[原创]Some Basic Conditions of Fruitful Information Sharing

It’s everyone’s knowledge that information can be used to substitute physical inventory. Information sharing among supply chain partners may help mitigate the well known bullwhip effect, reduce or eliminate some safety stocks and increase the supply chain resilience. However, fruitful information sharing can’t be achieved without hard efforts. Below is the briefing of some of the conditions (if we intend to maximize the benefits of information sharing).

 

²        Inventory Accuracy

 

As we know, poor inventory accuracy often makes a company fail to honor its promise to its customers and may mislead its suppliers. With the increasing use of EDI or other technologies, say, an electronic kanban system (which may be referred to Introduction to Electronic Kanban Systems the negative impacts of poor inventory accuracy will be much easier to proliferate

 

²        Well Maintained ERP/SCM system

 

Improper configuration and / or inadequate maintenance of planning parameters often result in a delinquent ERP/SCM system that doesn’t work properly as expected. Since the business environment is changing at dizzy speeds, it’s becoming increasingly necessary to periodically maintain those planning parameters to adapt to the ever changing business environment. Otherwise, mistakes may be much easier to be shared with business partners, especially when an information sharing platform is established.

 

²         Effective and Efficient S&OP Process

 

Effective and efficient S&OP process ensures that a (manufacturing) company is able to effectively and efficiently manage its demand, capacity and supply. Only based upon this, all of the (downstream) activities in the supply chain (outside the four walls of the company) can be coordinated and synchronized with the activities done the company. In other words, with an effective and efficient S&OP process in place, the company is able to have a firm grasp of its customer demands, a firm control over its timely transforming those customer demands into the inputs of its suppliers. Only when this is properly done can fruitful information sharing become possible.

 

(Note: to facilitate understanding, the manufacturing company is assumed to be the first tier manufacturer closest to the end customer in the supply chain where it is supported by many lower tiered manufacturers and suppliers)

 

In short, fruitful information sharing among supply chain partners (based upon a IT supported platform) can be maximized only when a company is able to first put its own house in order (,which includes effective and efficient internal information sharing among different departments of the company).

 

P.S.

 

This blog doesn’t imply that a company that doesn’t have an ERP / SCM system or an S&OP process can’t reap the benefits of information sharing with its business partners (customers, distributors, 3PL & suppliers). It’s definitely useful to call, email, or meet face to face with either customers or suppliers to share some background information when demands seem to be increased dramatically. Besides, it’s also a sort of fruitful information sharing to have suppliers participated in a new product development stage.

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