Scm Supply Chain Management

Q1: why are large supply chains more difficult to manage? List several reasons.

A: Larger supply chains are difficult to manage because of the following reasons:

1. The large supply chains of big companies are extremely complicated.

2. It becomes difficult for large companies to feature thousands of suppliers, manufacturing facilities and marketers.

3. If there is a slightest change at any part of these large supply chains, it will significantly affect all the other participants and their performances.

4. The large supply chains are so extensive and grand that the chance for any kind of errors and inefficiencies to occur is greater and very effective to rest of the departments.

5. As the large supply chains are dynamic, they evolve and change over time so they require new ideas, techniques to bring that change that is again could be the reason of difficulty in management.

6. Inventory optimization for a large supply chain I critical to cutting costs and increasing revenues.

7. Large supply chains may have chances of bullwhip effects since the information about the demand for the products gets distorted as it passes from one entity to the next across h e large supply chains.

8. Managing or maintaining large supply chains is very costly, so managers of large supply chains are always searching for ways to reduce the supply chain cost and improve efficiency throughout its entire manufacturing and distributing network.

9. They may find difficulty in managing several manufacturing facilities

10. Managing Operation in geographically dispersed markets

11. Configuring distribution network such as number and location of suppliers, production facilities, distribution centers, warehouses and customers.

12. Selecting appropriate distribution strategy such as Centralized versus decentralized, direct shipment, pull or push strategies, third party logistics.

13. Integrating systems and processes through the supply chain to share valuable information, including...