The purpose of having a functional supply chain is maximizing profits. As such, the supply chain network will strive to strike a balance between productivity (Efficiency) and profitability (Effectiveness) (Manuj & Mentzer, 2008). Therefore, when the basic operational management techniques are applied in the supply chain network management, they are meant to boost profit maximization objective of the firm.
Creating process visibility in the supply chain is one of the operational techniques that are applicable in supply chain management (Boyer & Verma, 2010). It is not always that everyone in the supply chain will adopt the guidelines in the blueprint and apply it to their roles. As such, one will need to understand the functioning of the network in order to understand the operational gaps that exist in the network as well as understanding the dependencies in the business process, technologies, and infrastructure (Welborn & Kasten, 2007). As such, irrespective of whether the business strategy is product innovation, cost leadership or superior services, the business must always ensure that the supply chain network is supporting the business strategy. However, one cannot evaluate what they cannot see and understand. Therefore, creating process visibility ensures that the supply chain is based on what is understood thus ensuring the supply chain strategy and the recommended and documented operation are in line with the business strategy to benefit from the synergy that exists from corporate strategy and supply chain strategy harmony (Managersdoor, 2013).
Creating a modern end to end supply chain is another operational strategy that may be applied in supply chain network management. The strategy is meant to boost the effectiveness of the blueprint strategy used to define the process, technologies and information flow in the supply chain. By using the end to end supply chain management, the organization will have eliminated a situation in which the supply chain is managed in separate tiers since the blueprint enables the collection of sophisticated data that will support the end to end management. As such, the organization will have managed to combine operational excellence and data-driven cross-functional decision-making capabilities which improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the supply chain. In other words, the use of strong analytics enables the organization to understand the hidden risks that its supply chain network may be facing. Consequently, the firm utilizes the information to understand the most effective operation strategy that will minimize the probability of materialization of these risks thus attaining operational excellence in the supply chain network.
Operational effectiveness is highly inclined to standard achievement. As such, it is understood that a process will be termed as excellent once it has managed to meet or exceed the establishing standard. Also, in operation management, it is common for an organization to give the supply chain organization staff the necessary incentives that encourage them to create ways that deliver the highest value to the business as well as shield it from its major risks (Mckinsey and Company, 2014). In such situation, it means that the firm will build on the traditional metrics which focus on capital, costs, and services. In addition to considering the traditional elements, the business will customize the standard to focus on the business needs, the products and market in which the business operates thus basing the standard on how best the supply chain supports this customized standards thus gaining a better understanding of how the use of operational techniques in supply chain management is meaningful to the organization.
References
Boyer, K. K., & Verma, R. (2010). Operations & supply chain management for the 21st century. Mason, OH: South-Western.
Manuj, I., & Mentzer, J. T. (2008). Global supply chain risk management. Journal of Business Logistics, 29(1), 133– 155.
Welborn, R., & Kasten, V. (2007). Securing global supply chains: Seven reasons why "getting it done" is so hard. Employment Relations Today (Wiley), 33(4), 1–6.
Managersdoor. (2013, July). Top 5 - The Four V's of Operations Management - ManagersDoor.com. Retrieved May 28, 2016, from http://www.managersdoor.com/topic/top-5-the-four-vs-of-operations-management/
Mckinsey and Company. (2014, November). Three ways CEOs can improve the supply chain. Retrieved May 28, 2016, from http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/operations/our-insights/three-ways-ceos-can-improve-the-supply-chain
