First and second reply demonstrates at least 2 of the following: knowledge of content, connection with other student, and organized, clear, concise, and focused writing.

Expectation

First reply demonstrates at least 2 of the following: knowledge of content, connection with other student, and organized, clear, concise, and focused writing.

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By Stephanie T.

Supply chain management (SCM) is the management flow of goods and services. SCM involves the process of sourcing raw materials to deliver final products. Some activities of the supply chain involve manufacturing, packaging, design and so forth. These are critical components to producing a successful product and maximizing customer value. Additionally, enterprises must seek out to streamline these activities in an economical manner. (Tanner & Raymond, 2016) Some would refer to SCM as the heart of a company’s operations, which would make sense why these activities must be achieved in a conscious manner. To activity run a supply chain is no easy task, especially when effectiveness and efficiency is a huge factor in the success of SCM. A fashion retailer, popularly known as H&M, has struggled over the years to properly execute a SCM strategy. Although H&M is perhaps one of the most recognizable brands in the fashion industry today, they have experienced their fair share of pitfalls. However, the pillar of their success relies much on their quick turnaround time on up to date styles and trends. If anyone has ever visited an H&M store often enough, you’d notice their ability to upkeep with current fashion. It is quite impressive to say the least. (businessinsider.com, 2014) H&M is a brand that strives to execute their SCM strategy in the most cost effective way. The brand notes that the fashion industry is quickly ever changing. In 2018, H&M announced plans to invest in analytics and intelligence to vastly transform its retail assortment planning, as well as its supply chain and ultimately their sales. The brand also made announcements regarding their plan to broaden the use of technology to include cloud computing, RFID, and 3D printing. Not only has H&M aimed to capitalize on online sales but the brand also made waves by reinvigorating stores that were otherwise known as struggling, which has ultimately maximized and driven customer satisfaction. (cips.org, 2018)

Expectation

Second reply demonstrates at least 2 of the following: knowledge of content, connection with other student, and organized, clear, concise, and focused writing.

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By Nicholas G.

One company that I feel gets supply chain is Anheuser-Busch (AB). Every gas station, beer store, grocery store, or generally any store that sells alcohol you can find Budweiser or Bud Light. Overall, I think AB has very successful supply chain management and uses a variety of different strategies to successfully get their products into the hands of people who want it, when they want it.

            Supply chain management is the process of continually changing and watching supply chains to make them as efficient as possible (Tanner & Raymond, 2014). In order to understand if a company has effective supply chain, a variety of metrics must be analyzed. For supply chain systems to work well, information flow must be efficient and effective. AB realized they were not optimizing their data efficiency and turned to Transfix, a New York based logistics company. Transfix helped them to streamline shipment data, help their shippers make more informed decisions, optimize shipping time and revenue, and drive more transparency between the shipper and the carrier (Berman, 2019). There are a variety of levels of distribution intensity, and AB uses intensive distribution. Intensive distribution means that their products are available basically everywhere (Colorado State University – Global Campus, 2019). Intensive distribution is very effective for their brand as they are able to get their product into the hands of virtually everyone who wants to drink it. The beer distribution system in the United States consists of three tiers. Beer moves from brewery, to wholesaler, to retailer. AB works with a third party logistics company to move product from their 12 flagship breweries to a network of over 600 wholesalers (Harris, 2018). With 600 wholesalers, their distribution is able to reach almost every part of the United States. AB holds 42% of the United States beer market (Duprey, 2019). Through their intensive distribution they are able to take and hold 42% market share in the United States and have 12 flagship breweries which distribute 12 different brands that they own.

Overall, I think that AB is a company with great supply chain management as they were able to expand their company and use supply chain to get their brands into the hands of their customers and have almost a majority of the entire United States beer market.