Alignment of Supply and Demand planning to attain Supply Chain Efficiency

Running Head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Alignment of Supply and Demand planning to attain Supply Chain Efficiency
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Company in Scope: Microsoft Corporations
1. Brief Introduction to Background
Microsoft Corporation was founded in the year 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen. It has
developed over the years and currently it is the largest supplier of software products in the
market such as laptops, iPhone, iPad and MacBook.
Microsoft Corporation Supply Chain Management
Microsoft Corporation was the only established supplier of software products by 2000. Other
firms entered the market and the competition was not too stiff. There was no need to regulate
the supply of its products because its products was the most dominant in the market (Ayers &
Odegaard, 2017). Currently many firms are into the business hence most of them duplicate
Microsoft products and sell at a lower price than the company. This has really affected the
performance of the company hence there has been a need to supply a specific amount of
products in the market according to the consumers demand to reduce the chances of
duplication especially by Chinese software firms (Gattorna, 2015). As a result, the research
shall be very important in addressing this aspect.

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1.1. Introduction to Topic Area
The real integration of the supply chain requires the alignment of the supply and demand for
the products to enhance continuous flow of the goods and services and reduce surplus
production so as to minimize waste. Many organizations suffer great as a result of not
matching the supply and demand of their products hence there is excess in the market whose
potential consumers do not require much of the product. This problem can be solved through
forecasting the demand for the goods and services within the organization. This enables the
organization to produce a given amount as per the demand of its products in the market.
Furthermore it leads to increased profits for the organization. It also results to better service
for the customers because demand forecasting enables the organization to determine the
potential consumers for its products hence controlling the production process.
1.2 Problem Statement and Rationale for Research Topic
Microsoft Corporation is currently struggling with the mismatch of the supply chain of their
products with the demand of their products in the market. This is problematic because it may
result to great losses for the company. The research proposal aims to provide advice to
Microsoft on how they shall align their supply chain with the demand of their products in the
market to maximize the profits and reduce the surplus in the market (McCormack & Johnson,
2016).