Supply Chain Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Supply Chain Management - Research Paper Example In this regard, this involves the processes of demand management and production management. Based on the foregoing, this expose elucidates on the link between both demand management and product planning with logistics planning. Bowersox, Closs, and Cooper (200_) noted, â€Å"The increasing complexity of product offerings and marketing tactics in conjunction with shorter product life cycles requires increased accuracy, flexibility, and consistency in determining inventory requirements† (p. 134). In effect, a firm should seek to ensure that their management of the supply chain was accurate, consistent, and allowed flexibility along the supply chain. This effectively inks demand management and logistics management since â€Å"demand management systems seek to provide such capabilities† in two different ways (Bowersox, Closs, & Cooper, 200_, p. 134). First, Bowersox, Closs, and Cooper (200_) noted, â€Å"Demand management develops the forecast that drives anticipatory supp ly chain processes† (p. 134). In effect, a firm will determine the amount of goods to produce and its requirements in terms of stock based on a firm’s projections. Secondly, Bowersox, Closs, and Cooper (200_) noted, â€Å"Demand management process focuses on creating forecast consistency across multiple products and warehouse facilities† (p. 135). ... m should balance between the capability of its resources, including human resources, and the manufacturing stock while identifying the optimum point, which is the ideal point of production. In order to achieve the optimum point of production and supply goods to customers, firms must practice effective approaches to production planning. Consequently, the need to forecast and identify the optimum point in production links product management to logistics planning. Bowersox, Closs, and Cooper (200_) support this argument and noted, â€Å"Production planning uses the statement of requirements obtained from demand management in conjunction with manufacturing resources and constraints to develop a workable manufacturing plan† (p. 135). In this case, a firm forecasts using this statement to identify the items required and the time when required by consumers, which enables the firm to manage its resources effectively to produce the desired goods. One of the elements in logistics planni ng involves a firm’s responsiveness to their customer’s needs. In this case, a firm should always make a product available to their customers when required. In effect, a firm’s production planning should be effective to ensure that its products were always available to their customers. Bowersox, Closs, and Cooper (200_) noted, â€Å"Production planning identifies the items that should be produced in anticipation of the need to remain within production constraints and yet minimize inventor† (p. 135). For this reason, production planning plays an integral role in logistics planning. In conclusion, effective logistics planning should involve accuracy and consistency in the forecasting of the required products by consumers, which is demand planning. In addition, demand planning will enable a firm

Management of Information systems Unit 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Management of Information systems Unit 5 - Essay Example Pure play companies are able to focus their investments on their on-line storefronts than brick-and-mortar companies, and positive shopping experience is a come-on for the generation of repeat business. These online retailers enjoy reduced unit operating costs, and lower levels of customer acquisition costs. A transactional database is a transaction-based, relational database with a normalised table. It is highly volatile and designed to maintain transactions of the business with immediate updates. Transactional databases also allow for online transaction processing, and thus maintains functional data. In the case of Overstock, the overload on their systems has forced them to suspend internal applications and use their capacity to accommodate the main sales transaction function. For this reason, managers could not make real-time inquiries. This is not advisable because in an online sales business such as Overstock, management must be informed at all times about the volume and nature of transactions in real time, so that they may make informed decisions as soon as possible. Transactions occurring over the internet are still legally binding contracts, and Overstock might commit itself in sales transactions that it might not be able to fulfil. In pure play businesses, close monitoring in r eal time is essential. With the increased investment in hardware, software and database technology, and with the additional complement in skilled labor, management is able to do faster real-time analysis of sales transactions, monitor volume movement of products, and check current inventory levels. Managers can thus make spot decisions concerning critical issues that require immediate resolution. Furthermore, the inclusion of warehoused data capability could provide invaluable collated data over a period of time, for the purpose of managerial decision making. According to the facts of