Question: What relationship does supply chain have with other department

[chris86ng]

What relationship does supply chain have with other department in the company? can someone help to answer this?

[Loggie]

Chris,

Welcome to SCF. This is a very good question.........that to answer correctly might need a book :-)

A short answer might be as follows, and am sure others will add more comment.

The Supply Chain department or function is there to deliver the services or products to the company's customers in line with whatever service policy the company has established.

This might, depending on the company, involve activities from raw materials purchasing, right through to the customer delivery.

Key relationships within the company will probably impact every department. Delivering services to customers is a cross functional activity. Sales are providing market and sales forecast information, production is providing finished products, finance is reporting on cost performance and budgets, HR are hiring and developing the right staff, and so it goes on.

Simplistically, I would say that Supply Chain has a close relationship with all parts of the company. It is a key function along with Sales, Finance, Marketing, Operations etc. That is why many companies now have Supply Chain or Logistics Directors.

Just a few thoughts.

[Starbucks Junkie]

Originally Posted by chris86ng

What relationship does supply chain have with other department in the company? can someone help to answer this?

Where do you feel that Supply Chain should sit within the company structure, I am working in a retail enviroment, and the SC department is constantly shifting towards Trading and Distribution?

[Deepak Arecal]

Just my understanding about supply chain is....

making every departments obejctives and work should help to achive comapny goal...
with supply chain one can understand the "how each department are interrelated" and "upstream and downstream effects of process" and more over with supply chain one can see "cash - cash" chain......

[Deepak Arecal]

Supply chain in organistion..

i feel it depends on the industry.... thats right in case of retail... supply chain is more related to strategic souring and efficient distiribution... ( you know demand )

if its a cloth industry... it includes the....designing... manufacturing and marketing as well....( do not know Demand) so depnds what type of supply chain they want... such as lean or agile supply chain

[apparelink]

Originally Posted by chris86ng

What relationship does supply chain have with other department in the company? can someone help to answer this?

Hi,

I believe the common thread that ties all departments together is cost accounting. Because SCM is an all-encompassing discipline directly related to the movement of goods from end point to end point---when and how it can happen economically, any SCM professional needs to understand inventory-related and transport-related costs and make operational decisions to realize cost savings.

However the answer to your question can be different depending on industry sector and the level of global activities it is involved:

• Distributor/Importer
• LSPs (freight and 3PL companies)
• IT solution provider/consulting firm

If I see someone's business card bearing the job title Supply Chain Manager without knowing the industry/sector he is working in or the type of products his company is manufacturing or distributing I would have little clue on the focus of his role.

So which side of the fence are you on?

If you are with a large distributor most likely there will be more than one position considered to be an SCM role carry with titles like Sourcing/Procument Manager, Inventory Planner/Analyst, Logistics Manager, Warehouse/DC Manager, etc. A common goal with these people would be to minimize inventory cost (product cost) and transport/logistics costs (spend management).

If you are a sales person with a freight or 3PL company, you probaby would want your clients to send freight via your company wherever possible and use more value-added services. You goal would be to increase sales and maximum profit---often a conflicting goal to your clients.

If you are with a software company selling SCM solutions or SCM consulting firm focusing on optimization, you would be expected to look after your client's financial interest and share the same goal as your clients---to realize more costs savings.

Scott