Extraordinary planning for extraordinary supply chains

Extraordinary events demand extraordinary performance from supply chains.

In today’s world, responsiveness is key, but reliability makes responsiveness possible. How do you target 2 different goals with your supply chains?

You segment the supply chains.

In the case of a hurricane or other natural disaster, you contract differently for both segments.

The Reliable segment makes sure that the right stuff is in the right place at the right time in the right quantities…. This SCOR attribute is captured in Perfect Order Fulfillment metrics. Positioning is key now to be responsive later.

Once the disaster strikes, the responsive supply chain segments take over. The last mile logistics depend on adequate planning, optimized processes, and integrated people skills to make things flow correctly behind the scenes so that your supply chain performance receives kudos at the scene. Responsiveness is a SCOR attribute and is captured in a hierarchy of cycle time performance metrics.

You can think of it like postponement: you want the right stuff at your fingertips so that no matter when the demand comes in, you are ready.

Keywords and concepts: performance, postponement, Perfect Order, fulfillment, reliability, responsive, supply chain

About the author: Cynthia Kalina-Kaminsky with Process & Strategy consults with and provides training for organizations eager to increase their competitive value by helping enable growth, align performance, make and move product (even when the product is electrons). She is teaching SCOR (Supply Chain Operations Reference model) in Baton Rouge this October. SCOR is the framework Fortune 500 companies use to increase their performance.