Supply Chain Optimization at Internet Speed

摘要

Five years ago supply chain optimization (SCO) was a tool for large, complex manufacturers making strategic, brick-and-mortar decisions; today's more agile tools can help most manufacturers make both immediate tactical and long-term strategic plans. SCO covers a lot of ground-from Web-based collaborative order planning to shipping optimization. Manufacturers must first understand what they need, then match those needs with tools that can best meet them. SCO also requires a higher level of trust and openness among trading partners, based on a new attitude toward suppliers and customers. SCO requires changes in internal operating methods and a culture that embraces the opportunities that revolutionary new technology presents, rather than a continuing focus on old operating methods.