Supply Chain Management and Logistics
Introduction
Every business enterprise aims at making profits and working in line with their customers’ expectations in order to fully satisfy them, retain them as well as encouraging the potential ones. Advancements and applications of the required metrics is of great importance to the business for the purpose of proper supply chain management. This refers to the effective administration of supply chain activities to increase the value of the customer as well as achieving a competitive advantage in the market. It is a manifestation of the efforts applied by the organization’s management team to meet their set goals and objectives (Abrar, 2014, p. 100). All the activities undertaken in the business operations are covered in the supply chain management, and they include the development of products, actual production, and logistics, just to name a few. This plays a very vital role in monitoring, guiding and ensuring the mandate of sustainable development in the organization. This report will cover areas such as the aims, roles, benefits and barriers of CSR in SMEs, and the best and applicable supply chain management techniques for these firms (Bickoff 2014, p. 41)
Organizational background
Regardless of the size of the company, supply chain management is a key player in the success of a business enterprise. This is characterized by the application of technology in between three main parties in the industry namely; the wholesalers, retailers and their manufacturing and marketing channel coworkers.
Organizational strategies
With the primary goal of any thriving organization being to make profits, several strategies need to be formulated in order to realize these aims. They include;
Adoption of demand driven business model
There is a need for approval of a business model that is planned and driven by demand according to the current situation. The managers will always be cautious and also have a quick response mechanism to conquer the unplanned disasters in case they occur. The demand can only be shaped through fixing the prices and availing the goods and services according to the expectations of the customers (Kula, 2014, p. 55). The primary virtue here is to have a future prediction and be goal oriented in the formulation of the customer needs and wants.
Enhancing a suitable and active supply chain with proper planning and well-coordinated execution
Chau, (2011, p. 23) argues that the supply chains need to be changed in order to match the demand of the customers since what they needed yesterday may be different from what they need today. The chain management systems should be flexible such that the customers will never get time to change their suppliers as a result of dynamic supply chain management. Enhancement of collaboration among the chain partners should be highly exercised such that no party is negatively affected by the changing demand patterns of the buyers.
Alignment of company goals and objectives to the supply chain in executing the planning of sales and operations in business
Gaps that may arise from various sections such as planning, strategy formulation, and finance department need to be closed, and implementation of a smooth flow put in action. This will ensure proper and adequate production, matching the supply with the demand of the customers. With this process, effective financial planning, proper budgeting and future predictions of consumer behavior are guaranteed (Chae, 2015, p. 88).
Other business strategies
Other business strategies applicable in ensuring efficient supply chain management are; optimization of the design of products and their management for effective supply, packaging, and utilization to enhance productive creativity, matching the sustainability with the supply chain activities and finally by ensuring proper, committed, reliable and predictable supply for the customers, needs.
Overview of the products and services
A summary of the goods and services offered by the small and medium business enterprises can generally be characterized by those products that are fragile and some other times perishable. This is because the scope of distribution and supply chain for these firms is limited in geographical coverage. There is also no involvement of many partners when it comes to the management relationships; thus it becomes easy to collect various information pertaining the delivery unit and the commitment of the firm to its customers. A good supply chain management system should effectively apply the stimulus-organism-response decision making model.
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Determinants of consumer behavior
There are three main categories of the determinants of consumer behavior and they include; economic determinants, psychological determinants and sociological determinants as discussed below.
Economic determinants
The fundamental economic determinants include the personal earnings/income which may be defined as the payment of one’s performed duties. Disposable and discretionary income is what is focused on this scenario since this is the only amount the consumer has to spend and at the same time make some savings if possible. Family income is also under the economic determinants since those buyers who make purchases from a shared pool do it as a family rather than individually because they save together. Consumer income expectations also influence their buying behavior as it is evident that the consumer will either be optimistic or pessimistic about making purchases in future after they get their salaries and wages. Other economic determinants include current customer assets, credits, and the living standard level.
Psychological determinants
Consumers are also driven by psychological factors, and that’s why researchers can well identify the reason as to why buyers behave differently in one way or another. Psychological determinants include the motivational factors which answer the question ‘why’ in the consumer behavior. This is always behind the governing force, the intervention of variables between the response and actions of the buyer. Perceptions of the purchaser towards a certain commodity or service are also categorized in the psychological determinants as it is the process of thinking a transforming the thoughts to actions from what one has heard or imagines of the products (Christopher, 2013, p. 40).
Sociological determinants
Sociological determinants are exhibited from the groups the consumers associate with. These groups may either give the correct, wrong, exaggerated or underestimated information about a product hence influence the potential buyers in making the purchases. The common sociological determinants are discussed below. For the case of the family as a sociological determinant, there are four major roles exercised which include the initiator, influencer, decider and the user roles….End of Preview….