Analysis of Unilever's Supply Chain Management - Report

This report provides an in-depth analysis of Unilever's supply chain management, a crucial aspect of the company's global operations. The report begins with an introduction to Unilever, highlighting its diverse product portfolio and global presence. It then delves into the roles of key supply chain drivers, including production, inventory, location, transportation, and information, examining how each contributes to Unilever's efficiency and competitive advantage. The report further explores the strategic fit between Unilever's supply chain strategy and its overall competitive strategy, emphasizing the importance of aligning supply chain management with business goals. The analysis covers how Unilever has adapted its supply chain over time, integrating various networks to maintain its market position. The conclusion summarizes the report's findings, emphasizing the success of Unilever's supply chain management and its influence on the company's performance. The report references several academic sources to support its arguments and analysis.

Running head: SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT OF UNILEVER
Supply chain management of Unilever
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SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT OF UNILEVER
Table of Contents
Introduction..........................................................................................................................2
Role of each supply chain drivers........................................................................................2
Strategic fit between supply chain strategy and competitive advantage.............................3
Conclusion...........................................................................................................................4
Reference List......................................................................................................................5

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Introduction
Unilever is a consumer goods company which is situated in Britain and Dutch. The
company headquarters are situated in Rotterdam, United Kingdom, Netherlands and London.
The product which are provided by the company includes Food, personal products, beverages
and various cleaning agents. The supply chain management of the company is considered to be
one of the very finest in the world. In this report the supply chain administration of the company
will be discussed in a broad way.
Role of each supply chain drivers
The main supply chain drivers of any company are mainly:
Production: For achieving the target of the company the company uses various kinds of data
which is used for identifying the need of the market and to find newer opportunities. The
company is constantly looking for the various technologies which are used in the company for
the promotion of the best practices which will be followed by the company (Ogunlela and
Lekhanya 2016). With the help of this process the company takes the edge from its competitors
and produces quality goods for its customers.
Inventory: Unilever follows a system by the help of which the company takes care of its
inventory. The company looks at the needs of the current market situation and the various needs
of the customers. The goods produced by the company depends on the current market needs.
This process keeps the company from making any kind of loss (Wilshaw, Unger, Quynh and Thu
2013).
Location: The main aim of the Unilever is to cut its costs in the transportation department. The
company aims to cut the costs which is needed for the products of the company to reach the

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target market. The production hub of the company are placed in proximal distance from the main
target markets of the company.
Transportation: The main aim of the transport of the various goods by the company to the target
markets is to reduce the emissions so that that company can contribute to effective transportation
system. The company targets to deliver its goods to the target market as fast as possible so the
company has produced a lot of hubs around the world (Comas Martí and Seifert 2013). The hubs
are placed at optimum distance from the target market which makes it easier to deliver the
products.
Information: The main decision which will be taken by the company for carrying out the
various process is done in this department of the supply chain management of the company. The
company has aligned the supply chain management with the functioning of the company
(Fawcett and Waller 2015).
Strategic fit between supply chain strategy and competitive advantage
Aligning the supply chain supervision with the business strategy for effective output is
one of the major challenges which is being faced by companies all over the world. The supply
chain strategy of Unilever has steadily changed over the decade and the company has thoroughly
followed the trends which has been followed in the industry and also maintain a good
relationship with the retailers. To overcome the challenge of aligning the supply chain
management with the corporate strategy of the company the company needed to form a lot of
chains of supply rather than keeping just one. This gave the company a lot of options by the help
of which the company aligned its visions in the upcoming years with its supply chain. Each of
the various networks of the company in the supply chain depicted different products technologies

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and various trade channels and distribution networks which made it easy for the company to
spread its business (Hong, Zhang and Ding 2018).
The company readily recognized that only one channel is not enough to maintain all of its
branches and the right kind of supply chain will be requiring the company to integrate a lot of
networks in the functioning of the company. All these different kinds of network will be having a
common back office and the same ways will be followed for the functioning of all the supply
chain framework.
Conclusion
To conclude it can be supposed that the main success of the supply chain management of
Unilever can be assessed with the way the company has infused the supply chain management
through the functioning of the company. The different drivers of the supply chain of the
company have been utilized by the company in a very proper way and is the main reason due to
which the company is at the top among all other companies encompassing the supply chain.

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Reference List
Comas Martí, J.M. and Seifert, R.W., 2013. Assessing the comprehensiveness of supply chain
environmental strategies. Business strategy and the environment, 22(5), pp.339-356.
Fawcett, S.E. and Waller, M.A., 2015. Designing the Supply Chain for Success at the Bottom of
the Pyramid. Journal of Business Logistics, 36(3), pp.233-239.
Hong, J., Zhang, Y. and Ding, M., 2018. Sustainable supply chain management practices, supply
chain dynamic capabilities, and enterprise performance. Journal of Cleaner Production, 172,
pp.3508-3519.
Ogunlela, G.O. and Lekhanya, L.M., 2016. The use of integrated supply chain management
model for promoting competitiveness in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG)
manufacturing industry in Nigeria. Problems and perspectives in management, (14, Iss. 1
(contin)), pp.160-167.
Waters, D. and Rinsler, S., 2014. Global logistics: New directions in supply chain management.
Kogan Page Publishers.
Wilshaw, R., Unger, L., Quynh, C.D. and Thu, T.P., 2013. Labour Rights in Unilever's Supply
Chain: From compliance to good practice. An Oxfam study of labour issues in Unilever's Viet
Nam operations and supply chain. Oxfam Policy and Practice: Private Sector, 10(1), pp.1-108.