TERM PAPER ON THE GENERAL TOPIC OF GLOBAL SUPPLY

TERM PAPER ON THE GENERAL TOPIC OF GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

TERM PAPER ON THE GENERAL TOPIC OF GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

In the present era of globalization of extremely competitive markets, increased level of globalization and expansion of organization's operations to a global scale, it has become increasingly important for the firms to fully integrate their overall operations so that they can develop a competitive edge over their competitors in terms of timely delivery, efficient customer service and improved performance. Supply chain management has been one of the major issues of concern for businesses for several years. Advancement in technology, development of innovative information systems and their successful implementation on different business enterprises has made the task of supply chain management more effective and easier to mange. However, it is important to note that these newly developed information systems just functions as the facilitators in managing the supply chain management activities and it is still the responsibility of the management of any given organizations to plan and manage the overall supply chain and inventory management activities. (Benjamin, R. and Wigand, R., 2008) The impact of the challenge posed by supply chain management issues can be huge on the firms, especially for the retailing organizations. For retailers as well as the manufacturers, supply chain management can serve as one of the most significant areas of differentiation. It can help the organization to gain an edge over its competitors if they manage their supply chain management systems well. On the other hand, if the organization fails to realize the importance of supply chain and ignores this crucial aspect of business, it can prove to be a considerable burden for the organization. Realizing the importance of supply chain, in enabling an organization to successfully compete in the market, researchers and management experts have been working out to identify strategies and practices which may enable the companies to improve its capabilities in terms of matching supply and demand for its products. It is also interesting to note that in case of retail businesses, effective supply chain management has become an essential aspect of business as the life cycles of the majority of the products have shortened because of an increase in competition. With a rise in competition among the organizations, one can observe an increase in the breadth of product offerings in the market, which leads to ...