Supply Chain Flashcards, test questions and answers
Discover flashcards, test exam answers, and assignments to help you learn more about Supply Chain and other subjects. Don’t miss the chance to use them for more effective college education. Use our database of questions and answers on Supply Chain and get quick solutions for your test.
What is Supply Chain?
Supply chain management is a process that is used to efficiently manage the flow of goods and services. It involves the coordination of activities across departments, facilities, and countries in order to meet customer demands. The goal of supply chain management is to minimize costs while maximizing customer satisfaction.Supply chain management includes the following elements: 1. Procurement, which involves obtaining materials, supplies and services from suppliers; 2. Production operations, which involve transforming inputs into finished products; 3. Distribution/Logistics, which involve delivering products to customers; and 4. Customer service/support, which involves responding to customer inquiries or complaints.The success of a supply chain depends on effective communication and collaboration between each link in the chain from suppliers to customers as well as technology-enabled systems for planning and coordination among all involved parties. Supply chains can be complex networks that span multiple organizations and countries around the world; thus it’s essential for organizations to have systems in place that enable them to manage information flows between all parties involved in their supply chain process. This includes tracking inventory levels and locations, managing product quality standards across multiple vendors, ordering materials as needed, coordinating shipments with carriers/freight forwarders, tracing goods through shipping documents or RFID tags (Radio Frequency Identification) throughout the entire process from production facility through delivery at final destinationand even further into post-shipment activities such as returns & repairs when necessaryall while adhering to local laws & regulations governing imports/exports along with pricing & payment terms with vendors & carriers. In addition to these processes being closely monitored by each organization within its own operations cyclecoordination among organizations within a given supply chain should also be closely managed in order for overall efficiency gains (reduction of lead times) & cost savings (reduction of excess inventory). By having an efficient supply chain system in place it allows companies more flexibility with their operations so they can quickly adjust when demand changes or unexpected events occur such as natural disasters or political unrests without disruption their daily business operations too drastically resulting in profits losses etc.