Scm Organisational Structure
The New Supply Chain Organization
Which operational model should you choose? Stratex Networks successfully meets the challenge of supply chain reorganization.
SHOSHANAH COHEN
enior management teams across many industries are increasingly realizing how strategic their supply chain is to business: that it is, in fact, one of the critical success factors—for profitability as well as productivity. Yet configuring a supply chain strategy that aligns with the business strategy, and organizing both people and process around that strategy, are no easy matters. Just as there is no universal definition for the supply chain organization, there is no one-size-fits-all approach for crafting that organization. There are, however, several characteristics of effective organizations that should be incorporated into any design, and we’ll address them here: • The organization is aligned to support the overall business strategy. • There is agreement on what internal core competencies are needed. • The organization is capable of executing all required supply chain processes—whether through internal capabilities or strategic partnerships with companies that can provide required competencies. • Metrics are in place to provide objective information about organizational effectiveness. • A set of practical design principles is used to structure and populate the organization. In today’s business climate, of course, adaptability and agility are key. Your strategy may be changing more frequently than ever, and your supply chain organization needs to keep up with the changes you’re
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making, whether large or small. Such restructurings may require that you redefine roles and responsibilities to focus on changed objectives, reduce process complexity, or develop new competencies and skills for newly required capabilities. Or you may simply have the need to “clean house” or redeploy resources that are not performing to expectations. Organizational change is also required as you make
Which operational model should you choose? Stratex Networks successfully meets the challenge of supply chain reorganization.
SHOSHANAH COHEN
enior management teams across many industries are increasingly realizing how strategic their supply chain is to business: that it is, in fact, one of the critical success factors—for profitability as well as productivity. Yet configuring a supply chain strategy that aligns with the business strategy, and organizing both people and process around that strategy, are no easy matters. Just as there is no universal definition for the supply chain organization, there is no one-size-fits-all approach for crafting that organization. There are, however, several characteristics of effective organizations that should be incorporated into any design, and we’ll address them here: • The organization is aligned to support the overall business strategy. • There is agreement on what internal core competencies are needed. • The organization is capable of executing all required supply chain processes—whether through internal capabilities or strategic partnerships with companies that can provide required competencies. • Metrics are in place to provide objective information about organizational effectiveness. • A set of practical design principles is used to structure and populate the organization. In today’s business climate, of course, adaptability and agility are key. Your strategy may be changing more frequently than ever, and your supply chain organization needs to keep up with the changes you’re
S
making, whether large or small. Such restructurings may require that you redefine roles and responsibilities to focus on changed objectives, reduce process complexity, or develop new competencies and skills for newly required capabilities. Or you may simply have the need to “clean house” or redeploy resources that are not performing to expectations. Organizational change is also required as you make
Links: © 2003, 2006 PRTM 5 © 2003, 2006 PRTM The restructuring was completed over a period of several months, roughly following the schedule of the manufacturing transition