Contemporary Logistics Challenges

The assignment discusses the impact of Middle East uprisings on KFC's business in Pakistan and how a supply chain manager would need to reroute shipments on contingency basis. The importance of collaboration is also highlighted, particularly in transportation management, with CTM being the need of the hour for improving operating performance and eliminating inefficiencies in transportation.

Contemporary Logistics

1. Any disruption in the supply chain can render negative impact on a business in a
thorough manner. In the concerned case it has been observed that there are certain
uncertainties that have been affecting KFC’s business in Pakistan owing to Middle
East uprisings. In the given scenario it has been observed that being a supply chain
manager for KFC I had a shipment of food products ready to deliver in Pakistan but I
have been notified that the stores have been shut down and the inventory needs to be
rerouted to different stores in nearby countries. In this case I will have to reroute the
shipment on contingency basis. In respect of such problem it must be said that the
supply chin of the franchise would be affected by the concerned events. Being the
supply chain manager I would have to determine the contingent rerouting strategy for
enhancing supply chain resilience while taking a supplier’s point of view (Wang,
Herty & Zhao, 2015). Being the manager I would seek for tools for assistance in this
regard and I will have to consider a supply chain with multiple suppliers at each stage
and then has to establish a mathematic model for product allocation behaviour among
different suppliers.
2. Collaboration plays a significant role in any business affair. In the context of
managing supply chain the issue of collaboration should be highlighted being an
important aspect of the entire business process. It must be noted that supply chain
collaboration, with focus on transportation, should be presented as a way of mitigating
the impact of different economic crises. It should be noted that while there are
concerns related to the issue of control, trust, and despite the fact that there are
potential risks of entering into collaborative relationships; the potential benefits of
such collaboration cannot be undermined. In this respect it must be stated that
collaborative transportation management (CTM) is the need of the hour. In the
context of modern economy and supply chain functions the importance of CTM

cannot be overlooked. But before coming to the point one must know what CTM
exactly is. CTM is “a holistic process that brings together supply chain partners and
service providers to drive inefficiencies out of the transport planning and execution
process. The objective of CTM is to improve the operating performance of all parties
involved in the relationship by eliminating inefficiencies in the transportation
component of the supply chain through collaboration” (Sutherland, 2009). Hence, it
can be seen that CTM is the need of the hour in terms of successfully supporting the
supply chain in the context of modern anomalies. It should also be taken into account
that to enhance the interaction between three principle parties (to a supply chain) viz.
shipper, carrier, and receiver – CTM must play a crucial role. In such a system the
participants would be allowed to collaborate by sharing information about demand
and supply, ideas and capabilities that are needed to improve the performance of the
overall transport planning and execution process (Sutherland, 2009). It should also be
taken into account that “The process begins with an order/shipment forecast, and
includes capacity planning and scheduling, order generation, load tender, delivery
execution, and carrier payment” (Sutherland, 2009).
References
Sutherland, J. (2009). Collaborative Transportation Management: A Solution to the Current
Transportation Crisis. Lehigh University. Center for Value Chain Research, 1-8.
Wang, X., Herty, M., & Zhao, L. (2015). Contingent rerouting for enhancing supply chain
resilience from supplier behavior perspective. International Transactions in
Operational Research, 23(4), 775-796.