Characteristics of Competitive Supply Chain

What is supply chain?

The word ‘Supply Chain’ today has expanded significantly, from being nothing to everything. This change is not a sudden transformation, had been evolving and still is. When we say supply chain, we understand – delivering the requested product, in the right colour and quantity, in the right quality, to the right people, at the right place and at the lowest possible cost. Having said that, it is very easy to define a supply chain in a paper, but it takes time to implement it in an accurate manner as it involves numerous characteristics.
A lot of people are involved in the supply chain decision-making process, to bring out the excellent outcome, however implementing the below-mentioned characteristics will shift your supply chain operations from mundane to outstanding.

Sustainable

The sustainability factor applies to almost all aspects of the supply chain and most importantly its impact on the environment. Questions like, is the packing environment friendly, can the carbon-di-oxide be reduced if transportation strategy is changed or optimized, etc. can be identified and analyzed. If companies can answer in the affirmative or are looking forward to addressing these, then they are on the way to excellence. If companies can be proactive and work around it, then it will set them apart from their competitors.

Punctual

As the meaning says, “On Time”. If you can’t deliver on time to the customer, there will be someone who can do that. Meeting deadlines are extremely important as delay in one aspect of the supply chain can delay the rest of the process which may cause not only time and monetary loss but also the loss of trust.

Planning

The supply chain companies have moved from tedious excel sheets to ERP systems and cloud-based software for better implementation of freight forwarding and warehousing with accurate decision making such as where to keep the stock, how much stock is available, and how to distribute to end-users, etc.

Agility

The supply chain should be agile enough to meet the urgent requirements of the customers even on short notice or ready to accommodate a sudden change in the operating environment. The agility will help in making quick collaborative decisions when a problem arises.

Innovative

With technology, new inventions are created every day and adapted to remain relevant and competitive in the market. Similarly, for the supply chain process, the use of beacons on production floors to monitor the manufacturing process or the use of smart glass in a warehouse for the picking process is always a great way to manage within a short time.

Transparent and clean

Transparent transactions and visibility are what a customer would want when they sign a contract with any supply chain provider. As the information flow purchasing, manufacturing, distribution, and sales, it’s important that there should be a high level of transparency. There should be a few policies in place that emphasize on providing visibility and transparency to clients to help improve supply chain performance.

Communication & Network

With excellent communication and network model in place, the supply chain process becomes well-organized and focuses on its goal. The social network platforms added with blogs and regular updates about the industry and events serve as a strategic advantage. Besides that, the new technologies help us to connect and communicate easily with any hurdle to make an efficient supply chain possible. 
Applying the mentioned characteristics will certainly make the company reach greater heights and make a difference in the world’s supply chain sector. It will be a win-win situation for both the company as well as the customer as both will be able to achieve what they strived for.