough to make a difference. Quality is up and products are launching faster. But that doesn’t… 

Jun 2, 2003

Rebuilding Iraq – Challenges to the EPC Industry

Recently, Bechtel Corporation was awarded a major contract to repair roads, hospitals, schools, and other foundational elements in post-war Iraq. Although critics claimed that this award was based on “personal… 

Mar 1, 2003

Ten Reasons Why You Can’t Automate Human Relationships – A Guide for Supply Chain Managers, Part 2

We continue the discussion in the previous column on SCM on why human relationships are so important to management supply chains. 6. Data Mean Different Things to Different People In…