《供应链管理》课后
答案
完成英语CHAPTER ONE
Understanding the Supply Chain
1Consider the purcha of a can of soda at a convenience store. Describe the various stages in the supply chain and the different flows involved.
When a customer purchas a can of soda at a convenience store, his purcha reprents the end of a supply chain’s delivery of an item and the beginning of information regarding his
purcha flowing in the opposite direction.
The supply chain stages include customers, retailers, wholesalers/distributors, manufacturers, and component/raw material suppliers. A customer’s purcha moves product towards the
customer and dollars and information towards the retailer.
The retailer places an order from the wholesaler/distributor to replenish stock, thereby moving information back up the supply chain while moving product down the supply chain. As the
order is filled, the retailer will move dollars back up the supply chain.
The wholesaler/distributor transmits information and dollars to the manufacturer who produces product and ships it down the supply chain to the wholesaler.
Finally (or initially, depending on your perspective) the manufacturer moves orders
(information) and dollars towards suppliers in exchange for material flow into their production process.
2Why should a firm like Dell take into account total supply chain profitability when making decisions?
Dell realizes that their ultimate success lies with the success of their supply chain and its ability to generate supply chain surplus. If Dell was to view supply chain operations as a zero sum
game, they would lo their competitive edge as their suppliers’ business struggled. Dell’s profit gained at the expen of their supply chain partners would be short lived. Just as a
physical chain is only as strong as its weakest link, the supply chain can be successful only if all members cooperate and focus on a global optimum rather than many local optima.
3What are some strategic planning and operational decisions that must be made by an apparel retailer like The Gap?
As The Gap plans supply chain strategy it must first consider the marketing function’s pricing plans in order to structure a supply chain consonant with the plans. Strategic considerations such as the capacity of each supplier and asmbly operations, sourcing decisions and how
logistics are to be handled are all part of the design. The supply chain must also ttle on
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communication channels and frequencies.
Supply chain planning takes the strategic decisions as a given and eks to exploit efficiencies in the chain to maximize supply chain surplus. The entire chain should collaborate in
forecasting and planning production as to achieve a global optimum. The forecasts should take into account planned promotions and known asonal fluctuations in demand.
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The operational decision take the plans as a given and make day-to-day decisions to process customer orders, allocate resources to certain customers, trigger orders from supply chain
members, and deliver product.
4Consider the supply chain involved when a customer purchas a book at a bookstore. Identify cycles in this supply chain and the location of the push/pull boundary.
All supply chain process can be broken down into four process cycles that connect the five stages of the supply chain; the customer order cycle, the replenishment cycle, the manufacturing cycle, and the procurement cycle.
The customer order cycle connects the customer with the retailer; this connection is made as the book, perhaps Supply Chain Management by Chopra and Meindl, is lected and paid for by the customer.
The replenishment cycle connects the retailer and the distributor and is triggered by the
retailer’s need to fill the empty shel f space with another copy of this tome.
地震小常识The manufacturing cycle connects the distributor and the manufacturer. As demand for the book is realized and distributors empty their warehous, they signal the manufacturer to print
another million copies to fill their empty warehous.
Finally, the procurement cycle connects the manufacturer and the supplier. The manufacturer requires raw material inputs of paper, ink, etc., to begin the asmbly process for another batch of Supply Chain Management.
The push/pull boundary exists where demand switches from reactive (pull) to speculative (push) production. For most bookstore supply chains the push/pull boundary is between the customer order cycle and the replenishment cycle. The customer order pulls the book from the book store shelf but the initial production of the book was triggered by a build order that moved materials along the supply chain to the retail outlet.
5Consider the supply chain involved when a customer orders a book from Amazon. Identify the push/pull boundary and two process each in the push and pull phas.
In Amazon’s original ope rations design the push/pull boundary existed betwixt the retailer (Amazon)
and their distributor. Amazon ordered product from the distributor and the customer order arrived. Today, Amazon has six warehous where it stocks an inventory of items it is confident that will ll. In this scenario, the push/pull boundary exists between the customer and the retailer.
Process in the pull pha are the order fulfillment, shipping, customer returns, and customer billing. Process in the push pha are production, stock replenishments, shipping, and
生日蛋糕蜡烛payment.
6In what way do supply chain flows affect the success or failure of a firm like Amazon? List two supply chain decisions that have a significant impact on supply chain profitability.
The success or failure of a company like Amazon is decided by the effective function of its supply chain. The flow of products from publishers to distributors to customers must be rapid and reliable in order to satisfy customers. The flow of information back through the supply chain allows all members to coordinate efforts. The flow of money allows all supply chain members to maintain operations. Supply chain profitability is influenced by sourcing,
门卫董大爷promotion, and fulfillment decisions.
CHAPTER TWO
Supply Chain Performance: Achieving Strategic Fit and Scope
1.How would you characterize the competitive strategy of a high-end department store chain such
as Nordstrom? What are the key customer needs that Nordstrom aims to fill?
The Nordstrom web site states the following. Over the years, the Nordstrom family of
employees built a thriving business on the principles of quality, value, lection, and rvice.
Today, Nordstrom is one of the nation’s leading fashion retailers, offering a wide variety of high-quality apparel, shoes, and accessories for men, women, and children at stores across the country. We remain committed to the simple idea our company was founded on, earning the trust of our customers one at a time.
Nordstrom fills customer needs for high quality fashion merchandi and outstanding levels of customer rvice. Price is no object for the typical Nordstrom shopper.
2.Where would you place the demand faced by Nordstrom on the implied demand uncertainty
spectrum? Why?
Implied demand uncertainty is demand uncertainty due to the portion of demand that the supply chain is targeting, not the entire demand. A high-end department store chain such as Nordstrom falls on the high end of the implied demand uncertainty scale. The fashion items that Nordstrom stocks have extremely high product margin, high forecast errors and stockout rates, and once the ason is over, the items are sold at deep discounts at their Nordstrom Rack outlet stores.
3.What level of responsiveness would be most appropriate for Nordstrom’s supply chain? Wha t
should the supply chain be able to do particularly well?
Supply chain responsiveness takes many forms, including the ability to respond to a wide range of quantities, meet short lead times, handle a large variety of products, build innovative
products, meet a high rvice level, and handle supply uncertainty. The Nordstrom supply chain must be highly responsive in the areas of handling highly innovative fashion products, customer respon, and rvice level; they are effective in supplying well-heeled customers with
merchandi and their return policy is legendary in the Pacific Northwest.
4.How can Nordstrom expand the scope of the strategic fit across the supply chain?
Scope of strategic fit refers to the functions within the firm and stages across the supply chain that devi an integrated strategy with a shared objective. By adopting an intercompany
interfunctional scope strategy, Nordstrom will maximize supply chain surplus. Nordstrom can move in this direction by working with their suppliers as if they are actually owned by
Nordstrom. Rather than viewing the supply chain as a zero-sum game of inventory cost
minimization and profit maximization, Nordstrom must recognize that spreading the wealth and occasionally taking on more inventory than is optimal for them will result in improved customer rvice. The intercompany interfunctional scope of strategic fit requires more effort than the other approaches prented in this ction; Nordstrom must evaluate all aspects of their supply web.
5.Reconsider the previous four questions for other companies such as Amazon, a supermarket
chain, and auto manufacturer, and a discount retailer such as Wal-Mart.
Amazon focus on cost and flexibility by providing books, music and a host of other
houhold products at low prices. Customers place orders online and expect to receive
purchas in a number of days. Customer orders are procesd at central warehous or are
drop shipped from suppliers by mail or common carrier. For the most part, the implied demand uncertainty f or Amazon is low as they cast such a wide net. Amazon’s supply chain must be responsive in terms of flexibility; they handle an incredibly diver range of products.
Amazons supply chain should be able to provide low prices wide variety and reasonable
delivery schedules for its customers. In every link of the supply chain, Amazon must function on the cost-responsiveness efficient frontier in order to support its competitive strategy.
A supermarket chain focus on cost and quality, with some specialty chains adding flexibility
素鸡翅怎么做好吃by carrying a broader range of products that may be targeted towards customers interested in organic products or ethnic cuisine. Implied demand uncertainty for a supermarket chain tends to be low; shoppers are typically repeat customers and have a constant demand level. The
supermarket supply chain must be responsive by receiving produce quickly to ensure freshness and
have a high rvice level. Supermarket supply chains tend to be well-established and can improve strategic fit by emphasizing speed to maintain freshness, hence perceived quality.
电脑蓝屏怎样修复Auto manufacturers have extremely complicated supply chains that are increasingly focud on flexibility and lean operations. Implied demand uncertainty for auto manufacturers varies
considerably by target market and manufacturer. Automotive supply chains among the big three in the United States have made great progress in the last decade and recognize that they must be responsive from a time and flexibility standpoint.
Wal-Mart’s supply cha in is obsd with cost and is facilitated by a low implied demand
uncertainty, their impressive logistics system and their management information systems. Their supply chain is able to respond quickly to fill a wide variety of products to keep merchandi on Wal-Mart’s shelves. Wal-Mart’s level of coordination along the supply chain is excellent; it would be difficult to point out areas where true intercompany interfunctional scope of strategic fit has not been achieved. The sole supply chain criticism that surfaces is an occasional report that suppliers feel as if supply chain surplus is not shared equitably.
6.Give arguments to support the statement that Wal-Mart has achieved very good strategic fit
between its competitive and supply chain strategies.
The best argument to support the statement that Wal-Mart has achieved very good strategic fit is their success as a company. Competition today is supply chain versus supply chain, not
company versus company, so a company’s partners in the supply chain often d etermine the company’s success.
Wal-Mart’s strategic focus on cost is evident in their competitive, product development, supply chain, and marketing strategy. Their marketing strategy of advertising every day low prices appeals to consumers and does not disrupt the supply chain by causing surges in demand.
Visiting one of their big box stores reveals low-priced merchandi, both national and store brands, stacked from floor to ceiling without elaborate displays or decoration. Wal-Mart’s logistics and information systems are famous for coordinating their entire supply chain and allowing it to meet customer needs at minimal cost.
