Successful supply chain management requires cross-functional integration of key business processes within the firm and across the network of firms that comprise the supply chain. It is focused on the management of key relationships and the improvements in performance that can be achieved. However, in many companies executives struggle to achieve the necessary integration. The problem is that they do not fully understand the supply chain management processes and the linkages necessary to integrate those processes. By understanding them and recognizing why and how they should be implemented, executives will be able to create more integrated supply chains which will lead to increased revenues and profitability for all member firms. 
In this book, the authors document over 10 years of research with leading firms, and provide a detailed framework for implementing best practices in supply chain management.

Supply Chain Management: Processes, Partnerships, Performance

Lambert, Douglas M.

Supply Chain Management Institute

Successful supply chain management requires cross-functional integration of key business processes within the firm and across the network of firms that comprise the supply chain. It is focused on the management of key relationships and the improvements in performance that can be achieved. However, in many companies executives struggle to achieve the necessary integration. The problem is that they do not fully understand the supply chain management processes and the linkages necessary to integrate those processes. By understanding them and recognizing why and how they should be implemented, executives will be able to create more integrated supply chains which will lead to increased revenues and profitability for all member firms. In this book, the authors document over 10 years of research with leading firms, and provide a detailed framework for implementing best practices in supply chain management. The 2nd edition includes assessment tools that can be used by managers to assess their implementation of the supply chain management processes.

Supply Chain Management: Processes, Partnerships, Performance, 2nd edition

Douglas M. Lambert (Editor)

Introducing the 3rd edition of Supply Chain Management: Processes, Partnerships, Performance; completely revised and expanded to provide insight on how to implement the key cross-functional supply chain management processes. The new edition includes four completely new chapters and an appendix that provides details on how to develop customer and product profitability reports. The newly added chapters focus on conducting assessments of supply chain management processes, mapping for supply chain management, lean thinking and supply chain management, and implementing and sustaining the supply chain management processes. The eight supply chain management processes provide a comprehensive framework to guide cross-functional teams in their efforts to achieve the integration necessary for managing relationships with key customers and suppliers. However, the successful implementation of any of the supply chain management processes requires that management from all corporate functions understand their role in the process. The challenge is finding a way to bring all the necessary parties together and start the dialogue. In the newly added chapter on assessments, we describe a methodology designed to assist management in the implementation of the supply chain management processes using the assessments tools contained in the book. The assessment of a process will enable management to benchmark the practices of the firm with those prescribed in the process and prioritize the identified improvement opportunities. As supply chain network structures become more complex and geographically dispersed, management can benefit from developing a relationship-based map of their company s supply chain. A newly added chapter on supply chain mapping demonstrates how the visual representation and analysis of the complexities in a firm s direct and indirect supply chain relationships serves as a starting point for increasing the cross-functional and cross-firm communication that is necessary for implementation of the supply chain management processes. The mapping effort also enables management to identify internal and external improvement opportunities and establish the critical relationship linkages that must be closely managed. Once a relationship-based map is developed, a wide variety of activity-based mapping techniques can be used to identify and realize improvement opportunities across the network of companies that constitute the supply chain. Lean thinking provides principles and tools used to eliminate waste and to strive for perfection through continuous improvement. Though lean thinking was conceptualized to apply to all activities within the firm and across companies in the supply chain, in practice lean is employed in operational settings within a single firm. Lean thinking in supply chain management embodies the management s efforts to adopt lean principles to align activities across corporate functions within the firm and to manage business relationships with customers and suppliers. In so doing, additional sources of muda can be addressed. In another of the newly added chapters, we show how lean principles and tools can be used in the context of the supply chain management framework. Also, we describe forms of waste that result from the lack of alignment in the supply chain wastes that need to be eliminated in order to create greatest value for the end-customer. Eleven management components must be considered in order to implement the eight supply chain management processes. The management components apply to all of the supply chain management processes. In the fourth newly added chapter, we describe each of the management components as well as how they can be used to coordinate implementation of the supply chain management processes and institutionalize the processes once they have been implemented.

Supply Chain Management: Processes, Partnerships, Performance, 3rd edition

Douglas M. Lambert

In an environment characterized by scarce resources, increased competition, higher customer expectations, and faster rates of change, executives are turning to partnerships to provide sustainable competitive advantage. Partnering provides a way to leverage the unique skills and expertise of each partner and may also lock-out competitors. Partnerships, however, are costly in terms of the time and effort required. A firm cannot and should not partner with every supplier or customer. It is important to ensure that scarce resources are dedicated only to those relationships which will truly benefit from a partnership. Yet, many organizations become involved in relationships that do not meet management expectations and/or which end in failure. How can managers determine, in advance, if a relationship is one which will result in competitive advantage, and is worthy of the time and resources needed to fully develop into a partnership? Further, all partnerships are not the same. How does management know what type of partnership would provide the best pay-off? These questions may be answered by using the partnership model presented in this book. The partnership model provides a structured and repeatable process to effectively and efficiently build and maintain tailored business relationships that may become an asset for executives looking for competitive advantage. The book also includes The Partnership Model Toolkit, which provides resources to help sell the benefits of the partnership session both within your company and to a potential partner, materials to help participants prepare for the meeting and all of the slides and handouts required to conduct a session.

Building High Performance Business Relationships

A. Michael Knemeyer

John T. Gardner

Successful supply chain management requires cross-functional integration of key business processes within the firm and across the supply chain. It is focused on the management of key relationships and the improvements in performance that can be achieved. However, in many companies executives struggle to achieve the necessary integration. The problem is that they do not fully understand the supply chain management processes and the linkages necessary to integrate those processes. By understanding them and recognizing why and how they should be implemented, executives will be able to create more integrated supply chains which will lead to increased revenues and profitability for all member firms.

Supply Chain Management: Processes, Partnerships, Performance, 4th Edition