Implementing Recommendations for Unilever's International Supply Chain Strategy

Running head: IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS
International Supply Chain Strategy (Implementing Recommendations)
[Unilever]
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note

1IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS
Executive summary
This report is mainly based on discussing the implementation of recommended factors in the
previous assignment. It starts with an introductory section letting the readers know about the
purpose of this report. It proceeds further by summarising the factors of recommendation as
made to Unilever in the first part of this assignment. It then covers the implementation
section by dividing the rest of the discussion in two sections. These are changes in global
procurement and improving absorptive capacity, global supply chain network and facilitating
technology and knowledge transfer.

2IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS
Table of Contents
1. Introduction............................................................................................................................3
2. Summary of the Recommendations.......................................................................................3
3. Linkage between three recommendations..............................................................................4
4. Implementing the Recommendations.....................................................................................5
4.1 Changes in global procurement........................................................................................5
4.1.1 Changes in selecting international suppliers.............................................................5
4.1.2 Changes in buying from international suppliers.......................................................8
4.1.3 Changes in managing international suppliers...........................................................9
5. The changes in global supply chain network, facilitating technology and knowledge
transfer, and improving absorptive capacity............................................................................11
6. Conclusion............................................................................................................................14
References................................................................................................................................16

3IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Introduction
The chosen company Unilever is observed to face some significant difficulty in the
management of the supply chain. The major loopholes of the organizations are seen to be the
absence of sufficient inventory locations which is preventing the organization from
improving the efficiency in the supply chain, the absence of the flexibility in the supply chain
networks and the lack of incorporation of the technology in the supply chains. The paper
discusses the necessary steps that the organizations requires to take to reduce the detrimental
impact of the above mentioned loopholes of the organization’s supply chain settings.
2. Summary of the Recommendations
The organization has 21 inventory locations to supply the products to 80 countries.
The efficiency of the supply chain network of the organizations lacks a bit due to this ratio of
inventory locations and the number of customer countries. As the company deals with the
non-perishable items, it will not face any sort of significant issue in increasing the number of
inventory locations. As the improved efficiency in the supply chain of the organization will
certainly improve the operations and the supply of the end products in the customer countries,
the organizations needs to increase the number of inventory locations and at the same time,
the organization lacks manufacturing locations in the Asian and the Oceania for better
operation in those regions. Hence the construction of the manufacturing locations in Asian
and Oceania market becomes much needed for the company.
The organization is observed to face the impact of the absence of the assessment of
the demand and the supply of the products in the market. Hence the proper functioning of the
supply chain network to assess the correct demand and supply the products in accordance to
that demand becomes much needed for the organization. The incorporation of the technology
has the potential to resolve the issue. The accommodation of the Radio Frequency