Supply chain management is all about the flow of goods from the point of manufacturing to the last point to reach the consumers. It is all about planning, scheduling and delivering on time the goods to meet the clients’ needs. It needs to be a fully integrated system where all parties have a clear understanding of what is required of them and the needs of the business. These include financial, customer, internal processes, organizational capacity, demand planning and forecasting the needs for the future. You need a robust review and feedback system to ensure potential problems are mitigated promptly.

How can you run a more efficient operation to maximize customer value and gain a competitive advantage as well as generating more revenue in your business to reach your goals?

Companies must: 

·        Implement a minimum level system on the ERP across the entire organization.

·        Upskill the employees from all departments on how to adopt and implement the new system.

·        Focus monitoring on core products with a product-specific lead time calculated for each item.

·        Implement a Just in time (JIT) delivery for goods when possible to freeze out the cash-flow.

·        Initiate market research and customer surveys to have a better understanding of the customer need and the minimum viable product (MVP) in your local market place.

·        Negotiate with suppliers for better delivery times.

Eventually, by following some of the tips above, companies will extract the maximum growth and value creation in their existing business. Companies will also reduce inventory level which will eventually lead to positive cash flow and improve delivery time to the consumers.

 About the Author

Ihab Tabbara is a graduate of London Business School. Having gained his MBA with a student award he went onto specializing in strategic planning and marketing. He has an entrepreneurial mindset and is a creative thinker, and has accumulated over 22 years of first-hand experience in running a successful multi-site operation in the retail industry. Having established and managed a retail business from concept to becoming it’s General Manager, he has been involved in all aspects of the retail industry from supply chain management and business development to strategic planning, and leadership. He successfully grew the business to 40 showrooms operating within the MENA region and trading in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria and the UAE.