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Understanding supply chain management
The supply chain is the network involved in the handling of the entire production flow to distribute a specific product or service to the final buyer. This includes a company’s business partners and the external resources it uses.
A supply chain is an integral part of business and is essential to any company’s success and customer satisfaction.
- The entities in the supply chain include producers, vendors, warehouses, transportation companies, distribution centres, and retailers.
- The functions in a supply chain include product development, marketing, operations, distribution, finance, and customer service.
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<img src="https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/secure.notion-static.com/227c26ff-91f2-4c9c-8d35-ed7de23cf98f/Antler_Sign.jpeg" alt="https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/secure.notion-static.com/227c26ff-91f2-4c9c-8d35-ed7de23cf98f/Antler_Sign.jpeg" width="40px" /> The importance of supply chain sustainability shouldn’t be underestimated. It can present both risk and opportunity. These opportunities extend beyond the obvious advantages of a more ethical supply chain; they also have the potential to create real value and business growth for your company, your suppliers, and your customers.
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The benefits are:
- Risk mitigation: There will always be risks among your suppliers and business partners, and they can be varied e.g., cybersecurity, regulatory conflicts, operational inefficiencies, and employee treatment.
- Business growth: Increasingly, consumers demand greater awareness of how their products are produced and/or the aggregate impact of business activities and operations from their service providers.
- Business efficiency: Sustainability factors may play a part in business continuity, operational costs, and reputational impact between the company and its supply chain. Think about the impact of a product recall due to poor-quality products.
Priorities for an early-stage company
As a very early-stage company, you will have limited resources to implement best practice immediately. However, understanding your priority areas is key and building them into your company roadmap will make life a lot easier and set a strong foundation from the very beginning.
1. Define your requirements
First things first a company should understand its requirements from a supply chain. This will include:
- Determine the components (or raw materials) needed to produce your product. This will relate to how you have defined your product, its features, and services.
- Determine the distribution mode of your product and whether a different supply chain partner is needed.
- Understand what your competitor’s current production and distribution looks like to determine the likely scale and volume needed in the production and/or distribution process.
- Leverage your network and do your research to best understand aspects that may be important to your customers such as:
- Your customers may have certain preferences about where a product is produced.
- Your customers may place certain sustainability factors as a higher priority in the production and distribution process of your product.
