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How to embrace and befriend Murphy in Supply Chain?
We saw in the last post how Murphy is neither a friend nor a foe. It strikes everyone in a random manner. When it strikes us, it looks like a foe. When it strikes our competitors, it looks like a friend. The overall impact is neutral for most companies.
However, there is a way to ensure that Murphy benefits us way more than the competitors. The answer lies in our preparedness and response to such Murphy events. Let me explain.
If we cut down our response lead time and make the backend flexible, we can recover much faster from a Murphy strike and limit the downside significantly. We also need a mechanism to alert us early about these Murphy strikes.
Similarly, a good demand sensing mechanism (early alert), coupled with fast response and flexible backend supply system can capitalize much better on opportunities created when Murphy strikes our competitors or when it strikes the whole industry. The upside can increase substantially.
To sum it up, increasing upside and restricting downside of Murphy impact can be built into the design of our supply chain by focusing on the three vital capabilities… sharp demand sensing, fast response, and flexible supplies. POOGI on these three capabilities will make us Murphy-friendly.