Corporations are taking up social responsibility, working toward green supply chain solutions which offer increased sustainability (Sarkis 2). This has thus far tripled the body line for companies (Carter 58). Global corporations are achieving this by directing their otherwise limited resources toward projects that offer greater economic performance and intersect with environmental and social expectations of the company (Carter 58). This growth requires professional supply chain management at each step of the process, and is leading to exponential growth for improved supply chain functionality.
Supply chain management is a process by which companies can reduce their costs and achieve overall increased efficiency inside of their organization. It is the chain that follows each phase of a product’s life cycle, ensuring that customers can receive the services and products they need around the world in a faster and more efficient manner (Wisner 20). Supply chain managers fill a critical role to the overall success and function of a business in meeting their social responsibility in a sustainable fashion. But the supply chain brings with it increased benefits on the global scale including the achievement of a strategic business process that enables a company to achieve their market value and gain a competitive edge in an environmentally conscious world.
The supply chain is defined as a collection of steps that companies have to take to deliver their product or service from its raw components to its final product. Most supply chains are categorized by the following five stages: planning, making, sourcing, delivering, and returning (Wisner 21). Each stage needs to be professionally managed in order to enjoy success, and the management of the phases requires expertise in marketing, management science, international business, as well as information systems. Understanding the different dimensions of the supply chain enables businesses to better produce and deliver goods through the global marketplace (Wisner 13).
Supply chain management is achieved when companies adopt initiatives with their suppliers, their transportation services, and their customers. This collaboration brings with it mutual gain in the form of increased profitability and efficiency for the businesses and improved service for the customers. Most importantly, working toward more efficient supply chain management brings with it a clear and sustained competitive advantage (Barney 3).
Today the process of shipping and transporting goods is no longer a man power heavy process which took between four and six weeks. With technological transformations, commerce has improved its speed, accessibility, as well as its accuracy (Wisner 509). Growing connectivity with business partners has driven supply chain management and enabled companies to meet their social responsibility. Manufacturing and transportation as well as purchasing and marketing are all improved by the capitalization of advanced information technology as it relates to the supply chain. The timeline from the point at which a product is ordered to the point of delivery is now something businesses measure in hours rather than weeks. This also eliminates production failures, aiming for perfection among corporations and reducing waste. The increasingly significant software and IT options has produced cost savings in the transportation and shipping lines, something beneficial to companies and customers alike (Wisner 509).
Supply chain management professionals can now support the improved profitability and efficiency of modern companies around the world while meeting their social and environmental goals. That being said, the need for supply chain management professionals has increased throughout the global region and industry sectors. The need for those possessing the aforementioned supply chain knowledge and skills is now greater than ever before.
- Barney, Jay B. “Purchasing, Supply Chain Management and Sustained Competitive Advantage: The Relevance of Resource-based Theory.” Journal of Supply Chain Management 48.2 (2012): 3-6. Web.
- Carter, Craig R., and P. Liane Easton. “Sustainable Supply Chain Management: Evolution and Future Directions.” Ed. Michael Crum. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management 41.1 (2011): 46-62. Web.
- Sarkis, Joseph, Qinghua Zhu, and Kee-Hung Lai. “An Organizational Theoretic Review of Green Supply Chain Management Literature.” International Journal of Production Economics 130.1 (2011): 1-15. Web.
- Wisner, Joel D., G. Keong. Leong, and Keah-Choon Tan. Principles of Supply Chain Management: A Balanced Approach. Mason, OH: South-Western, 2005. Print.
