Regaining control: Inventory management best practices (Part one)

RichardCushing

Inventory management best practices - part oneIt happens to be axiomatic that you cannot manage your inventory if you do not control your inventory.

Many times, I have been told, “Our people just don’t trust the numbers they see in the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. Everything has to be double-checked.”

Usually, this statement is followed by some negative comment about the ERP system being unreliable.

After digging around a bit, more of the true picture emerges. The numbers (read: quantities) in the ERP system aren’t reliable because, while the company is busy “managing” its inventory, it has pretty much neglected the matter of “controlling” their inventory.

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How Kinaxis certification proves its worth

JoeCannata

How Kinaxis certification proves its worthSince the launch of the Kinaxis Certification Program in January 2016, we’ve steadily grown our certified user base. That base includes our technical employees, partners and customers, all of whom have worked to fortify and validate their RapidResponse skills in functionality, authoring and administration.

Why Kinaxis certification?

One question I often hear is, “Why should I get a Kinaxis certification?” It is no secret that having well trained, certified RapidResponse practitioners on staff means you have demonstrated the discipline to learn and master various aspects of RapidResponse, and can employ best practices. For a customer, they are able to derive the maximum value from their investment in a RapidResponse deployment. For employees and partners, it means staying at the top of their area of expertise.

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There will be no Valentine’s Day Sweethearts this year

AlisonCrawford

There will be no Valentine's Day Sweethearts this yearValentine’s Day will be less romantic this year. Due to financial troubles, corporate acquisitions, time constraints, and a lack of supply chain planning we won’t be able to tell the ones we love things like “Be Mine”, “Kiss Me”, “Call Me”, “Let’s Get Busy”, or “Miss You” in sweet, chalky letters.

That’s because, for the first time since their creation in 1901, Sweethearts candies, an iconic staple of our Valentine’s Day celebrations won’t be manufactured.

Consumer packaged goods is a tough and evolving market

Faltering consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies are a very common phenomenon in this new consumer world, so it’s no surprise that Necco shuttered its doors. There were company specific issues with cleanliness in their factory, and larger trends of slowing sales of sugary foods as well as distribution limitations. Like many other consumer product companies, Necco was heavily reliant on retailers to sell all items in their portfolio. Necco didn’t evolve, and for that reason, they went the way of Clearly Canadian and Dunkaroos.

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[On-demand webinar] Slide into a new supply chain planning experience

AlexaCheater

[On-demand webinar] Slide into a new supply chain planning experience

Let’s face it. Managing a global supply chain is no easy feat. You constantly have to solve complex problems and manage shifting situations driven by things like regulation changes, growing consumer expectation and geo-political unrest. Tradeoffs and difficult choices are everywhere.

Add to that the fact that many of us are still using antiquated technology that just hasn’t kept up with the times and it’s no wonder we often feel stuck in firefighting mode.

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Building stronger supply chain customer relationships

RichardCushing

Building stronger supply chain customer relationshipsThe first imperative of management in any for-profit enterprise must be to create customers. Without customers, there are no profits; only costs and expenses.

If the above statement is true, then to maximize the return on investment (ROI)—since it is almost always more expensive to create new customers than to sell to existing customers—management’s second big imperative is to build stronger supply chain customer relationships.

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Are you sure you’re making the best supply chain decisions?

AlexaCheater

Successfully managing your supply chain means making decisions. A lot of them.

But the reality for many is that the tradeoffs and choices they’re making are based on outdated or inaccurate data.

How can you be sure you have the information and insight you need to make the best supply chain decisions possible for your business? Today’s planning reality leaves too much room for uncertainty. Siloed and sequential data and processes don’t deliver the visibility you need.

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