Lessons Learned

Apr 29, 2003

The IT Strategic Sourcing Four-Step

“An overwhelming majority of CIOs say their enterprises cannot handle their IT services alone and are willing to create partnerships with service providers. But few CIOs have strategies to work…

Apr 17, 2003

Estimating the Costs of Iraq’s Reconstruction

Now that the war is over, what will it cost to rebuild the war-torn nation? Analysts have differing estimates for the cost. While the United Nations Development Program estimates the…

Apr 3, 2003

Taming the Bullwhip Effect

What is the bullwhip effect The bullwhip effect can be described as a series of events that leads to supplier demand variability up the supply chain. Trigger events include the…

Mar 19, 2003

Global Sourcing: Levels and risks

Global sourcing is an issue that executive management needs to be cognizant of these days because the repercussions of ignoring global sourcing could be devastating to the future health of…

Mar 5, 2003

Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI): Three Steps in Making It Work

The goal of Vendor Managed Inventory is to provide a mutually beneficial relationship where both sides will be able to more smoothly and accurately control the availability and flow of…

Feb 13, 2003

Internal benchmarking: Looking in the Mirror

According to www.dictionary.com, benchmarking is “to measure (a rival’s product) according to specified standards in order to compare it with and improve one’s own product.” Benchmarking is typically thought of…

Jan 30, 2003

Implementing Best Practices

Best Practice: an overused cliché meaning something that everyone wants to use, but no one knows how to define. Many people start the New Year with a resolution, “a course…

Jan 15, 2003

Finding a Place for Logistics Management

What are 3PLs and 4PLs? Why are companies outsourcing logistics management to them? The acronyms for Third Party Logistics (3PL) and Fourth Party Logistics (4PL) are commonly used to describe…

Nov 27, 2002

E-Commerce vs. E-Business

“There will be nothing in the 10-year window except e-companies. That does not mean that Brick-and-Mortar will go away. But Click-and-Mortar will become the only means of survival.” John Chambers,…

Oct 23, 2002

Six Steps to a Successful VMI System

COMMUNICATE expectations of all parties. Customer must commit to sharing PRECISE information. Supplier must ensure RELIABLE transmission, receipt, and use of information. Sufficiently TEST systems before going live. Expect implementation…