Week 4 - The Systems Approach To Supply Chain Design Flashcards
Why is there no such thing as a sustainable strategic (competitive) advantage?
This is because of change which is inevitable in every organisation
Why is innovation important? (2)
• Is the key to survival
• standing still (not being innovative) = weakening relative position
4 Potential reasons why innovation may potentially be unsuccessful
• Copying inappropriate solutions
• Failing to identify the real problems
• Tackling problems in isolation, without looking at the interactions holistically
• Failing to recognise that the whole system must be changed to meet the unique needs of the focal company and wider supply chain
What is the target when a supply chain aims to be innovative?
The target is for the supply chain to have world class standards of performance
What is meant by having ‘world class standards of performance’? (3)
• Involves operating in a truly international market
• High levels of performance (cost and service KPIs)
• Over a sustained period of time
Which lean operations systems make up world class manufacturing? (6)
• Just in Time (JIT)
• Total Quality Management (TQM)
• Total productive maintenance (TPM)
• Continuous improvement (CI)
• Employee involvement (EI)
• Performance measurement (PM)
What is meant by business process re-engineering? (Michael Hammer)
Is the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical, contemporary measures of performance, such as cost, quality, service, and speed
Breakdown the different stages of business process re-engineering (4)
• Fundamental - why do we do it? And why this way?
• Radical - getting to the root of the process from basic elements required and apply them to achieve objectives
• Dramatic - involves making a step change
• Business process - involves taking inputs and creating outputs that are of value to the customer
What is a system? (2)
• Is a group or combination of inter-related, inter-dependant or interacting elements forming a collective entity with a methodical or co-ordinated assemblage of parts, facts and concepts
• This is what an effective and efficient supply chain is made up of
What are the different elements of a system? (4)
• Boundary
• Inputs
• Outputs
• Environment
What is the effectiveness of a system dependant on?
The interaction with the environment i.e the definition of the boundary, inputs and outputs (strategy)
How do systems work? (3)
• Most systems comprise sub-systems and these should behave as systems as their own
• In the Sub-system the definition of the boundaries and the outputs and inputs are vital in determining success
• How firms compete is related to how holistic the system is and this impacts on how quickly they can supply their product to customers
What is the total systems approach? (2)
• Is a systems approach which considers the whole system holistically
• Re-evaluates the way the whole system should be sub-divided into sub systems by identifying the key business processes
What is the importance of a holistic approach?
Interrelationships are a key in supply chains therefore considering subjects in isolation does not address these relationships
How do you address problems with the total systems approach? (3)
• Considering the wider supply chain (holistic approach)
• By identifying the business processes NOT the functional departments
• By creating a focused operation with problem ownership and solution by empowered teams
