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Are you externalizing the cause of supply chain underperformance?
There are times when the supply chains underperform - missing customer orders, having stockouts of certain products, expiry of slow-moving products, returns from distributors and retailers… The way managers deal with such situations is quite insightful.
A lot of supply chain professionals try to externalize the cause – sudden unforeseen jump in demand, other brands having supply issues, delivery default by a key vendor, container shortage, etc.
While some of these reasons may be true, it is our job as supply chain professionals to install a robust system for their mitigation. How soon did we sense the jump in demand? How diverse is our supplier base? How fast did we respond in executing changes in distribution, production schedule and input materials rescheduling? How flexible is our entire supply chain?
The first step in making the supply chain more agile is to acknowledge that the reason for its underperformance is internal, not external.