Article Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Article - Assignment Example The first article â€Å"Aligning Supply Chain Strategies with Product Uncertainties† by Lee discusses theoretically the process involved in supply chain management and the factors, which necessitates the same. The article elaborately discusses the risks in production entailed by demand and supply sides. The center point is supply uncertainties that thereby leads to reinforce the necessity of supply chain management. The second article ‘Avon gets its Makeover’ by Cohen and Roussel point out how Avon, a global cosmetics firm has reformed the infrastructure in its manufacturing and transportation base using an end-to-end approach and the benefits which resulted form this step. The third article ‘Making Supply Meet Demand’ by Fischer, Hammond, Obermeyer and Raman focuses on the errors in forecasting and other means of uncertainties affecting demand supply interaction. The fourth article ‘Mass Customization at’ by Feitzinger and Lee explains t he strategies employed for mass customization. All four articles also incorporate the role played by information in supply chain management. Demand-Supply interaction and supply chain management Managing supply chains is closely associated with demand related uncertainties. Supply Chain Management is an integrated set of complex operations needed for a business to succeed in a competitive atmosphere. Efficient supply chain management functions practiced by a company help it in achieving several business objectives. It helps in reducing the cost of operations, improving the quality of the products and services rendered and in maintaining efficient delivery system. Moreover effective supply chain management practice promotes the system of spontaneous innovation taken by a concern. Effective supply chain management helps in the augmentation of the value and quality of products through proper forecasting of market demand and thereby making necessary replenishment (Fischer, Hammond, Ober meyer and Raman). The challenges and benefits of supply chains should be closely studied before any practical strategies are framed and Lee successfully explore that focusing on the uncertainties on both demand and supply sides. Management of supply chains have been more complicated owing to the shortening of life cycles of a product, expansion of business worldwide and persistent up gradation of information technology. The main indicators of the health of supply chain are its market position, inventory, customer service, cost and returns on assets. One important thing must be noted here. Every product or segment cannot have the same kind of supply chain management and a market with unstable demand or uncertain supply source cannot be managed in the same way as that with a stable demand and supply dynamics. For instance products, which are functional, might have lesser uncertainties in demand structure than those that are innovative in nature (Lee). The distinction on grounds of pre dictability can also be made on grounds of accurate response. Fischer, Hammond, Obermeyer and Raman discuss different models for forecasting demand and consequently supply. The products, which are functional in nature, can be forecast without much risk of deviation (Lee). An instance of a successful supply chain management might be found in case of Avon. The company undertook an end-to-end supply chain structure where it could see the entire chain as