Companies “Weigh in” on Sourcing/Supply Chain Metrics

from supplychainmarket.com

The Best Practices Xchange (met on Friday, November 16, 2007 for a one day summit attended by a “Who’s Who” of top Strategic Sourcing, Procurement, and Supply Chain Executives. The focus of this session was “Strategic Sourcing/Supply Chain Performance: Metrics and Marketing” and was held at the beautiful Chicago Botanic Gardens.

A hugely diverse group of Sourcing and Supply Chain professionals participated in the 9th BPX symposium to discuss performance metrics and internal marketing. This incredibly hot topic provided what some members referred to as the best meeting ever. Executives from heavy manufacturing, insurance, healthcare, consumer products, and professional services companies, joined industry thought-leaders from The Mpower Group and two of their strategic affiliates from Azul Partners and Techventive in this lively and informative peek into the inner workings of some of the world’s top companies’ sourcing and supply chain operations.

Supply Chain, the CEO, and Opportunity

from scdigest.com

So, is there opportunity for most companies to significantly improve their supply chains?

If the anecdotes in a recent Harvard Business Review article on supply chain management are any indication, many companies are still very early in the SCM game.

The article itself – Are You the Weakest Link in Your Supply Chain? – was authored by Reuben Slone (exec VP of Supply Chain at OfficeMax); Dr. John Mentzer (University of Tennessee), and J. Paul Dittmann, (formerly of Whirlpool and now also at the University of Tennessee). (As an aside, when we did our ERP versus Best-of-Breed supply chain software reports almost three years ago now, I spoke with dozens of people on the topic, and Dittmann was easily the most insightful.)

Ryder to Consolidate U.S. and International Supply Chain Solutions Businesses

from reuters.com

Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE: R) today announced plans to combine its U.S. and International Supply Chain Solutions (SCS) business operations to form a single, fully integrated organization to serve SCS customers globally. The new structure will formally align SCS expertise, business resources, and management processes, to efficiently support the increasing global sourcing and production needs of the Company’s substantial North American customer base and accelerating customer demand outside of North America.

An MSc in Operations and Supply Chain Management for the Real World

from sdcexec.com

The University of Liverpool in partnership with Laureate Online, a subsidiary of Laureate Education, has recently launched an MSc in Operations and Supply Chain Management.

Taught completely online, 24 hours a day, the program offers flexibility to busy professionals around the world. The program is based on the successful campus course, which is now on its sixth cohort and has been accredited by the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS).

Dr. Andy Lyons, director of Studies of the Operations and Supply Chain Management MSc, explained why the University chose to roll out an online version: “We are going online because we want to share our expertise globally and make it accessible to the world market.”

Corporate Philanthropy Shines Bright for the Holiday Season with the Best Practices Xchange

from prweb.com

The Best Practices Xchange (“BPX”) (www.BestPracticesXchange.com) met on Friday, November 16, 2007 for a one day summit attended by a “Who’s Who” of top Strategic Sourcing, Procurement, and Supply Chain Executives. The focus of this session was “Strategic Sourcing/Supply Chain Performance: Metrics and Marketing” and was held at the beautiful Chicago Botanic Gardens.

Anne Kohler, EVP and Founding Partner of The Mpower Group, who facilitates the BPX sessions, participated in a recent panel discussion at Northwestern University on November 6, 2007 addressing the “Future Survival of Non-profit Groups”. “Corporations have a lot of money, not-for-profits have to have a way to get to them,” said Anne, “There needs to be more accountability in the corporate sector”.