Fastest Way to Learn Supply Chain Management

The Supply Chain Management profession has gotten a lot of attention lately. It is now one of the fastest growing professions with tons of opportunity. One of them, is to get your Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM) professional certification.

Dr. Randall Mauldin, USMC (ret), CPSM and I talk in greater detail about the benefits and my personal experiences in the video below!

To check out the video below and learn how to start building a more resilient supply chain! We discuss examples of why supply chain strategy important for understanding supply chain issues to achieve resilience.
Supply Chain Resilience Conent

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Row, Row, Row Your Boat.....


In this portion of my interview with Dr. Randall Mauldin, USMC (ret), CPSM, we use the metaphor of "rowing a boat" to describe the roles of strategic and tactical objectives within organizations. Having employees who truly understand the strategic objectives of their company is a huge advantage. Employees who understand the "why" behind their actions, can better align their tasks to the overall goal and better manage their time.
While doing military planning, I made sure to align my unit plans with my headquarters. Knowing the missions of units above me, allowed for everyone to operate harmoniously. Knowing the desired outcome of our mission, influenced every plan and action. This is also important for civilian organizations to thrive in these sporadic times
Inflation Caused by Supply Chain

This 3-minute video from CNBC covers the topic of inflation and how supply chain pressures are contributing to the increase. The 3 inflation pressures mentioned in the video are:
1. Congestion at the ports
2. Limits in the availability of containers caused by the congestion
3. China’s zero COVID policy creates labor and capacity constraints
In the video, I found the statement about ocean freight and trucking spots rates increasing by 20% particularly interesting since shipping costs have a direct impact on consumer pricing. There are many factors contributing to inflation right now, and the disruption of the global supply chain is a major contributor.
Pricing for a product can be largely influenced by the cost of its transportation. Personally, I don’t see transportation prices returning to normal as they were. We will no longer see the price chasing behaviors from carriers, seeking the lowest price to transport shipping containers. Carriers now understand that they can be profitable after years of scraping by. Major carriers can also control capacity which allows them to directly impact shipping prices. Also, the industry is changing, and carriers cannot make the major changes needed to reduce risk while still being able to have a smooth and lean supply chain. The desire to solely reduce costs will drive down the needed improvements during a crisis and will not help alleviate an already limited global supply chain.
Another major impact being discussed is the new international regulation in 2023 aimed at reducing emissions. This will force shippers to “slow steam” and to travel at slower speeds. This will require more vessels in the loop and take up even more capacity.
Get ready, 2022 and 2023 will be inflation-filled years.
Amazon's Six Logistical Advantages  

Once again, creative supply chain strategies are giving Amazon a competitive edge. Though Amazon is not immune to the global supply chain problem, they are leveraging their economies of scale with six radical approaches to minimize delays and increase their logistical capacity.

These six strategies are:

1. Real-time data collection to improve “decision velocity” to route packages and forecast orders as efficiently as possible.
2. Side step container shortages by manufacturing its own containers. No need to return the containers back to Asia.
3. Charter or repurpose entire vessels to sidestep congested ports like the port of LA and utilize less congested ports. This drastically decreases offloading times. This can also be twice as expensive but Reliability = $$$.
4. Airfreight higher-margin goods with its own fleet of aircraft
5. Beef up staffing with competitive salaries and sign-on bonuses
6. Consolidation of shipments with competitors to help cover increased operational costs.

These strategies may not be feasible for most companies, but there is hope!!!!! 
The Supply Chain Through The Eyes of a Sweater

Here's a quick, 2-minute informative supply chain video I saw posted on youtube. In the video, Everlane gave NBC News’ Stephanie Ruhle a behind-the-scenes look at what the clothing industry is up against amid the supply chain crisis. This video does a great job of depicting the intricacies of our global supply chain and how delicately complex it is. A simple item such as a sweater can have multiple stops around the world before it makes it to the shelf!

So now that these disruptions have affected all of us, it is safe to say that we all have a newfound appreciation for reliable supply chains. If you want your supply chain to be prepared for whatever is thrown at it, it is important to have a supply chain strategy that incorporates both cost savings and resiliency. 

This is balancing act is easier said than done......  
The White House's Information Sharing Initiative

More supply chain news fresh of the press! The White House and the Department of Transportation (DOT) will be leading a new supply chain initiative focusing on data sharing throughout the American supply chain. This partnership has been designated Freight Logistics Optimization Works (FLOW) with the primary objective of shortening delivery times and reducing costs. This coalition will first start off with 18 major companies representing stakeholders throughout the entire supply chain with the Deparment of Transport (DOT) playing the role as the trusted broker and convener of information. 

When most people think of supply chain, they think of the movement of goods from manufacturers to the final consumer. If only it was that simple! Supply chains actually move not only products throughout the supply ecosystem, but also disseminate information. Until now, the sharing of information has been a major struggle and low priority for most companies. The majority of the supply chain is privately operated with each organization possessing its own sensitive proprietary information. This has created individual silos that operate independently and compete with each other. Companies sharing supply chain information will give the ability to see data that can help recover from an unexpected shock by supplying visibility, agility, and redundancy.

This initiative is much needed and I am ecstatic to see the federal government stepping in to bridge the gap and help promote collaboration! Following the disruptions caused by COVID-19, the need for a resilient supply chain was brought to fruition. But to be resilient, companies must have real-time, useable information. The lack of digital infrastructure and transparency has made our supply chains brittle and unable to adapt when faced with delays, like we have been seeing for the past 2 +years and now with the current war in Ukraine. 


    
Worried about risk within your supply chain? 

Nowadays, supply chain risk management is becoming a top priority in procurement, as companies lose millions because of supply disruption, cost volatility, non-compliance fines, and incidents that cause damage to both: the organizational brand and reputation. Supply disruptions can come from a wide variety of sources, including physical damage at production facilities, strikes and labor disputes, and capacity issues.

Identifying specific risks is the first step in any risk management process.

Here are more common categories of supply chain risk:

· Supplier failure: When a vendor goes out of business, clients must find a suitable replacement in a short amount of time. Depending on the complexity of the product being sourced, this may be extremely difficult.

· Supply chain interruption: Natural disasters, political strife, and other outside forces can bring supply chains to a halt. Note that your supplier may rely upon other vendors for raw materials, and interruptions to their businesses can have a cascading effect.

· Compliance and regulatory violations: There are many laws and agreements governing supply chain practices. These include anti-corruption statutes, labor regulations, and prohibitions on human trafficking.

· Reputational Damage: Bad behavior by vendors throughout your supply chain could come back to haunt you. No business wants to find out that a supplier has been using child labor, putting staff at risk with unsafe working conditions, or violating other important laws.
But going overboard with mitigating risk can also be costly, time-consuming, and even debilitating. There needs to be “balanced flexibility”. Companies should strive for balanced resilience: a sensible weighting of exposure to and protection against risk.

Does your organization do a good job at balancing risk?

Here’s a visual interpretation: 
Why is gathering intelligence about your supply chain important? 

With the pandemic now hopefully behind us, many people have now realized the growing importance of having a thorough understanding of their supply chains. Its role has changed from taking care of the day-to-day tactical operations to now being more of a forward-looking discipline. Products are becoming more sophisticated, customers are more demanding, and shrinking margins require a complex and resilient supply chain that can keep your business operating.

But to have a supply chain that is robust and flexible enough to weather any storm, there already needs to be a contingency plan in place. To make a contingency plan, you need in-depth intelligence about your supply chain.

Military units follow the acronym PMESII-PT which are operational valuables that can be used by civilians to analyze a supply chain.

When gathering information about your supply chain, consider all 8 of these categories from PMESII-PT. As a staff officer in the Army, I followed this framework. When developing plans, we thoroughly analyzed the situation during our risk assessment of the battlefield.

Let’s look at PMESSII-PT in more detail:

Political - This portion focuses on the total political power within a given area and reviews the entire political structure, such as administration and state institutions.
Military – The conflict in Ukraine and Russia is a prime example of why considering military events is important.

Economic - Here the analysis encompasses the economics of individuals and groups related to producing, distributing, and consuming resources. Factors such as company financial stability, the main form of industry, and income for the area are crucial for this analysis.
Social - Social focuses on the cultural, religious, and ethnic composition within an area.

Infrastructure - When it comes to the transportation of your product, the most important piece of analysis is the infrastructure. Infrastructure portrays the elementary facilities, services, and installations that make up the area.

Information - When reviewing a supplier or your supply chain, ensure a reliable and secured information network is present. Consider how they communicate information formally and informally.

Physical Environment - The physical environment includes evaluating the geography, and self-made structures, and identifying local weather characteristics to understand possible natural disasters that could occur in each area.

Time - Time is all-inclusive of the timing and duration of activities, events, or conditions. Not every country will perceive time identically so you must determine what the cultural perception of time is for your chosen area.
 
5 Steps To Create SCM Intelligence System


Here’s what you’ll learn :

5 Steps to Build SCM Intelligence System, so you systematically monitor, collect, and analyze intelligence about your supply chain

8 Elements of Supply Chain Intelligence, so you know what information you need to collect to stay ahead of any crisis

4 Pillars of SCM Intelligence Framework, so you create a structure that focuses your attention on what information to monitor

THREE reasons to watch the webinar

Supply Chain Intelligence gives you an advantage not only in a recession, but also any crisis that could stop resources from flowing

Avoid the struggle of inaction by figuring out what to do, now!

Planning is always better than reacting, so discover how to build an intelligence system that makes your plans more effective


What you will learn…
- How to find hidden risks waiting to break your supply chain
- Understand how your team creates resilient supply chains
- What you need to do right now to build the right team for the recession



National Defense Industrial Strategy (NDIS) & Lockheed Martin Pave the Way in Supply Chain Resilience 


The U.S. defense industrial base is facing major supply chain challenges. In response, the Pentagon created its first ever, National Defense Industrial Strategy (NDIS).

It calls for a transformation of the US defense manufacturing base into a robust, resilient, & fully capable 21st century defense industrial ecosystem.
Lockheed Martin, one of the world’s largest defense contractors, is leading the charge.

Here is my analysis of the current challenges & solutions along with lessons learned & actions you can personally take.

Priorities of the NDIS:

1. Supply Chain Visibility
Challenge: The DOD lacks visibility beyond tier 2 suppliers.
NDIS Solution: Implement tools for multi-tiered supply chain monitoring.
Action: Invest in supply chain mapping and risk assessment technologies.

2. Geographic Concentration:
Challenge: Suppliers clustered in vulnerable regions.
NDIS Solution: Diversify supplier locations and strengthen domestic capabilities.
Action: Identify alternative sourcing options and invest in local manufacturing.

3. Workforce Readiness:
Challenge: Submarine Industrial Base alone needs 100,000 trained workers in the next decade.

NDIS Solution: Develop a skilled, diverse workforce through robust training programs.
Action: Implement training programs & partner with educational institutions.
To align with the priorities set by the NDIS, Lockheed Martin has developed its own supply chain resiliency plan, focusing on these 3 pillars:

1. Intelligent Factory Framework:
Over 1,000 machine connections collecting 100+ terabytes of real-time data. This Improves operational efficiency via automation & machine optimization. This aligns with NDIS’ goals for resilient supply chains & flexible acquisition.
Action: Implement IoT & data analytics in manufacturing processes.

2. Additive Manufacturing (AM Forward):
Lockheed is partnering with small/medium suppliers to adopt 3D printing technologies. This supports the White House’s initiative to transform U.S. manufacturing & addresses NDIS workforce readiness and supply chain resilience priorities.
Action: Explore Additive Manufacturing capabilities and participate in industry collaborations.

3. Supply Chain Transformation:
Focuses on digitalization and advanced processes. This aims to create a more agile & resilient supply base. This supports NDIS’ goals for resilient supply chains and economic deterrence.
Action: Invest in digital supply chain tools.
 US Army Unveils the Universal Artillery Projectile Lines (UAPL) Facility 


On Wednesday, May 29, the US Army unveiled the Universal Artillery Projectile Lines (UAPL) facility and it’s a NEW groundbreaking state-of-the-art manufacturing site in Mesquite, Texas.

Below is my analysis along with the lessons learned that you can apply to your own organization.

Goals and Capabilities 
 A. Modernization: The UAPL is part of the Army's effort to update its World War II-era industrial base. Russia's annual production of 3 million munitions such as artillery rounds, per year significantly beats the combined capacity of the U.S. & Europe, of approx1.2 million rounds per year.

 B. Production Capacity: The facility aims to produce increase its output by over 300% from 100,000 155mm artillery rounds per month, from the previous 24,000 rounds per month.


Benefits and Impact 
 A. Increased Production: The facility will significantly boost the production of 155mm munitions, meeting the high demand driven by the conflict in Ukraine. 

 B. National Defense: Strengthening munition production capabilities ensures the readiness of U.S. armed forces and serves as a credible deterrent to adversaries.

Lessons Learned
 A. High Levels of Automation: The facility uses automated machinery & robotics to enhance production efficiency and reduce manual labor.

 ACTION: Invest in automation technologies like robotics, predictive analytics, and machine learning tools to optimize your production processes, reduce labor costs, minimize errors, and improve product quality.

 B. Digital Data Capture: Real-time data collection & analysis systems are integrated to improve decision-making, traceability, and quality control.

 ACTION: Integrate digital technologies, such as IoT sensors, data analytics platforms to identify areas for improvement, and make data-driven decisions.


C. Flexible Production Lines: The UAPL can produce various metal parts ranging from 60mm to 155mm, enhancing flexibility.

 ACTION: Implement flexible manufacturing systems that can quickly standardize products or adapt to produce different products or components, reducing downtime and increasing responsiveness. .