Global Supply Chain Management: An Interim Project Report

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Investigating The Logistics And Supply Chain Management Techniques In A Global Perspective
Interim Project Report

Table of Contents
PROJECT TITLE.....................................................................................................2
PROJECT DESCRIPTION......................................................................................2
PROJECT BACKGROUND.....................................................................................3
PROBLEM STATEMENT, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES..............................................4
RESEARCH EVIDENCE – LITERATURE REVIEW................................................4
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.............................................................................10
SUMMARY/ SNAPSHOT.......................................................................................11
EXPECTED OUTCOMES......................................................................................12
PROJECT TIMELINE AND GANTT CHART.........................................................13
BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................................................................................15
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PROJECT TITLE
Investigating the Logistics and SCM Techniques from a Global Perspective
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The challenges and characteristics of assimilated market as well as the mounting
international collaboration along with vertical dis-integration is the cause of the
belief that organisations are connected in global supply chain structure; this project
is to explore the emergence of SCM into global SCM and various techniques that
contribute to its efficiency and effectiveness and facilitate and support the global
SCM as an instrument that links the firms around the globe (Russell, 2011).
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PROJECT BACKGROUND
The evolution of SCM into the form that’s in existence in today's business
environment can be segregated into a few stages on the basis of its characteristics
and functions (Christopher, 2016). Prior to 1950, there was only logistics
management and it involved the procurement, maintenance, and transportation of
facilities, personnel and material/goods (Merriam-Webster, 2019). It was present
within the military as an organised operation otherwise the elements of logistics
management were segregated and amalgamated with other various business
functions and had no distinct form. However, the internationalisation of businesses
spurred on by the globalisation contributed towards the formation of logistics
management as a separate function since logistic activities like procurement,
distribution, and transportation became an important aspect of successful and
efficient business operations. It is evident that by the time the term SCM was
devised in the year 1982 by Keith Oliver, logistics management has gained a
standard structure and appearance (Velmurugan and Radhakrishnan, 2015).
Nowadays, logistics management forms a small part of the vast SCM that has
evolved into Global SCM and became an integral part of the transnational
organisation's operations across the globe and a critical aspect that defines their
success and effectiveness.
There have been a number of studies regarding the development of logistics
management and the emergence and development of the SCM especially due to
the momentum provided by the internationalisation and globalisation to various
industries and businesses (Christopher, 2016). The current paper focuses on a
distinct avenue while exploring and summarising the logistics management prior to
1950; development of logistics management as an integral component of the
businesses; and emergence and evolution of SCM into Global SCM. The focus of
the current project is the models and concepts that are used in the global SCM
and the role of global SCM in linking the firms across the globe in a global supply
chain structure (Russell, 2011).
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PROBLEM STATEMENT, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Problem Statement
The emergence of global SCM to cater to the needs of transnational enterprises
was able to link together the firms operated at different areas of the globe as a part
of a supply chain structure. However, there are barriers and challenges faced by
the Global SCM arising out of the global nature of the supply chain that’s
formulated. A major issue can be considered to be globalisation that became the
cause of the changes in the competition experienced by the majority of the
companies (Melnyk et al. 2014). This became the cause of a variety of demands
on the SCM as well as the administration of the companies. The demands
imposed by the changing competitive environment along with elements like the
advancements in the existing technology influence the strategy for the SCM and
its integration (Russell, 2011). The current project will examine the
techniques/models employed for the efficiency and proficiency of the SCM from a
global perspective and their effectiveness in terms of the efficiency and proficiency
of the global SCM (Davies and Hughes, 2014).
Project Aim
Examine the SCM of Transnational Enterprises and different SCM
Techniques/Models in a global perspective (Davies and Hughes, 2014).
Project Objectives
The following will be the objectives of the proposed project (Davies and Hughes,
2014)
Examine the SCM practices of Transnational Enterprises
Determine the aspects that transform SCM Into global SCM
Examine the factors that affect the SCM and its effectiveness.
RESEARCH EVIDENCE – LITERATURE REVIEW
Logistics Management
According to Choi et al (2016) and Cojocariu (2013), Logistics Management is
defined as the management of the procedure of planning, executing and regulating
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processes for the effective and efficient storage and transportation of goods or
services and linked information from the source point to the consumption point to
fulfil customer needs and contains incoming, outgoing, external and internal
actions (Choi et al.et al. 2016; Cojocariu, 2013). Cojocariu (2013) further explains
that Logistics Management is considered to have its origin in the Military and the
above-defined attributes, as well as its recognition as a separate function within a
firm/business, came at a much later date. Initially, logistics within the Military had
functions that involved procurement, transportation and maintenance of military
goods, personnel and facilities (Cojocariu, 2013).
Figure 1: The evolution of SCM
Source: (Transportgeography, 2017)
According to Choi et al (2016), prior to 1960, the activities belonging to the
logistics management were fragmented and managed by different functions of a
business organisation or firm. This led to reduced overall efficiency and duplication
of efforts and costs as well as wastage both monetary and material (Choi et al.
2016). According to Monczka et al (2015), there were many reasons for this such
as lack of communication and coordination between the functions handling the
elements/activities associated to logistics; lack of awareness regarding the
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importance of logistics; and inter-functional rivalry. Later, as the firms and its
managements realised that structuring the logistics can lead to establishing control
over its activities and overall cost-effectiveness, the activity integration began. At
earlier stages, the activities were clubbed by their nature and divided into two
broad categories that later on constituted the logistics management. These two
categories were Material management or purchase and Distribution (Monczka et
al., 2015).
Evolution of SCM
According to Monczka et al (2015), the term SCM was devised by Keith Oliver in
1980s and in a decades time it gained prominence among the businesses. It
consists of the attributes/ activities of the logistics management along with
coordination and collaboration with sales/ marketing functions and finance function
while becoming an integral component of the strategic planning (Monczka et al.
2015). According to Janvier-James et al (2012), SCM was defined by the CSCMP
or Council of SCM Professionals as the integrating element of demand and supply
management inside and outside the organisations. It includes the administering
and planning the activities related to the procurement and sourcing, conversion
and the logistics while administering the cooperation and coordination with the
channel partners such as customers, intermediaries, relevant third-party service
providers, and suppliers (Janvier-James, 2012).
Figure 2: SCM
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Source: (Ballou, 2006)
Transnational Enterprises and Global SCM
Dawley (2011) explains that as the SCM evolved, various fragmented tasks
started to become increasingly integrated contributing towards productivity
improvement of the organisations. As the technologies advanced, the SCM
evolved further and logistics as well as both the ends of the assembly line
integrated with each other devising an integrated approach that allowed the firms
to remain flexible while controlling the costs. As the globalisation spurred the
evolution of transnational enterprises, the evolved SCM further evolved into a
global supply chain network to fulfil the needs of these transnational enterprises
(Dawley, 2011). Mangan et al (2016) clarify that the requirements of the
transnational enterprises differ greatly from other firms that operate locally or to a
country or two. In the case of the transnational enterprises, the production function
became increasingly fragmented and distributed across the globe as per the need
of achieving maximum cost efficiency. These companies were sourcing raw
material and components from a number of suppliers based at a number of
locations while manufacturing at different locale as well. This required a
management system that can fulfil the requirements of effectively managing the
distinct requirements of these transnational enterprises leading to the evolution of
Global SCM (Mangan et al. 2016).
According to Mangan et al (2016), Global SCM can be described as distributing
services and goods over the global network of Transnational Enterprises with an
objective to minimise waste while maximising profitability. The Global SCM can be
considered as a variant of the basic SCM that focuses entirely on transnational
organisations. The focus areas of Global SCM are supply-chain coordination,
competitor orientation, operations management, supply management, customer
orientation, and logistics management. These focus areas can be surmised as
operations management, supply-management, logistics, and marketing. In
addition, the global SCM also needs to adhere to and consider various
international regulations formulated by both governments and non-government
organisations (Mangan et al. 2016). Waters and Rinsler (2014) reiterate that the
operational risk to SCM can be categorised as Supply-side and Demand-side
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risks. The supply-side risk is the risk associated with raw material availability that
may hamper the ability of the organisation in meeting customer needs. These
include the quality standards of the suppliers, changes in the flow of currency
value, variations in the processing times of the supplier, etc. The Demand-side risk
is associated with the availability of the finished goods such as scenarios where
the supply provided by the organisation is unable to meet customer demand
(Waters and Rinsler, 2014).
Supply Chain Management
According to Hugos (2018), the principal elements of SCM are the creation of
network structure of the supply-chain, development of business processes (supply
chain), and managing the activities associated with supply chain. The member
firms and their inter-linkages form the supply chain network structure. The member
firms are either primary or supporting depending upon their activities. The primary
member firms are involved in the value addition activities while supporting member
firms ensure the provision of resources to the primary firms. The supply chain
business functions are focused on producing a specific output value while the
management of supply chain focuses on integrating supply chain and business
processes (Hugos, 2018). Fredendall and Hill (2016) explain that the productivity
and performance of the organisation are significantly influenced by the
effectiveness of the SCM that’s characterised by its agility, adaptability, and ability
to align the member firms interests. The agility of SCM defines its ability to cope
up with changes and its reaction to the change. Adaptability, on the other hand, is
the ability of SCM to change as per the changing needs of the organisation and
the business environment. Lastly, the ability of the SCM in aligning the interests of
the member firms with each other and thereby promoting the organisational
interests is also a critical component of defining the effectiveness of SCM. The
above-mentioned aspects of the SCM transcend to the global SCM as well
(Fredendall and Hill, 2016).
It can be surmised from the existing literature considered above that the nature of
the operation of the transnational organisations defines the global SCM. Also, the
cause of the evolution of the global SCM is the requirements of the transnational
organisations and the scale of its global network of suppliers and fragmented
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production practices. The effectiveness of global SCM is defined by its ability to
handle changing business requirements and fulfilling the organisational
requirements.
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The research methodology is employed for the current project will be based on the
data sourced from secondary sources. The secondary sources that will be utilised
will include relevant literature that's associated with different aspects of SCM and
Global SCM concerning the evolution of SCM, global SCM and its role and
importance to transnational organisations, global perspective on the SCM, various
practices that are used to improve the effectiveness of SCM, etc. The literature will
be derived from sources like past researches, work of scholarly origin, journals,
and books. The shortlisted literature will be then reviewed and then analysed
through descriptive analysis to derive findings and conclusions as well as
suggesting recommendations (Silverman, 2016).
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SUMMARY/ SNAPSHOT
Currently, some of the work related to the project is completed while other aspects
are being worked upon. A short literature review focused on various aspects of
SCM as well as its evolution is completed. It facilitated the establishment of the
background for the project and the potential scope of the research project. It was
also instrumental in defining the objectives of the proposed study. The research
methodology that will be utilised is also finalised as the secondary research due to
the scale of the study and the limitation associated with the collection of primary
data. The leverage and the ease of data analysis provided by the secondary
research was the basis of its choice as the research methodology that will be
utilised for the current research. Some of the secondary data that align with the
current research objective has been shortlisted while the rest of the literature is
being worked upon. It's expected that the work will be completed in the designated
time frame and the report will be submitted in the given time frame (Saunders and
Lewis, 2012).
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