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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 7 months ago
Think for 100 seconds, and summarize the key things that you learned in the class during Week 7:
RFID at Metro Case
RFID Technology
Lecture about Information Goods Supply Chain
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 7 months ago
Blockchain technology implements the concept behind Bitcoin (and other cryptocurrencies). ‘A purely peer-to-peer version of electronic cash would allow online payments to be sent directly from one party to an […]
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There is a type error. It should be Blockchain.
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This is a technology with potential impact the Internet had. Blockchain creates less risk for people because it is difficult to hack. The hacker would have to not just change one block but all the blocks within that chain. This is tedious for them to do because it’s time consuming and difficult to modify. A lot of people have been investing in cryptocurrencies, which uses Blockchain, over the year. With the increasing investment, this technology will leave a strong impact.
In the supply chain, Blockchain can help with recording, tracking, and sharing information. The Blockchain contains blocks with permanent information, so the information in the supply chain cannot be easily tampered. The user can always trace the information he/she needs. There is also more security created with this technology, which reduces the risk in the supply chain. -
I definitely believe this technology has the potential to impact the same way the internet did. With blockchain you are able to follow and resources, or product that is being tracked from its creation until its final delivery. Multiple records are kept on the transactions that are done revolving around the item, tracking it in the sellers, purchasers and a separate 3rd party database to ensure accuracy. Additionally, by being able to track your purchases from their creation to your doorstep while following its entire path. This has a huge possibility to help with distinguishing real and fake products especially in the healthcare industry as it can help follow medication to prevent tampering or fake medicine being sold. As for supply chains, again it can ensure product legitimacy, as well as helping to prevent orders being picked up with falsified documents. Overall, I would say blockchain technology is going to find its way mainstream regardless if Bitcoin stays or not.
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Blockchain is definitely an innovative technology that will have a huge impact just like the internet. Blockchain technology is peer-to-peer so it is decentralized and highly secure. The technology can be used for variety of things not just limited to cryptocurrency. Information security is a growing concern for many businesses especially with all of the recent breaches that have been going on with sensitive data. Since blockchain is encrypted and decentralized it will be a lot harder to breach the data. Once a block in the blockchain is created it cannot be changed, fragments of the block are all over and it would be hard for anyone to hack into to get all of the information of the entire block. Supply chains can benefit from this technology because it will help ensure more accurate data and the data will be a lot harder to tamper with. It will eliminate the need for third parties in transactions and will enable faster transactions.
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Blockchain is a potential technology that will impact the internet. It works one to one and has trust in the carrier, avoiding much risk and efficient use. It has the capability to follow the product from start to finish and can access it at any time – referring to the “small key” and “large key” scenario. Blockchains are permanent which takes the risk out of the potential hacking.
This could highly benefit supply chains because the process is quick and seamless. There are no third parties involved so it goes from one to another. This takes the risk of delays, inefficiencies, higher costs, etc out of the supply chain. Additionally, it would benefit supply chains because it takes away false and risky individuals involved. It operates at high speed and intensity – just like Blockchain. -
Blockchain is an innovative technology that will have a impact on the internet in many ways. For example, it is decentralized so it provides less risk and increases efficiency. Information security is a concern for many businesses that operate over the internet. This blockchain technology is so effective because it manages and takes out the risk of any cyber hacking activity. This technology will help supply chains by tracking information and providing accurate data. Blockchain can encourage faster transactions online between businesses and customers. Overall, we will see a fast pace and high demand for this technology with the internet and transacting businesses.
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1. Blockchain is the technology with potential impact the internet has.
– Reduce costs of financial transactions. Customers could theoretically make a payment directly through blockchain, which can bypass intermediaries to avoid paying fees.
– Increased Security. Employees can view data and perform their work tasks while still retaining privacy.
– Better record keeping. When new data is entered in the blockchain, it can’t ever be erased.
– Blockchain has the potential to disrupt many different industries that have been called internet 2.0.
2. How would blockchain impact supply chains?
– Automotive supplier payments. Blockchains allows the transfer of funds anywhere in the world.
– Traceability. Product status at each stage of production can be recorded using blockchain.
– RFID-driven contract bids and execution. The tags can be read easily and automatically, then processed by IT systems. -
Yes, this technology has the potential impact the internet had. This is the reason because it is a revolutionary way of doing transactions in ways that were previously not available to us. This extends to buying crypto currency, counting and validating votes, purchasing cars, houses, tickets. etc.
This would impact supply chains by making transfers of information faster, cheaper and can cut out the middle man. Furthermore, this technology will help increase the trust within the supply chain knowing that no one can alter the data for their own benefit and that it is all public information. Also, it will automate and make the supply chain more easier
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Let’s not get crazy; blockchain will absolutely not have the same impact as the internet did. If you think about the current world we live in, nearly every single aspect of it relies on the internet in one way or another. We will never be nearly as reliant on blockchain as we are the internet because it is one-dimensional, in that it is a distributed public ledger; that’s it. The capabilities and variation of the internet outweigh blockchain by 1000000. Sure, blockchain could potentially disrupt and maybe even surpass standard banking as we know it in Western culture, but it that’s only one aspect of our lives. People exaggerate this technology because people are very money-centered, but in reality, blockchain is one-dimensional and does not have the scaling capabilities to impact our world like the internet did.
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Is this really a technology with potential impact the Internet had?
– Increase Security
– Data is never erased
– Reduce transaction costsHow would this technology impact Supply Chains?
– Transfer funds anywhere
– Product tracking
– Tags easily read and processed
– Information accuracy -
Blockchain will have a significant impact on how money is transferred, but I do not believe that the impact will be as great as the introduction of the internet. I believe that financial institutions will suffer as a result from the introduction of Blockchain, because they are being cut out of almost all peer to peer transactions. Blockchain will have a similar impact on supply chains, eliminating the waiting period for a payment to be made, processed, and received. Payments can be received instantaneously, allowing companies quicker access to funds, potentially leading to improvements in the supply chains utilizing Blockchain.
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Blockchain has already created its impact, and it is a technology with potential impact more than the internet had, internet created the speed of connecting anyone from anywhere with any information with no time. on the internet, things can be copied or stolen, but with blockchain, it creates a globally distributed ledger or as referred as database open to anyone. on the blockchain, assets can be moved and stored securely and privately, trust is established due to everyone can see the transactions.
Blockchain will able to impact supply chain by various ways, it helped reduce or even eliminate fraud and errors, improving inventory management for any companies within the supply chain while reducing cost, reducing delays from paperwork. Companies also have the ability to identify troubles or issues faster and make the informed decision, which can ultimately increase the trust between consumer and partner.
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Blockchain will be groundbreaking once it is implemented and intertwined with everyday life and business, just like the internet but it will not be as big of an impact. Blockchain technology allows seamless payments from one party to another without a financial intermediary. This decreases costs for the initial parties but will be un-favored by banks and other governmental institutions. The cool thing about Blockchain technology is that everything is black and white, in other words there is no changing what is already there.
This will impact supply chains by decreasing costs and increasing visibility into a number things. For example, freight audit and pay will be affected tremendously because of the seamless payments between parties. Also, there will be greater visibility throughout the supply chain. For example, shippers will have greater insights into driving patterns and schedules. They’ll be able to see exactly when a driver arrived and departed. -
Blockchain will definitely create an impact, but it can’t be as nearly an impact as the internet. Almost everything requires the use of internet whereas blockchain is just another financial ledger. Blockchain removes the use of a third party for financial transactions. It allows for direct transaction between two parties and gets rid of additional costs. This will greatly impact the financial institutions that currently exist. As for this technology impacting supply chains, it can be proven beneficial. It’s eliminating the third party which allows direct transfer of funds and builds trust. With blockchain it is not easily hackable and everything is public.
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I believe the blockchain impact will be heard, but it will not open as many windows as the internet has done. With hacking, identity theft, and fraud being huge concerns for people on the daily, blockchain solves all of that in its technology. Blockchain makes transactions safer for both parties and takes out a third-party at the same time. I believe it will impact supply chain positively reducing any fraud or any incurred cost from doing transactions.
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Blockchain technology will not have the same impact to society and the economy as the internet has. The internet was a completely revolutionary device that gave the normal person access to all of the information that they could want within seconds. Internet greatly increased communication and was the basis of many information systems that streamlined companies’ operations. Even so, blockchain will be an important advancement in business. For example, increasing security, improved record keeping, and cryptocurrency. Supply chains can benefit from blockchain technology because it will create a system that records more accurate data and security for that specific data. It will essentially eliminate the need to incorporate third parties in transactions, making the process a lot faster and efficient.
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Blockchain has the potential to make the same impact as the Internet had. The blockchain is in its earliest stages, not much different than the Internet’s inception in 1960’s as a military tool. This is important to make note of as it shows blockchain’s potential for growth. With the undeniable trend of globalization and the shift towards a universal currency, blockchain is distinctive and the only technology in the market. The blockchain is not exclusive to monetary applications, allowing it like the internet, to transcend traditional roles and transform all industries. Supply chains, as a result, would become more manageable. Through cost reduction, increased transparency and accuracy, and consolidation of moving parts.
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Blockchain can most certainly have the impact that the internet had. The internet was all about connecting people to one another that otherwise wouldn’t be able to connect. Blockchain now takes those people that are connecting and adds an important element of honesty when having a transaction or transferring information. This takes industries to a whole new level with having live databases that all have access to and all can see. This eliminates millions of dollars in inefficiencies, theft, and creates an honest, open internet experience. It would radically shift the way people use the internet. The supply chain impact alone is enough to shake industry. Being able to transfer massive amounts of information and transactions at once eliminates all kinds of inefficiencies and creates a more accurate experience.
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Is this really a technology with potential impact the Internet had?
I think that this technology have the potential impact that the internet had because the blockchain eliminate the third party involvement for any transaction and in the a very very short of time almost instantly and reduces the cost dramatically.How would this technology impact Supply Chains?
Blockchain could improve information and payment transactions speed from suppliers to retailers because without the involvement of a third party will be more efficient and gain a lot of time by doing so. The concept of the blockchain is very secure and fast that can make the information more accurate because real time access of all the parties. -
Blockchain is here to stay. There are arguments to be made about whether Bitcoin has the legs to last or if it will going by the wayside in the future. However the technology behind it is real and it will not be going anywhere. The speed at which these transactions are processed will change the way many businesses are run and impact the world moving forward. I also expect it to have an impact on supply chains. Anytime there are major changes to a business’s operations we see that companies have to respond with changes to their supply chains as well.
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I certainly think that Blockchain could have the type of impact that the internet did. Since it is a public ledger, all parties have a view of the information. By having a comprehensive view of the information and transactions, everyone involved is held accountable for their end. A technology like this could revolutionize the supply chain and get rid of a lot of the issues due to communication since everyone has access to the same pool of information. The bullwhip effect, for instance, could be greatly reduced with Blockchain because of the increased visibility.
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This technology will have a massive impact on ours lives, but I don’t think it will be as vast or immense as the impact of the internet. For a future auditor like myself, blockchain will automate and simplify my job, which free up my time to focus on more critical components of my job. Blockchain can impact supply chains by way of inventory level confirmation, account balance status, and the sales order process. I think blockchain will streamline supply chains with increased amount of useful data and improved controls.
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Blockchain will most likely have a big impact on the Internet. It would make payment much easier for worldwide firms. There would be no fees when doing transaction and it is virtually risk free. It is also very transparent. The numerous nodes would make it virtually impossible to hack the chain and steal. So, it is nearly risk free. Data breaches would also be prevented due to the decentralization. Further, counterfeit items can be stopped, especially if combined with the use of RFID. This would be very helpful in markets, such as China, where counterfeit goods (such as handbags) are rampant.
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Blockchain is a term I’ve been hearing a lot recently and am fortunate to understand fairly well. I think in theory blockchain definitely has the potential to have the same impact as the internet. However, in actuality, I don’t think it will, at least not for 30 or more years. While it has the potential to revolutionize many things, there are still a lot of problems with it and I think it’s going to be something that a few companies use and have. For those companies, it could become a competitive advantage, however not a large enough one that forces all companies to move over and use it. Blockchain impacts supply chain in a few ways, and one way is making the entire flow of goods visible to ensure that diamonds, for example, aren’t blood diamonds and are ethically sourced.
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I think blockchain will certainly create an impact, but it wouldnt be as much as the Internet did. The internet has been around for 27 years and it will not just be replaced by a new platform for transactions and storage. However, this new blockchain technology definitely has a potential to grow as it offers services without intermediaries like banks, governments and technology companies, but through mass collaboration and codes. This will lead to big implications for businesses and corporations because a new digital medium was created, just like the internet, and the services that exist are no longer needed in the future. In regards to supply chain, implementing blockchain allows transparency where you could see where the product has been throughout the supply chain. It also helps to reduce data tampering in the chain.
How would this technology impact Supply Chains?
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I don’t think that blockchain or cryptocurrency in general will have the same effect as the internet had. Yes, it is an innovation, but I just don’t believe that it can effect people on quite the same scale as the internet did. Only a few people currently feel the need to use cryptocurrencies, versus the majority of the world uses the internet in some form or another. I think that this technology has the potential to make supply chains more efficient, just like any other technology can. Do I think that it will impact supply chains all that much? Not yet. I think the technology is still too new and we haven’t really found enough of a use for it yet to have an impact on supply chains.
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Is this really a technology with potential impact the Internet had?
I think that blockchain, given its power, has the potential to impact us the way that the internet has. Similarly to the internet, I think blockchains integration will be very gradual and global. I think that there is a lot of room for growth for Blockchain. While there are a lot of advantages to this technology many do not use this technology yet.
How would this technology impact Supply Chains?
Block chain will create efficiencies in every day transactions cutting intermediaries and reducing transactional costs and allows for transparency that was not available before. Things like scams and counterfeits will decrease and the flow of data will be more readily available. -
Blockchain could have a major impact in the way the supply chain operates. It will continue to grow as use of technology spreads worldwide, and use of this technology will increase over time. People will naturally be hesitant to convert real money into crypto-currencies because one thing we have learned as the technology generation is that technology can always be hacked or compromised if someone is malevolent enough and thinks they have something to gain by compromising the system. The real supply chain possibility of improvement comes from improved automation and speed that blockchain could possibly provide. It also improves visibility in the supply chain which reduces possible ethical concerns.
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Is this really a technology with potential impact the Internet had?
With my necessarily limited understanding of blockchain, I would guess that no, it will not have the impact that the internet would. The invention of the internet was unprecedented, where blockchain feels like a process improvement, or an invention at the margin. Artificial intelligence will have a much more significant impact than blockchain, as it fundamentally creates an unknown technology as opposed to combining existing ones or improving existing processes.
How would this technology impact Supply Chains?
Blockchain could create more secure and verifiable transactions, do away with many antiquated supply chain processes like Bills of Lading, cut costs, and increase the speed of the supple chain.
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Is this really a technology with potential impact the Internet had?
This technology has the potential to impact the same way the internet did because of the following reasons:
– It allows digital information – virtually anything of value – to be distributed
– Virtually risk-free / transparent / incorruptible because the blockchain database does not have an existing storage, preventing hacking and mismanagement
– Enhance security
How would this technology impact Supply Chains?
– Decrease transaction error because blockchain reconciles every transaction that happens in ten-minute interval
– Reduce risk in supply chains because of its inability to be corrupted -
1. Is this really a technology with potential impact the Internet had?
This is a technology with potential impact the Internet had. It could provide the benefits below:
-It could reduce transaction costs, since no intermediaries (eg. financial organizations) are needed during the transactions.
-It strengthens cyber security. Its complex block structure will create more difficulties for hackers who want to invade users’ data.
-It provides better tracking and recording system. The data that is stored in Blockchain will not be erased.2. How would this technology impact Supply Chains?
-It could improve supply chain efficiency. Since there is no third party involves in business transactions, the transaction will be faster and less expensive.
-It could reduce risks in supply chains, such as cyber risks.
-It could provide traceability in supply chains management. It could be used to track the movement of goods, their origin, quantity and so forth.
-It improves the transparency in business to business system.
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 7 months ago
I was late in getting the Root Beer game reset. It is now reset as you requested (see Single user exception below). If you requested no change – Round 2 will use same set-up as Round 1.
Single Users: The gam […]
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 7 months ago
Interesting article about Amazon’s new physical store.
Questions:
How would you feel shopping in such a store?
What do you think of the technology strategy vs. RFID?-
I would feel comfortable shopping in a sensor-infused store. Personally, I am fascinated by the innovative technology strategy. I like that anything I pick up is automatically added to my virtual cart & if I change your mind about it amazons technology will update my virtual cart Instantly. This aspect alone gets rid of the rushed feeling when visiting a convenience store.
Although I find the technology strategy fascinating I think that Amazon is using is riskier than using A RFID. For example, what if an item is mispriced, how would the computer pick that up?
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I would feel relatively comfortable shopping in a store like this. It doesn’t seem that Amazon is collecting any personal information about me outside of what I provide for routine online purchases (name, credit card information, etc). I would actually prefer this method of shopping because it eliminates that amount of time I spend standing in line and allows me to utilize that time for other activities.
I think that this technology strategy, as presented in the article, seems more accurate and secure than RFID technology. It is able to track movement of products on the product level without the need for an RFID chip. However, this strategy does seem to require significant capital investment for the technology and store remodeling which may be a barrier to adoption in other grocery stores, especially given the grocery industry has historically low margins.
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This store seems interesting to shop at because it feels more personalized. For instance, since the technology is analyzing my likes and dislikes, the store will cater more to my needs the next time I visit. Also, I am usually in a time-crunch, so it is convenient that I can just check out my items by walking out. I think the technology strategy vs RFID is cool. With this strategy, the company gets to learn more about its consumers. In addition, it collects more data about both the products and the consumers, which is beneficial in learning about the supply and demand. Overall, there are issues, such as technology failure. However, if Amazon is able to make this fully functioning technology work with minimal issues, it will change where and how consumers shop in the future.
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I personally would feel uncomfortable shopping at this store. I feel like it’s too much of an invasion of privacy. I think it’s a good idea and a lot of people will be for it. It is definitely pushing the boundaries of retail and is taking full use of technology. I’m not sure if I fully trust the technology as of yet but I’m sure within the near future it will be fine. It is definitely a convenient way to shop.
I think Amazon’s technology strategy is definitely innovative compared to RFID. Not only is it very accurate with tracking products it can collect useful information about customers. Amazon can use data analytics to to learn more about its customers and target advertisements or sales for products they may be interested in. I think it will take some time before Amazon fully works all the kinks out of this technology and gets it to its full capabilities. -
1. I would feel comfortable shopping at this store. Personally, I dislike waiting in the checkout line, so if this store can give me a quicker and easier (grocery) shopping experience, then I would not mind shopping here. Also, I think I would not be concerned with privacy as long as the store gathers only necessary information for purchasing purposes.
2. As opposed to RFID, I find Amazon’s technology strategy to be fascinating and unique. This is because it provides a different in-store shopping experience. As mentioned in the article, shoppers can quickly grab anything they want and walk out without waiting in the checkout line. -
1. I would feel comfortable shopping in this type of store. Its much faster then other stores and allows for an easier shopping experience. In terms of privacy, I would no feel invaded as they are only taking basic information that is given through credit cards or online shopping.
2. This technology strategy seems very efficient compared to RFID. It seems Amazon has put the research and investments into providing a state of the art technology system. It is able to track essentially everything a person does in the store without the need for a sticker. As for RFID, if the sticker is missing or placed wrong the item is not able to be tracked. Both are very unique technologies but Amazon has improved it. I think it will be a long time until the technology strategy is implemented in most stores as its very costly. -
Shopping in a store like this would be a lot quicker than shopping in a regular store. No sales people pushing you to buy a specific product. No lines to wait in to check out. No need to remember cards or cash because it charges the due cost to your Amazon account. It is the ultimate convenience for food shoppers.
Amazon’s sensors are more effective in this space than RFID would be. For RFID to be effective, there would need to be a sensor or a tag on every single item in the store. Amazon bypasses this with the sensors on the shelves ready to see if items are removed. While the innovation is there, privacy and accuracy are an issue to keep an eye on.
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I would feel comfortable and eager to see an amazon store to be available. The biggest benefit of having a commercial store like that is increase customer service. Apple can be seemed as a good example of why a retail store would be successful, allowing customers to come in to talk to representatives specialized in those products and increasing consumer satisfaction.
The issue with technology strategy wold be the significant investment and capital needed to start such a strategy. The technology could track what anyone does without the need for a chip like RFID. Technology strategy in my opinion won’t be around in the near future, as implementation in stores will take significant investment.
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1. I would feel comfortable shopping in such a store as it is fast and it gives a different shopping experience from the normal grocery store. I personally dislike grocery shopping because I am very busy and waiting in line is not something I enjoy, so Amazon Go would be perfect for people like me. Regarding the overhead cameras, I feel that it is not an issue for me because security cameras are typically everywhere even at a regular grocery stores.
2. The technology strategy used by Amazon is relatively better than RFID since it only uses cameras with weight sensors to detect the items that are being taken and put back. In fact. putting RFID labels on each of the store item would cost a lot of time and labor work. -
I would feel comfortable shopping in a store that utilizes a large scale tracking system, such as Amazon Go. Besides the tracking of each product you pick up or put down, the tracking system does not record any personal information that would make me feel uncomfortable or reluctant to shop at a location utilizing it. Customers already share large amounts of information with retailers, through rewards programs, customer surveys, and stored credit card information, therefore this store design carries almost the same security risks as a traditional store.This technology of customer tracking saves customers invaluable time in their busy lives, while saving the business money by eliminating unnecessary staff. RFID tags could be used in place of Amazon’s tracking service, but this comes at a increased product cost that would most likely be inflicted upon customers.
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I would feel very comfortable shopping at a store such as Amazon. This is because Amazon has the ability to protect the data that it retrieves from customers. Also, it has the ability to collect information from the outside of any routine purchases that I may make. It provides a quicker checkout procedure.
The technology strategy that Amazon uses compared to RFID is that Amazon’s technology is able to track the movement of products at every level of the supply chain. It is much more efficient and secure for customers using Amazon technology than the RFID devices.
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I would feel comfortable shopping in the Amazon Go store. I think Amazon has placed a heavy emphasis on privacy and security in the last few years, which eases my concerns about losing vital private information. Although already remedied, I share the concern of consumers about being charged for an item which you simply just wanted to read the label of. I don’t have many other concerns otherwise.
I think Amazon’s strategy is probably more sustainable in the long run, compared to RFID technology. RFID tags have a variable cost component for each item stocked in-store. For each item in the store, Amazon would have to obtain an RFID tag, obtain an EPC, then attach it to the product. Meanwhile, Amazon can use the same cameras and sensors as long as the sensors are calibrated to the product. In summary, Amazon’s strategy has a higher level of scalability.
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1. I would feel uncomfortable shopping at this store. I feel as if an entity had the amount of personal information required to make this work, they would have a dangerous amount of power. I know that there would be an increased speed and efficiency, but one thing about technology that has held true for my entire life is that it can always be hacked. A breach of cyber security at Amazon would be devastating to a massive amount of people. Also, technology has been known to to not be 100% reliable and could make errors in charging.
2. I think RFID technology is slightly superior to the Amazon Go system. A tag that can be checked with a scanner is less likely to be hacked by people with bad intentions. I believe that RFID is a tried and tested method that is preferred, but if amazon ironed out inefficiencies they could become the leader with their model. -
I would likely not feel uncomfortable shopping in the Amazon Go store, as other students have mentioned, but would probably just pick visiting another store over it. Convenience aside, it is concerning to me that a company would be (and already is) stockpiling information about your preferences and habits.
Additionally, I believe consumers will be skeptical of the shopping process (or at least hesitant towards it) because there are fewer steps between wanting a product, and purchasing it. The processes of waiting in line, talking to a cashier, paying, etc. act as checks on impulsive buying. Without that check, consumers will either: a.) only visit for exactly what they have planned to buy or b.) approach shopping more conservatively than before.
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1. I would feel comfortable shopping in this store, as the data being collected to our knowledge it is limited to what is being put into your cart/basket. I would justify the information trade for the convenience of line-less shopping.
2. This technology is probably more expensive than RFID is, for the time being, so it might have a higher cost to maintain, I feel as though as technology advances and changes are made it will save users money in the long run. RFID is the most commonly used way to track inventory and all of the bugs have been worked out, proving it to be efficient and worth the investment, when that amount of R&D has been done for this strategy it will prove to be worth the investment. -
1. I would not have a problem shopping in a store like this because of privacy concerns — grocery stores already track our purchases every time we use a discount card or loyalty program. My discomfort would come more from supporting a business model that will extinguish the jobs of millions of people. And although this argument has been made time and time again whenever a new automation technology emerges, I would personally prefer to continue shopping at a “normal” grocery store .
2.When I first heard about Amazon Go, I imagined they would be using some sort of RFID technology, so it was a big surprise for me to find out that there is not individual tagging of products. As long as it is as accurate as Kumar claims it to be, this technology can be very useful for stores, but as far as the rest of the supply chain goes, RFID continues to be the better choice. -
I would absolutely shop at this store because of how simple it is to buy essentials I need, usually in a rush. I wonder how much product they have? Seems like they do not have the capacity to hold large amounts of inventory yet.
The strategy vs. RFID is brilliant. Amazon will now be able to tailor product advertisements to customers even more accurately (as if it wasn’t already through online shopping information catching). It seems like Amazon is going to have an unfathomable amount of data very soon. -
I would feel very comfortable shopping in the store. It would be a new and easy experience to me giving a whole new definition to the word convenience. The fact that you can just grab and go will definitely make me want to shop there due to their being no line to wait in and seemingly instant purchases. I think the technology strategy is a lot better than the RFID strategy. It is better at tracking than the RFID and more reliable. Although it will cost a more money in the short run, it will eventually be well worth it in the long run in terms of cost savings and superior technology.
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1. How would you feel shopping in such a store?
AmazonGo provides more convenient shopping way to customers, and it increases the shopping efficiency. The new system also reduces labor cost, and there are just a few numbers of staffs in the AmazonGo stores.
The new system cannot enable me to feel safe because it takes private information. For example, it could automatically debit customer’s accounts. The AmozonGo cannot promise
2. What do you think of the technology strategy vs. RFID?
RFID and Amazon strategy technology looks similar, but Amazon strategy has the more significant production potential. The Amazon technology strategy includes all function of RFID, and it could replace RFID in the future. -
1. While I would probably eventually feel more comfortable shopping if they became more commonplace, the idea of this store makes me feel a little uneasy. It feels like it will lead us on to a path where we become comfortable with technology invading every single aspect of our lives. While increased technology often means increased convenience, I am wary to place so much dependence on and trust in technology.
2. I think that this technology seems much more advanced than RFID technology. While it very likely requires much higher implementation and maintenance costs, it is probably much more accurate and effective. Its features could likely “win” against RFID’s features in their capabilities and potential. Amazon’s technology seems more likely to be popular in the future as the technology is improved and costs decrease.
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1. I would like to shop in this kind of store:
– Time-saving, no waiting lines, no grumpy customers and retail workers because of the long checkout line.
– The E-receipt is convenient for people to track what they bought, instead of looking for paper receipt everywhere.
– Easier to manage my account, both Amazon online shopping and in physical stores.2. Amazon Go vs. RFID
– Compare to Amazon Go, RFID is easier to implement and spread to most stores. Because Amazon Go needs more equipment like all the cameras and setting them up.
– Amazon Go is using the machine learning of AI technology, which will upgrade faster and operate well in the future.
– Amazon Go has a safer security system. Because each customer has its unique QR code to approve its identity first. -
1. I would feel irrationally uneasy. As it was pointed out in the article, being watched on security cameras in a store and having purchases tracked online is nothing new, but it’s the combination that’s novel and somewhat scary. I think I could grow fond of no lines, though.
2. I think the technology strategy is fascinating. It’s similar to the concept shown in the two RFID commercials we watched from over a decade ago, but much more advanced. For example, “the tracking is precise enough to distinguish between multiple people standing side-by-side at a shelf, detecting which one picked up a yogurt or cupcake, for example, and which one was merely browsing.” It almost seems unnecessarily involved, as Dilip Kumar explained that Amazon won’t take advantage of information regarding what consumers put back, at least not yet, but it’s interesting to see how accurate this technology strategy is. -
1. I would very quickly adjust to the new AmazonGo stores. I think that they are quick and safer from physical attacks. I would be cautious in some regards to payment processing and think I would feel better using a well-monitored credit card than I would my debit card.
2.The technology implementation is unlike any other in the industry. I think that Amazon is taking a great leap with this innovative idea. RFID has generally been easier to implement, but Amazon will have extra features like camera surveillance to allow for more accurate usage. -
1. I would very quickly adjust to the new AmazonGo stores. I think that they are quick and safer from physical attacks. I would be cautious in some regards to payment processing and think I would feel better using a well-monitored credit card than I would my debit card.
2.The technology implementation is unlike any other in the industry. I think that Amazon is taking a great leap with this innovative idea. RFID has generally been easier to integrate within other locations, but Amazon will have additional features like video surveillance to allow for more accurate usage from customers. -
I support the AmazonGo stores and it is a very neat idea Amazon has implemented. As one of the industry giants, they should strive to come up with things like this and change a consumers shopping experience. There is also a trust being built between customers and Amazon when shopping in this store. With the new droid delivery service, the AmazonGo store is no surprise and implementing their new strategy is a step above RFID in my opinion. It is a much fresher tech and seems to give more data for analysis in the future.
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1. I really like the idea of Amazons Go store. Its a novel idea in retail that eliminates one of the biggest frustrations of retail stores: lines. I personally don’t care about whether Amazon is tracking my purchases or has a little bit of my information so I would be more than willing to shop somewhere like this for the convenience and speed of it all. The technology is incredible and I would love to see them roll this out on a larger scale.
2. I think the technology is an incredible innovation and huge leap forward as an alternative to RFID. Although it seems to be incredibly expensive and yet to be proven, I think with large economies of scale and more tweaks it could become a viable alternative to RFID. I will be interested to see if the technology is adopted elsewhere within the industry as well as within other industries. -
I would be very comfortable shopping in such a store, however these days many consumers desire a more experiential experience. Many shoppers can buy many of the things they need online but these type of store may be a draw initially but could possible lose their appeal quickly. I also feel like this new technology just builds on the foundation of RFID. Many industry already use RFID to track product location and details. The concepts and usages are similar to RFID.
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I would feel comfortable shopping in a store like Amazon: Go. I don’t feel as if my privacy would be hindered in anyway. Data is being taken about the products and consumers. Even though they are using me and my purchases for data I am simply just a number in the system; I do not believe that Amazon will try and collect personal information from me or try and hack me. Amazon’s technology strategy is very interesting. The strategy allows the company to understand and learn more about their own customers. The strategy allows Amazon to keep track of data about the products and consumers. They can more easily customize products to specific stores based on the incoming data coming in from a particular place or region. As well, I like Amazon’s strategy because it allows for the quickest method of grocery shopping without having to interact with cashiers and wait in lines at all.
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1. I would come to this type of store just to buy one item to get the experience. I would feel a bit uncomfortable being tracked. I avoid that as much as possible. I could see this being very convenient for those who wouldn’t mind. I would also rather support local businesses.
2. I think Amazon is wise with getting super detailed with their use of technology. It is needed for the complex scheme they are pulling off. Tracking something like an apple (like if it’s just being picked up rather than being purchased) is a very difficult task, so elaborate technology is necessary. If Amazon wants this to take off, it should use its current strategy. If it does succeed, the benefit would eventually outweigh the cost. If not, Amazon should scrap the idea because inferior technology wouldn’t allow for the experience they want to provide.
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At first I would definitely feel uneasy shopping at this store. Not having to physically pull out a form of payment when shopping and just leaving the store is something that we as humans are just not used to. I think that after the initial learning curve I would love shopping at a place like this. The fact that lines at a register would no longer exist is a phenomenal thing. I think that their technology strategy is genius for the business model that they have and the industry that they are in. I know that when the store first opened there were still a few bugs that they needed to work out (such as not picking up a product and charging the customer) but I’m sure in a few months Amazon will figure it out. It’s amazing that they were able to leverage this type of tracking technology to innovate this new store model.
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Amazon Go
1.How would you feel shopping in such a store?
I think that I would love to try Amazon Go for the experience, but it would definitely feel weird. Some of the tracking and machine learning they were able to use would make me feel uneasy at first.2.What do you think of the technology strategy vs. RFID?
I think the strategy is very smart and focuses on Amazon’s benefit long term. Its ability to utilize machine learning will allow Amazon to better serve its customers through its tacking. The research and development behind a project like this is so costly but I think the benefit will be greater long term. Utilizing this strategy will be better than RFID because of the it will be more efficient and technologically advanced than what RFID can achieve. -
1. How would you feel shopping in such a store?
I feel comfortable shopping in Amazon’s store. It could not only help us save time from waiting in line, but also make the payment process faster. The concern for digitalization like this would be cyber security and privacy issues. However, I think customers and the company could overcome these problems in the future.2.What do you think of the technology strategy vs. RFID?
I think Amazon’s technology strategy and RFID both have their own benefits. RFID is safer but more expensive as each product needs to have chips. As for Amazon’s technology strategy, it will improve its accuracy and data security over time, and it could help the company cut costs in the long run.
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 7 months ago
Here are a few videos on RFID.
1. Retail Shopper – ‘shoplifter’
2. Retail Shopper – elderly couple
3. IBM Commercial – boxes should drive
4. RFID in Supply Chain
5. RFID and Security
Commen […]
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Advantages:
– Speed & Convenience
– Effectivenes
– Security
Pitfalls:
– Scanning issues
– Security & privacy issues -
Benefits:
-Inventory tracking accuracy through reducing human error from less human contact.
-Process automation by eliminating hands on activities leading to increased efficiency.
-Fulfillment efficiency by reducing the time between warehousing and shipment.
-Efficient use of manpower to enable added value services by reducing repetitive hands on activities.Pitfalls:
-Security: RFID’s can be easily hacked to expose sensitive user data, such as credit card information -
Benefits:
– Reduces time in checking out items, organizing products in warehouses, etc.
– Reduces/eliminates errors, such as informing the worker when the wrong item is placed on the wrong shelf
– Voluminous items can be tracked by a scanner.Pitfalls:
– If other readers are nearby, they can pick up on the RFID, which exposes other peoples’ information.
– Easier for people to hack this information -
Benefits:
– Automates checkout process
– makes checkout quicker and easier
– Improves inventory management
– eliminates errors of placing merchandise in the wrong location
– tracks inventory whereabouts at all times
– Enables data storage
– transfers data/information regarding merchandise quicker and easierPitfalls:
– Security concerns
– easier access to people’s (private) information -
Benefits:
-Convenience in checking out
-Provides faster and efficient usage
-Inventory can be tracked and counted
-Gives real time data
Downfalls:
-Unsecure
-Easily hackable -
Benefits:
1. Easier tracking of shipments (international scales)
2. Provides information of the items
3. Reduce labor costs
4. Increase cost effectiveness (merchandise reaches destination faster – man power and means of transport are utilized more efficiently)
5. Ensure goods are in the right position (on the right pallets)
6. Information are kept up to date
Pitfalls:
1. Lack of security (credit card information can be easily hacked with a RFID tag reader) -
Benefits of RFID:
-Reduced manual labor
-Reduced labor costs
-Improved inventory planning
-Improved inventory management
-Improved inventory visibility
-Increased accuracy
-Increased efficiencyPitfalls of RFID:
-Decreased security at consumer level
-High cost to implement
-New technology may make RFID obsolete -
Benefits:
– Improved visibility for inventory
– Reduced manual and labor costs
– Increased automation, meaning less errors
– Real-time data is availablePitfalls:
– Costly
– Low level of security -
Benefits of RFID:
Increased efficiency
Reduction of human error
Increased speed
Real time data accessible
Supply chain improvements
Pitfalls:
Can be hacked
Tag could be removed and shoplifted
Ten times more costly than paper tags -
Advantages:
– increased efficiency / reduced errors
– increased speed
– reduced costs
Pitfalls:
– costly
– security -
Advantages:
– Convenience for customers
– Efficiency for firms
– Reduced costs as result of less shrinkage
– Better and more accurate data available throughout supply chain
Pitfalls:
– Possibility of scanning issues
– Possibility of unauthorized reading and/or hacking of information
– Can be costly to purchase and implement -
Pros:
– bringing down the cost for the whole supply chain. ( less labor, more efficiency)
– remote control and reduce human error
– providing data without the need of building the whole system with itCons:
-the privacy of data, it is easy for anyone to scan it with the right sensor
-could be pricey if you use it for each product
-depends on the type of the RFID, it could limit the range of scanning, which requires more sensors and increase cost for supple chain -
Benefits:
– Increase the efficiency of the process chain because RFID data are transferred without physical contact.
– Reduce the labor cost because RFID technology could fully automatic.
– Improve accuracy information: information could transfer to the merchandise management system, which reduces errors. Then RFID helps warehouse staffs tracking items status. Keep items in the right place with right time. -
Benefits:
– Increased visibility
– Increased information available
– Less shrinkage
– Less labor necessary
– Information in real-timePitfalls:
– Expensive to implement
– Data security issues
– Increased costs to keep data secure -
Benefits:
– Increases efficiency through less labor and reducing errors
– Increases visibility of product information and in real timeDownfalls:
– Expensive implimentation
– Data security issues (hacking) -
Benefits:
– Reduce manual power from factory to retail store
– Increase efficiencies for supply chain
– Reduce manual errors like transportation to the wrong way or putting goods on the wrong shelfPitfalls:
– Expensive to implement the technology for manufacture and retail stores
– Hacking issues
– It takes time to apply to all the stores -
Benefits:
-Accurate inventory because there are not manual inventory count which could be at risk for error.
-Less human capital costs because of automation
-Efficient transportation of goods between distributor and warehouse.Pitfalls:
-RFIDs carry a risk of being hacked
-Long time for implementation -
Benefits:
• Faster/simpler store checkout in the future
• Shipment tracking
• Inventory accuracy
• Increases efficiency in process chains (time is money, so costs decrease)
• Helps eliminate human error
• Simplifies storage of inventory in warehousesPitfalls:
• Security concerns: easily hackable (credit cards, identify theft, etc.)
• Accessibility of RFID readers ($8 in 2008) -
Benefits
-can track shipments and products more easy
-real time data
-faster check out at storesPitfalls
-Costly to implement such technology
-Posses security risks(hacking credit cards, identity theft, all within a matter of seconds) -
Benefits:
Increased efficiency
Increased accuracy
Increased visibility
Reduced labor costs
Real time informationPitfalls:
Implementation costs
Data security issues -
Benefits:
• Quick and easy checkout in the future
• Better shipment tracking
• Improve inventory accuracy
• Increases efficiency in process chains
• Eliminate human error
• Simplifies storage of inventory in warehouses
• Automated systems can be built onPitfalls:
• Security concerns, spoofing, and hackable
• Cost to implement
• Newer technologies on market -
Benefits:
-easier and quicker checkout
-better tracking ability for shipped products
-reduced labor with automated processes
-reduces human error
-higher order accuracyPitfalls:
-expensive implementation
-data security becomes a greater concern
-are able to be hacked -
Benefits:
– Identifies individual items or packages without physically scanning each item
– Can store data that barcodes can’t
– Integration with information systems can immediately tell if the shipment is of course and tell workers where shipments are/goPitfalls:
– Data in RFID’s can be easily hacked
– Can be costly to implement -
Benefits:
-Convenient tracking
-Quick checkout
-Higher accuracy
-Efficient data recordingPitfalls:
-Expensive
-Risk of hacking
-Long implementation process -
Benefits:
-Greater product visibility
-Increased security
-Lower cost of labor
-Decreased shrinkage
Pitfalls
-Expensive
-Non reusable
-Security breaches
-Equipment training -
Benefits:
-Convenience: easier and quicker
-Lower labor costs
-Reduces redundancy
Pitfalls:
-Security: could be hacked easily
-Expensive -
Benefits:
– increased accuracy
– increased speed
– decreased labor costs associated with time spent looking for goods
Pitfalls:
– expensive
– largely unnecessary for most warehouse operations
– security concerns
– training costs associated with implementation
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 7 months ago
Case questions are in this document.
Recommend you download your copy and complete your questions within this document template.
All groups (expect the group making the presentation) are required to submit […]
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
Think for 100 seconds, and summarize the key things that you learned in the class during Week 5:
Beer Game
Lecture about Why Supply Chain Choreography is difficult (bullwhip effect)?
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This week I learned the following:
Bullwhip Effect: Through the beer game and the in-class lecture, I learned about the disastrous effects small changes in downstream demand can have on upstream supply chain members such as massive inventory carrying costs and backorders. Additionally, I learned the four causes of the bullwhip effect (price fluctuation, rationing and shortage gaming, order batching, and demand forecast updating) and specific strategic measures to counteract it.
Information Sharing: By playing the Beer Game I learned how important it is for supply chain participants to share information as it can reduce costs (inventory and backorder costs) and increase the overall efficiency throughout the chain (normalized production and unified forecasts)
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After reviewing the cumulative cost detail upon completion of the simulation I found it really striking how all parties have to work in sync to ensure that there are no back logs or excessive inventory. Both of these can lead to high costs for any party within the supply chain. The chart on the cost detail shows peaks and valleys of these costs caused by the bullwhip effect. Accurate forecasting is key to prevent excessive costs.
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For the beer game, I think the communication plays a vital role in the supply chain. If there is not good communication, the bullwhip effect easily exists.
Bullwhip Effect: The bullwhip effect is the distorted information one end of suppliers to the other, and it will lead inefficiencies. The demand forecast updating, order batching, price fluctuation and rationing and shortage gaming will cause bullwhip effect. In addition, we can use some techniques to improve the information sharing, channel alignment, and operational efficiency. -
this week we worked on the beer game, and the main takeaways I have of the game are that the bull whip effect is difficult to predict. In the game when one of the members over shot his estimate that trickled through the supply chain, and the rest of the group was unable to catch up. By the time the rest of the group caught up the customer demand had diminished, and everyone was left with excessive inventory. This game showed how each level in the supply chain must be accurate, or problems will occur. Better communication between the different levels of the supply chain can aid this, but in reality each level would have to make these decisions themselves.
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As we worked on the beer game this past week i now understand how important communication and a proper supply chain is. without proper communication and understanding you will most likely encounter the bullwhip effect therefore making you order too much or too little of a product based off of pervious demand and with no proper future forecasts. This effect could drastically alter your business and revenue considering that you will either have too much of a good (making it go to waste) or too little of a good (not maximizing your revenue).
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During the beer game, I learned that overreacting to demand downstream and not communicating with other facets of the supply chain can lead to the bullwhip effect, which in turn raises total costs for the whole supply chain as every player attempts to remove their back orders and have safety stock on hand for the exaggerated demand. Then, when demand cools, players are left with way too much inventory on hand. During the lecture, I learned that the bullwhip effect can be counteracted by sharing data and creating a single forecast for the whole supply chain, instead of having multiple demand order forecasts. Using POS data can update the forecast to keep it from fluctuating too drastically.
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I learned about the bullwhip effect through actual practice by playing the Beer Game. I learned just how much communication at the right time is important to avoid overreactions by the manufactures, supplier, store, and customers. Furthermore, I learned how important it is to have real data in real time to avoid miscommunications with one’s partners. Furthermore, I learned about how some companies like HP and Pampers faced and dealt with the bull whip problem. And lastly, I learned about how one can counteract the bullwhip problem through better demand forecasting and sharing data with others.
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In week 5, we learned about the bullwhip effect through the Beer Game. One thing that I learned is that customer demand fluctuates a lot, so the supply chain gets chaotic when placing orders and receiving orders. Another thing I learned is that communication is essential when ordering shipments because if an order placed does not meet demand, there will be backlog and inventory costs. Furthermore, the bullwhip effect is not something one can easily control because of rapid changes in demand. Lastly, it is important to base forecasts on past data and not order inventory on a whim.
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The key things that I learned during week five for:
Beer Game
– Inefficient and lack of communication cause variability and fluctuation in the supply chain.
– Members of the supply chain (Retailer, Wholesaler, Distributor, and Factory) were confused with placing orders because of arising issues like shipment delay, backorder cost, and inventory cost.
– I also learned that efficient measures (i.e. sharing real-time data) need to be implemented to ensure a “smoother” supply chain (i.e. less confusion when placing orders).Lecture:
– Causes of the bullwhip effect include demand forecast updating, order batching, price fluctuation, and rationing and shortage gaming.
– There are countless measures to counteract these causes. For instance, a way to avoid multiple demand order forecasts is to share data and create demand forecasts using same raw data. Other ways include the use of point of sale data and electronic data interchange. -
After playing the beer game in week 5, one of the key things I learned is that communication between the different entities in a supply chain is absolutely crucial to keep supply and demand in order. For example, if there is a miscommunication between the retailer and distributor about the amount of product needed, it can lead something such as one of them having to much inventory compared to customer demand, which leads to increased holding costs. When proper communication is not in place, it can lead to the bullwhip affect which is another concept I was interested to learn about in week 5. The bullwhip affect is not easy to control due to possible rapid changes in demand, however can be managed with proper communication and data sharing between the key players in a supply chain. Things like accurate forecasting are needed to keep the bullwhip affect under control.
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This week I learned about two main concepts:
1) Information Sharing: It is important for participants of a supply chain to share information to reduce costs and increase efficiency. Through the Beer Game, I learned that specifically inventory and backorder costs can be reduced.
2) Bullwhip Effect: Small changes can have a negative effect on supply chain participants. For example, having large inventory carrying costs and backorders can have an effect on every supply chain participant. The main four causes of bullwhip effect are:
-Price fluctuation
-Rationing and Shortage Gaming
-Order Batching
-Demand Forecast Updating -
I think one of the most important things to learn and take away from the Beer Game is: not only is communication key, but it is also incredibly important to forecast and pace yourselves. In the simulation, it takes several rounds for decisions to reveal their impacts and effects. This is an important lesson for real life. While we may not see immediate effects of our decisions in a supply chain, they exist and they are impactful. Considering the non-visible and non-immediate impacts of ordering and production is critical to realizing success in a supply chain.
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Don’t expect trends to remain constant. I remember having an order from upstream needing 1,000,000+ units and thus I ordered 1,500,000 anticipating a similar order would come next, However, the following week was only a 50,000 order from upstream. Many things played into this bullwhip effect. Assumptions, lagged information and thinking an abundance of inventory will obviously get used up. This is an important thing to remember. Just because a trend keeps increasing, doesn’t mean that it will always be increasing. Also, although a decision you make in the 4th doesn’t seem like it’ll make a huge difference by the 20th week. By the time you get to that 20th week, you will be wishing you prepared better back in the 4th week.
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This week I learned how the bullwhip effect can create inefficiencies leading to high inventory and backorder costs. The beer game did not allow communication throughout the supply chain which caused these inefficiencies. Order quantities demanded by the end customer were volatile, so a lack of communication combined with the lead times of the manufacturing and distribution processes lead to large total costs weekly. Communication through information is key for this game. If all key players (manufacturer, distributor, warehouse, retailer) are in sync with customer demands and strategically planning the supply chain processes, success in the beer game is manageable. For this reason, our group chose the POS throughout the supply chain decision.
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What I learned this week:
– Bullwhip effect will take place when each step of the supply chain is ordering more than normal to make up for incremental increases in demand. Each cog in the chain orders more to fill demand and to keep reserve inventory. They completely stop ordering when they have inventory on hand and less demand.
– Playing the beer game was fun. Have to stay on top of orders and really pay attention to the orders to not have too much or too little inventory. -
The root beer game gave a first hand account on the bullwhip effect. The delay in information and transportation turned small changes in demand from the retailers into large swings in demand the further up your supply chain as each part of the chain play catch up with one another.
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The beer game gave insight and real experience of the bullwhip effect. It is hard to predict demand without communication from all participants. From the retailer to the factory, the inaccurate forecasting and lack of communicated caused a lot of troubles in the supply chain. We faced a lot of back orders and fluctuations in demands and orders placed. In the end, we tried to catch up and get rid of our large amount of back orders from the factory and distributor.
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Through the beer game, I learned just how disastrous the bullwhip effect can be, and how easily excess inventory or backorders can pile up. In previous classes, we had briefly discussed the concept, but the beer game definitely helped illustrate it in a memorable way. I look forward to trying the next round now that I understand the bullwhip effect better. I think communication will be especially important, as it will take the confusion and part of the frustration out of ordering.
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I learned in the Beer Game, that communication is key and not being able to do it during the first round made it difficult to keep costs low and inventory available. The Beer Game proved a good example of the Bullwhip Effect with the lack of communication distorting orders down the chain leading to high back orders and higher costs.
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I learned that communication and information transparency play important roles in the Beer Game. Another lesson is to set reducing backlog cost as top priority as it costs more. Since its hard to predict the demand of consumers, proper communication and management within the team are important before making decisions.
In addition, I learned the concept of bullwhip effect, the causes of it and different ways to counteract it, such as:
-Avoiding multiple demand forecasts
-Sharing data
-Creating demand forecasts using same raw data -
Week 5 takeaways:
Saw first hand in the Beer Game how lack of communication across the supply chain can really screw up ordering across the entire chain and have catastrophic results if not managed correctly. Also, how just one or two incorrectly placed orders can cause a ripple effect throughout the SC and it can take weeks, if not months, to fix and re-align inventory and backorders. We also discussed the causes of the bullwhip effect, and how to counter act it utilizing: the sharing of data and information, creating demand forecasts using the same data, computer assisted ordering, and stabilizing prices. -
Beer game lessons
During this lesson, I participated in the beer game and learned about he bullwhip effect. I have heard of this phenomenon before, but have never put it into practice in a simulation. It was unbelievable how frustrating it was not being able to communicate to my teammates and the a lack of transparency that occurred in the supply chain. Some key takeaways I took from the lesson and game were:
1. Combined multiple forcasts into one demand forecast.
2. Order batching may not be the best way to order products, instead have one EDI system so everyone can communicate effectively.
3. Have all tenants of supply chain use POS as their data for requesting orders. -
The Beer Game showed me that how the Bullwhip effect treats the different positions in the supply chain, it wasn’t as bad for the Retailer and got progressively worse for each step removed from the customer. It also showed the importance of communication in the supply chain. It was a fun way to learn that principle and I would recommend it to others.
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I think the biggest thing that I learned during the first week of the Beer Game was that you have to pace yourself and absolutely have to communicate with the other members of the supply chain. If you don’t order enough to start, then you’re going to end up overcompensating and driving costs way higher as well as having too much because you did not properly forecast. The absolute most important key is a proper knowledge of a forecast and communication with your team.
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In week 5 we learned about the bullwhip effect and continued it through the beer game. Some of the key things I learned is that when it comes to handling and controlling the bullwhip effect it isn’t easy. There are changes in demand that are hard to forecast but there are ways to make it easier, for instance through sharing data. As for the beer game, I learned the importance of managing the supply chain. It is essential to know and understand all information between each department otherwise it can lead to wrong products being ordered and shipped.
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The beer game simulation perfectly highlighted the complications associated with a company level supply chain. The most prevelant challenge encountered was a first hand experience of the Bullwhip Effect. Without proper communication between each level of the supply chain, the decisions each level made was an educated guess, attempting to accurately forecast the demand for the upcoming week. I have learned that although the Bullwhip Effect disrupts the supply chain in various ways, there are solutions to overcome the effect. Continuous communication between all levels and using data from previous sales records will result in more accurate forecasts and a better understanding of the customer’s demand trends.
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The beer game simulation does a great job demonstrating the effect of lead time on orders. Having to constantly order before you have even received previous quantities ordered. I can see now how this adds to the bullwhip effect. It would seem collaboration is key as well as using the same metrics on the same raw data.
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During the first rounds of the beer game, my group was highly confused, but as we kept working through the rounds I saw patterns cost and inventory. Having inventory ready to be shipped significantly lowered than cost than having the cases backordered. Strategy for the next round would be to record all quantities ordered for each round and account for the time it gets to the retailers.
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Key things I learned during Week 5’s class was the Bullwhip Effect and how important it is to supply chain partners. I learned how a change in demand at the lower level(retail) can cause an increase in costs for upstream supply chain members. For the beer game, in the beginning we didn’t understand the impact of our decisions but as the game went on we started to notice patterns and cause-effect relationships in regards to our decisions.
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The Beer game taught me that communication is a key asset in a supply chain to stay away from disastrous Bullwhip Effect. In this game, you must always have high amounts of inventory to take care of lead time and balance out the downstream and upstream of the supply chain. In the beginning of this game, it was a guess and check, from the retailer to wholesaler role. Moving forward, we must record all the quantities that we order and make sure the retailer understands these adjustments. The lecture did a nice job of explaining to evaluate the Point of Sales information in determining the amount to order.
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What I learned this week was that communication through the supply chain is the most critical component of the entire process. We learned about the bullwhip effect, and how costs can get out of control extremely fast if the supply chain is not handled efficiently. When you increase costs within the supply chain, it can trickle down to the customers and lead to price increases that could topple your business. Round 1 of the beer game showed how difficult it was to manage a supply chain without proper communication, and how disastrous that can be.
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After playing a few rounds of the beer game, I finally understand that communication is the key to an efficient supply chain. Without communication, Bullwhip effect will exist and disrupt the efficiencies of the supply chain process. The lack of communication will affect the number of orders that are needed and might create back orders as the decisions made are guesses.
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The Beer Game was a great way for us to learn about the Bullwhip effect in a real life scenario. By going through the exercise first we learned how drastically the Bullwhip Effect can cause issues in the supply chain. When the retailer had to change what they thought they would need it caused major differences for each of the following members of the supply chain and there were issues with inventory that followed. After looking back at the Beer Game I realize that communication on all levels and sharing demand is key among all the members of a supply chain.
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Week 5 taught me about the importance of communication in supply chain. Through the beer game simulation, I saw first hand how lack of communication can cause a Bullwhip Effect. This increases costs and reduces efficiency for every member of the supply chain. When all members communicate effectively, each member can appropriately adjust based on the demand keeping inventory levels at a normal rate without any backlog.
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– Beer Game: good and constant communication and up-to-date information is vital for the functioning of the supply chain. It was very challenging to coordinate our actions due to the delay in information and shipping. This was a great way to have a “hands-on” experience with the difficulties caused by the bullwhip effect and understand better how that works.
– SC Choreography: we learned that the smallest shift in demand can cause larger and larger distortions as it travels the supply chain. In order to avoid this, it is important that members of supply chain work with the same up-to-date data, or to create demand forecasts using the same raw data in order to avoid discrepancies. -
The Beer game simulations taught me that communication is critical to balance out demand and supply so that the cost of backlog and inventory carry cost can be minimizing. it is very important to know all the circumstances before making a decision and being able to forecast is critical as well. That also related to supply chain choreography as well, it’s like the butterfly effect, one mistake with the order can cause a long-term loss for the whole supply chain.
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There were some clear takeaways when playing the beer game. The biggest was that the most important aspect of creating an important supply chain is to have clear and consistent communication between the members within the specific chain. Sharing information such as customer demand, forecasts, time between shipments will increase awareness and understanding in all aspects of the supply chain. However, when there is lack or inefficient communication it causes fluctuation and variability within the supply chain. Some of the causes of the bullwhip effect include demand forecasting, order batching, price fluctuation, shortage gaming, and lack of communication. A small shift in demand or ordering in the lower part of the supply chain has the ability to create a distortion with the ability to greatly impact the inventory or back order log of the wholesaler, distributor, and manufacturer.
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One of the most important things I got out of the game was that communication is key throughout all parts of the supply chain. New communication technologies are very useful to invest in. Efficient communication allows important information to be shared to have a smooth supply chain. Not communicating properly would make way for the bullwhip effect. This can be prevented when everyone is on the same page. Back log would be prevented, which could take weeks to fix and cause a lot of frustration.
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I learned that as important as communication is to the successful execution of a cost-effective supply chain, it is also just as difficult to perfect. One problem I kept running into was the difficulty in creating and adequately communicating a supply chain strategy with my group. Part of the problem could have been with regards to understanding just how the bullwhip effect makes its way through the different units of the supply chain. The 2-week delay in order speed was also a difficult concept to fully master, creating some very exaggerated orders being placed at various times in our supply chain. But just because it’s difficult does not mean that it should not be prioritized. Communication is the first line of defense in guarding against the bullwhip effect – without it, companies are exposed to massive amount of unnecessary cost increases and financial friction along their supply chains.
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From the beer game I learned that communication is key to avoid the bullwhip effect and that even the smallest hiccup in a line of communication can lead to major inventory disasters. SC managers need to make sure that the flow of communication, as well as the flow of products, stays open and steady. We learned that the bullwhip effect can occur quite easily, and so each employee must be responsible for the part that they play in the supply chain or else the product flow will be interrupted.
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
Article: The Bullwhip Effect in Supply Chains
Video explaining the bullwhip effect:
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
MIS 3537: Internet & Supply Chains
Due Date: March 19
We will complete the Root Beer Game as per the following schedule:1. Practice session in class (completed) – February 12
2. Completion of round 1 – […]
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
The Midterm exam will be conducted by Blackboard in-class on Monday February 26.
Some specifics:
The test will consist of all the topics that we discussed in the class, as well as the material […]
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
Article about B2B Markets Link
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
MIS 3537
Internet Enabled Supply Chains
Due Date: February 12, 2018
Refer to the case “World Wide Technology and Clearorbit: Enabling Supply Chain Collaboration” on the HBSP website.Answer the follo […]
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
To prepare for the Beer Game, you should:
1. Visit the URL to complete the registration. Note: each group member needs to register separately. Also, this link is different from the one you download case stu […]
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Nikos Dalaperas
Thomas Roman
John Healy
Andrew Levandowski -
Yanisha Benjamin
Girishma Narang
Kathleen Nguyen
Theresa Nguyen -
Mingxuan Zhang
Chrisropher Kutzler
Jack Martin
Liwei YI -
Paul Weeks
Matthew Funk
Matthew Whittaker
Tom Moran -
Caroline Caster
Adam Snyder
Nate Huber
Rabah Arib -
Aidan Clinton
Caroline Davies
Drew Holt
Levi Penrod -
Noah Gottlieb
Alex Naydock
Jake Zenisek
Nick Gormley -
Austin Severns
Patrick Nelson
Matthew Miller
Kamal Patel -
Liming Cheng
Mark Cylinder
Ethan Mandel
Melissa Krieger-
Never mind
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Still looking for a group. Need people. Let me know if you still need a group. tuf51684@temple.edu
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Broderick Walker
Andy Lau
Elizabeth Davies
Danielle Cassidy -
Chi Ho Max Tong
Rayanna Larissa Ruani
Sofia Younes
Michael Sharpe -
I missed class last week. Is anyone still looking for a group?
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Matt Miller
Austin Severns
Kelly Conger
Kamal Patel -
Liming Cheng
Cuc Chim
Melissa Krieger
Haifa Roslan
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
Background: A few students were not able to participate in a case group prior to the first case (Crocs) assignment being due. Hence, as promised, this is the alternate assignment for those few folks. This is no […]
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
Warehouse management is a key challenge for companies selling goods on the internet. As we discussed in class, companies such as Zappos use robots to automate the process. Here are a couple of videos about the […]
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The following are benefits of Kiva to Zappos:
1. Employee satisfaction – peaceful (no yelling – quieter), job is no longer as physically challenging, less injuries
2. 50% reduction in labor on outbound side of business
3. Defect rate – essentially 0%; order accuracy – close to 100%
4. Training cycle time – less than 1/2 day to train as opposed to about 4 days before
5. Increased storage density – approximately 80% better
6. Speed – only 12 minutes to get customer’s order prepared
7. Energy savings – robots don’t need light or climate control (to the same extent as humans)
8. 24/7 labor
9. Less shrinkage – robots don’t steal itemsBecause of the above reasons, Zappos was able to save money, better serve customers by preparing orders faster, and increase employee morale by creating a better work environment.
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Kiva
1. 24/7 uptime: Allows Zappos to pack and ship products faster and maintaining their commitment towards 5-day shipping
2. Efficient packing process: Kiva removes the necessity for packers at the fulfillment center to walk around the warehouse looking for items. Rather, the products are brought to the employee thus doubling productivity.
3. Inventory Accuracy: Inventory accuracy increased to nearly 100%
4. Safety: Incidents dropped from two-three a week to virtually zero.
5. Removes Complexity: Kiva removes complexity from the single/multi order packing process reducing the multi order packing time from between 48 minutes and 3 hours to only 12 minutes.
6. Employee Utilization: Employees are at near 100% utilization during the work day with little to no down time.
7. Optimized workspace: Employees work in a quieter, more ergonomic environment. This also enables for effective communication among fulfillment employees as they don’t have to yell to get a message across.
8. Defect Rate: Defect rates reduced to nearly 0%
9. Training cycle time: Reduced the training cycle time from four days to half a day
10. Square footage utilization: 80% improvement in square footage utilization over traditional method
11. Energy savings: Reduction in need for lights to be turned on and climate control in the Kiva area resulting for smaller electricity bills.
12. Decline in pilfering: The Kiva area is blocked off for employees, so pilfering of products has declined. -
Some benefits of Kiva to Zappos are:
1. Increased productivity
2. Increased order accuracy and speed
3. Better utilization of space management
4. Mobile and modular
5. Flexibility for expansion
6. Reliability – little to no downtime
7. Inexpensive to operate
8. Reduce labor requirements by bringing inventory directly to workers. -
The benefits of Kiva to Zappos include:
1. Quick implementation
2. Increased productivity
3. Increased inventory accuracy (nearly 100%)
4. Increased safety – no incidents in Kiva area at time of video
5. Adaptable to Zappos’ different storage needs
6. Removes complexity
7. More efficient use of labor – 50% reduction in labor
8. Less strain on employees
9. More peaceful environment
10. Decreased training cycle times from 4 days to less than half a day
11. Better space utilization
12. More time efficient
13. Energy savings
14. Less downtime – full capacity possible 24/7 -
Some benefits of Kiva to Zappos include:
1. Increased Inventory accuracy- about 100%
2. Defect rate- 0%
3. Improvement in safety- before there were two to three incidents a week or a month, now there are 0 incidents
4. Removes complexity
5. Better working environment- peaceful, quiet, effective communication (i.e. less yelling)
6. Efficient labor performance/producitivity- perform twice the work in half the time
7. Employee satisfaction
8. Improvement in training cycle time- less than half a day to train
9. Optimal Storage utilization- 80% better than the square footage utilization of the traditional approach
10. Improvement in material handling- takes 12 minutes to prepare customers’ orders- reduction in preparation time without extra expense
11. Energy savings
12. Provides natural security- less shrinkage
13. Quick implementation of Kiva -
Benefits of Kiva to Zappos:
1. Increased Productivity
2. Removes Complexity
3. Defect Rate= 0%
4. More Peaceful environment
5. Better Space Utilization
6. More time efficient
7. Energy savings
8. Employee savings
9. Better Working environment
10. Adaptable to Zappos different storage needs -
Some benefits of Kiva to Zappos are:
1) Energy saving
2) Training cycle time is reduced
3) Natural security
4) Noise reduction in the warehouse
5) Fast speed efficiency allows for quicker shipping
6) Robots can work almost 24/7 and is powered by charging
7) Each robot can navigate around accidents, which reduces inefficiency
8) Each robot can carry a large quantity of units
9) More space within the warehouse -
Benefits of Kiva to Zappos:
1. Quick Implementation
2. Increased productivity
3. Increased labor performance
4. Decreased loss of inventory
5. Efficient use of space
6. Energy savings
7. No more safety risks, employees are more satisifed -
KIVA is an extremely sophisticated technology that I was fascinated with when I first watched these videos. There are countless benefits that KIVA provides, with the highlights being:
1. Increased productivity – KIVA bots have a queue of work to be completed each day; no standing around
2. Minimal product defects (they think 0%)
3. Massive increases in inventory accuracy (they think its 100%)
4. Labor cost reductions (roughly 50%)
5. Huge decreases in order completion time – multiple robots gathering items for the same order rather than just one workerThese robots are exactly what people are scared about when they read articles titled “Robots are coming for your job”. Unfortunately, many warehouse workers may get laid off, but not without a chance to prove themselves. On the bright side, KIVA robots and others are helping successful companies thrive, allowing for continuous growth.
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The benefits to Zappos from utilizing Kiva are:
1. Productivity has roughly doubled
2. 100% inventory accuracy
3. Increase in worker safety, 0 incidents in areas using Kiva
4. Flexible use of Kiva’s vertical storage units
5. Simplifies single and multi-order separation process
6. 50% reduction in labor on the outbound side of the business
7. 0% defect rate
8. Simplifies manual labor from employees
9. Reduced employee training duration from 4 days to half a day
10. Storage utilization is 80% better than traditional storage unit
11. Traditional order process: 48 minutes to 3 ½ hours
Kiva order process: 12 minutes
12. Energy savings in Kiva areas -
Some benefits of Kiva to Zappos are:
1) Decrease labor cost
2) Inventory accuracy
3) Safety- Robot moving products in the warehouse make more safe for the employees
4) Efficient labor by maximising productivity in a timely manners.
5) Improvement in space utilization
6) Speeding delivery time
7) Save Energy -
Kiva and Zappos:
1. Improved accuracy
2. Less frustrating working with the robots for the other workers – quiet and simple
3. Training cycle time is faster
4. 80% better than the other part of the building
5. Quick – improving service at a small cost
6. Energy saving – only turning on lights in the warehouse where the people are
7. Less of an opportunity for shrinkage
8. Partnership experience
Overall Kiva has improved the efficiency of Zappos warehouse resulting in: cost savings and speed of service. These robots have created a partnership with Zappos team from the higher level executives to the floor employees. Making the supply chain process better for everyone at the company. -
Kiva offers several business benefits:
1. Improved efficiency in multiple aspects.
a. Increased capacity
b. Increased productivity (robots can do tasks faster, for longer periods of time, etc.)
c. Energy saving (robots do not need lights)
d. Improved accuracy
2. Warehouse safety
3. Employee satisfaction
4. Simplification of processes
5. Time (Kiva order process only 12 minutes)
6. Utilization of all available space. -
The benefits of the KIVA systems to Zappos are as follows:
1. Increase in total capacity
2. Increase in efficiency/ accuracy
3. Increase in safety
4. Reduction of time (time is money)
5. Reduction of energy costs
6. Reduction of labor costs
7. Increased ease of movement for employees
8. 24/7 function capabilities -
– Kiva changes traditional assemble way.
– The robot does not sleep and keep the high speed for working in the warehouse. It means robots could stay full capacity a whole day
Benefits for Kiva
– The centralized server assign works to the robot, and it has the distributed intelligence.
– Distributed intelligence monitors Robots action, reduce errors.
– Double productivity because Kiva has high efficiency.
– High accuracy inventory because of many times cycle counting
– Reduce complexity
– Provide a comfortable environment for a warehouse.
– Reduce labor cost such as decreasing 50% of labor cost.
– Warehouse staff improves productivity by using robots. -
Kiva’s benefits to Zappos:
○ Kiva reduces the training time of new employees
○ Kiva robots reduce electricity and heating/cooling expenditures
○ Storage area for Kiva robots is meant to be without people, which reduces shrinkage
○ Significant decrease of safety issues compared to traditional warehouse
○ Improved employee morale
○ 24/7 warehousing operation
○ Reduced time to deliver an order
○ Productivity doubled -
The Kiva robots provide:
– Increased speed/efficiency — no bottlenecks and robots are able to find and transport items through the warehouse much faster
– Much higher productivity and safety — robots almost never make mistakes or accidents
– Great increase in inventory accuracy and defect rate reduced to 0%
– Zappos was able to adapt pods to its specific storage needs
– Relatively short time to implement the process (took 4 months from contract execution)
– Queue at work — no idle “workers”
– Peaceful work environment for operators and reduced walking
– Less than half-day of training for new employees in the Kiva section, as opposed to four days in the traditional section
– Saving on energy — do not need lights on or climate control -
The benefits of Kiva to Zappos include the following:
-Quick implementation
-Increased productivity
-Increased inventory accuracy
-Increased safety
-Removes complexity
-Less strain on employees
-More peaceful environment
-Decreased training cycle times from 4 days to less than half a day
-Better space utilization
-More time efficient
-Energy savings
-Less downtime -
There are tremendous benefits from using Kiva robots. Some benefits include:
-Optimal safety
-Great accuracy (less room for human error)
-Elminating chances of human injury
-Saving time/improved efficiency
-Almost doubled productivity
-No defects
-No loss of inventory
-Saving labor costs
-Robots could work the whole day
-Better/decreased use of spaceThe list goes on.
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Kiva offers many benefits for Zapos. A few of these benefits are:
– increased efficiency
– shorter picking times
– eliminating human error
– reduced possibility of worker injury
– more consistent work
– decreased training times
– allows warehouse to be in use 24/7As well as many other benefits.
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Kiva Summary
– Using Kiva, Zappo’s is able to better maintain its best in class service with 5 day shipping.
– Employee productivity is nearly doubled and employees have a quieter work environment.
– Inventory is less likely to be misplaced during transportation on the floor.
– Accidents dropped from on a weekly basis to rare to zero.
– Training cycle time was reduced by 8 times.
– Need for lights was decreased saving costs and better environmental impact. -
Benefits to Zappos from Kiva:
– Allows handling of many SKU’s with minimal error through automated handling
– Lowers the cost of human labor by replacing what would normally be employees.
– Training was reduced from 4 days to 1/2 days
– Saved energy without needing use of lighting or heating/cooling
– Worked 24/7 -
Benefits of Kiva to Zappos:
1. Increase productivity – finish tasks twice than the traditional building
2. Employee satisfaction – more serene, less physical work
3. Energy saving – reduce the cost of utility (lights, air conditioner, etc.)
4. Security – fewer people around
5. Reduce the time to train employee
6. Increase the total capacity
7. Shorten the delivery time
8. Utilization of all available space in warehouse -
Benefits of Kiva to Zappos:
1. Increase in safety
2. Increase work efficiency – Workers are always on task
3. The Kiva section creates a peaceful and quieter environment for Zappos workers
4. Reduce time to deliver an order because the robot goes to worker instead of employee having to walk around
5. Energy saving (the robots does not need light)
6. Improve training cycle time
7. 100% inventory accuracy
8. Optimal storage utilization- 80% better than the square footage utilization of the traditional approach
9. Climate control – for employees comfort
10. Natural security -
Kiva robot benefits:
-increase in productivity
-no errors & 100% accurate
-Lowers cost of labor and 24/7 service
-Robots are quicker and can load more shoes than a worker
-Better storage/more storage space -
the benefits of Kiva to Zappos:
1. lowering the cost of labor
2. reduce the percentage of accidents
3. with the right programming, efficiency can be increased and errors can be reduced.
4. employee benefits so that they can have a friendly working environment
5. lowering the training cost by lowering the training time
6. everything become more simple and easier. -
Benefits of Kiva to Zappos:
1. Optimizing safety, and working conditions
2. Increase efficiency and productivity
3. Reduction of human made errors
4. Lowers costs by reducing training time, and reducing man power needed
5. No loss of inventory (shrink)
6. Comfortable working environment (temperature and work culture)
7. Utilization of all workable space -
Benefits of Kiva:
1. Increased efficiency
2. Reduced lighting costs
3. Reduced heating/cooling costs
4. Decreased travel time in warehouse
5. More comfortable environment for workers
6. Reduced labor costs by 50%
7. Accidents are near 0 -
Benefits to Zappos:
– Decrease in labor costs
– Increase in picking efficiency (items are brought to pickers)
– More visibility on where items are
– No downtime. Using robots means they can operate around the clock
– Fewer energy costs. Don’t have to keep the warehouse as warm or as well lit for robots.
– Relatively quick implementation
– Increased safety -
Benefits of Kiva:
– Increase in picking productivity
– Increase in order/picking accuracy
– Increased safety since robots can’t be harmed like humans
– Increased work-time since robots can work around the clock
– Increase in energy efficiency
– Decreases costs in terms of labor costs and training costs
– Decrease in inventory shrink
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
Here is a diagram (sap scm) showing the different software modules used in supply chain management (per a leading I/T supplier – SAP).
Based on this, do you think MIS professionals need to understand supply c […]
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Yes, I do think that MIS professionals need to understand supply chains. This is because SAP is constantly evolving moving from large corporations to small businesses. This software covers all aspect of a business as it is shown in the diagram such as Procurement, Production, Distribution, and Sales. Having an MIS technical background with a supply chain operational mindset is necessary to analyze data in the short term and long term process. An IT analyst position in many jobs consists of studying SAP information and using this to plan for production, transportation, and even distribution. Overall, these two professions go hand in hand in a business and this diagram explains it clearly.
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Yes, MIS professionals do need to understand supply chains because it gives them a better understanding of the firm. From looking at the diagram, one can see the different software modules that are both long term and short term to the SCM. The way I look at it is that MIS professionals would be able to follow the process flow of the supply chain (Procurement -> Production -> Distribution -> Sales) and develop an understanding of how the data from different modules impact each step. Once they gain an understanding of the supply chain, they are able to better communicate their findings and help the firm with better decision-making in the future.
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MIS professionals absolutely need to understand supply chains. Based on this diagram there are a multitude of systems that are independent of one another (i.e production planning, transportation planning, and demand planning.). Having a robust understanding of how each system works with each section of the supply chain (procurement, production, distribution, sales) and what data is needed at each step is crucial. An MIS professional in this case would need to extract, transform, and load data across steps of the supply chain to ensure efficiency and maintain uptime.
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Yes, MIS professionals should have at least a basic understanding of the supply chain process. I have always strongly believed that MIS and SCM go hand in hand. The two technologies, at their core, are implemented to simplify processes, cut costs, and maximize business efficiency. One is a more technical application and the other is more physical. MIS integrates the technology needed in order for most companies to have as efficient of a supply chain as possible.
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MIS professionals need to understand how supply chains work and the different functional areas of the supply chains. Each functional area of the supply chain has a software system for it and these software systems need to be able to communicate effectively with the other functional areas of the supply chain in order to achieve business objectives and to streamline the supply chain process. MIS professionals need to understand supply chains to help improve the process by implementing such software systems.
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MIS professionals need to understand supply chains. The systems flow off of each other – procurement, production, distribution and sales. With an IT background and understanding supply chain, analysts are able to know what data is necessary and how to perform each step efficiently. Without the knowledge of supply chain, IT professionals would have a hard time implementing systems.
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MIS professionals definitely need to understand supply chains in order to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the firm. Looking at the diagram, you can see the different processes (Procurement, Production, Distribution, and Sales) and the different software applications needed for each of those processes (SNP, PP/DS, TP/VS, DP, gATP). If MIS professionals understand the different areas of supply chain, then MIS professionals can better develop and implement the technological tools used for data management. Developing proper tools would help produce greater results for the firm, by improving their decision-making and ways of managing information.
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Yes, MIS professionals need to understand supply chains. As seen in the diagram, there is a lot of overlapping departments and duties that are involved in implementing SCM, and using SAP to make it as efficient as possible would require full understanding of the SC planning. It is important that all of the data throughout the departments (Procurement, Production, Distribution, Sales) is fully understood and analyzed by the MIS professional to recognize the maximum value they can recognize.
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MIS professionals, as well as all people working in business, need to understand supply chains, as supply chain management only continues to grow in importance due to global expansion and increased competition due to technological advancements. Specifically, MIS professionals need to understand the supply chain in regards to supply network planning, procurement planning, production planning, detailed scheduling, distribution planning/deployment, transportation planning, demand planning, and global ATP. In creating, implementing, and analyzing planning systems, MIS professionals must consider the supply chain as a whole and how each part betters it.
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Yes, MIS professional managers need to understand Supply Chain. From the SAP SCM solution diagram, it clearly displays the process of the supply chain from procurement to sales. Supply chain is complicated progress. Sometimes SCM departments make a plan from long-term to short-term. For example, SCM departments should make year plans for procurement, production, distribution, and sales. Then, they also need to take weekly plans. MIS software enables SCM plans to virtual, and manage these plans by software such as ERD, SAP.So, MIS professional managers require to understand supply chain and help to establish flexible supply chain system for companies.
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MIS professionals can only benefit from understanding Supply Chain principles. In the SAP diagram, there are many business processes that are interdependent of one another. An adequate understanding of supply chain enables MIS professionals to understand the relationships between business processes, which better allows them to determine the IT relationship to those processes. In summary, supply chain knowledge enables MIS professionals to do their jobs better and more efficiently.
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Yes, MIS professionals need to understand SC. They need to because it is imperative for them to analyze and make data charts with supply chain metrics in order to help their business with information. Additionally, they need to know SC because they need to know the flow of information, products, and fiance to facilitate better decision making. Lastly, they need to know what decisions and changes can be made according to the long term, short, terms time periods the business faces.
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Yes, MIS professionals need to understand the supply chain. The supply chain is a complex system made of many different parts that often require different types of software for optimization. It is important that an MIS professional thoroughly understands each part of the supply chain and its objectives in order to effectively apply the proper technology to meet both long- and short-term goals.
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Understanding supply chains is crucial for all business professionals, including MIS professionals. While knowing each step of Supply Chain Management is important, understanding how each step works and how the steps in combination can boost customer service, reduce operating costs, and increase profits is of utmost importance. MIS integrates technology with business, which is the foundation of SCM in today’s business world. Proper understanding and utilization of SCM can be the difference between a successful company and a failing company.
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Yes, MIS professionals need to understand supply chain.
I believe regardless of your position in a business everyone should understand supply chain and how it affects them. Overall, supply chain overlaps with all entities in a business (finance, accounting, ect). Technology is the driving force for a supply chain to run efficiently. If a MIS professional does not understand how they can affect supply chain, it can lead to an increase or decrease in customer service, costs, and ultimately gross profit.
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Companies have ERP systems to make businesses processes simpler and more efficient. The supply chain is how a company makes its money, through supply and demand. So, yes, MIS professionals need to understand supply chains because the systems that are being created have much to do with several supply chain functions such as supply network planning, transportation planning, demand panning, etc.
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MIS professionals probably need to have a basic understanding of what a supply chain is and how it works – MIS professionals are often tasked with creating or implementing systems that facilitate cooperation between different business functions. The “supply chain” is a series of processes that weave between standard business functions like accounting or marketing, so MIS professionals should consider this when designing their systems. An example would be an SAP system that connects the accounting department, the inventory system, and the marketing department; someone without a good understanding of the flow from production to shipment would probably make a less intuitive system.
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I believe that MIS professional should understand supply chains. Often times MIS will have to work with other departments. Being able to understand the supply chain is essential in streamlining processes through software like SAP. Being able to understand supply chain allows for a more accurate decision when implementing software systems.
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MIS professionals must understand supply chains. Without a foundational understanding of supply chain systems, MIS professionals will not be able to create solutions to tackle the issues which are ever present in a variety of business sectors. Supply chain focuses on the relationships of many moving parts, independent and dependent to other parts. An MIS professional must have exposure to this train of thought if they intend on creating valuable solutions.
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Yes, it is very important and essential that Management Information System professionals must understand supply chains and how they work. I/T and supply chains go hand in hand to increase efficiency in multiple areas, including inventory control, manufacturing capability and overview, customer relationship management, and so on. Supply Chain essentially provides all the steps of getting inventory from the origin to the destinations, through manufacturing, production, and so on ultimately leading to the consumer. If an MIS professional is aware of this process and what must be implemented through it, they are able and capable of creating innovations in a SC to become more efficient and deliver results quicker and with reduction in errors and backlogs.
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Yes, MIS professionals need to understand supply chains. Because under the IT architecture of SCM including different IT system. Each IT system has a different operating system or software modules that related to supply chain like SNP, DP, PP/DS, etc. So the MIS professionals need to understand the function of each software module and the interrelationship and the goal to build the SAP SCM solution.
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Based on the diagram, I think it is crucial for MIS professionals to understand supply chains, because they need to understand the flow of the software modules. There are a plethora of applications needed for each of the processes (PP/DS, SNP, Gatp, etc). Possessing the ability to interpret the supply chain will give MIS professionals an advantage and help run the supply chain efficiently.
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It is crucial that professionals in the MIS are need to understand supply chains. If they do not understand the function of each software module they will have difficulty building the solution to their MIS problems. I/T and supply chains work together to make a company more efficient, and lack of knowledge on them would badly hurt someone competing in the information systems world. The understanding of SCM is the key to helping a company reach its short and long term goals for efficiency.
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Do MIS Professionals need to understand Supply chain? Why?
It is imperative that MIS professionals understand supply chain. As shown in the diagram, short and long term decision planning is coordinated and mapped out by each process. By understanding the sequence and details of each process MIS professionals can plan accordingly based on the data needed. An MIS professional would extract and transform the data to maintain the process and create efficiencies. In an instance that a company wanted to improve its processes, an MIS professional could use this understanding to make the right decisions for the company. -
It is very important for MIS professionals to understand supply chains and the various business processes performed by the majority of supply chains. Since MIS professionals are often designing and aiding in the implementation of systems that are crucial to improving supply chains, they must be aware of all of the business rules that occur throughout the supply chain process. In particular, vast amounts of data are transferred in and out of supply chains and it is the role of MIS professionals to strategize how this data is normalized and how it flows throughout the supply chain.
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Understanding how the supply chain works is crucial for professionals in the MIS field. It is important to understand where the information you are dealing with comes from and where it is going. Each process in the supply chain is very dependent on its predecessor and equally important to its successor. Knowing the relation between each stage and which software modules are used in each can help MIS professionals have a better understanding of the data they are dealing with and how that data should be presented to the next stage, in order to increase efficiency through data standardization.
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It is definitely important for MIS professionals to understand supply chains. Procurement, production, distribution, and sales all go through many different long-term and short-term software modules. Understanding the flow of these modules is important due to the fact that there are multiple modules involved for each process. MIS professionals are usually the ones designing and improving on these modules, so understanding how supply chains work is necessary for the purpose for making each module as efficient as possible.
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MIS professionals absolutely need to understand supply chains. The decision making process is all laid out on the diagram, which can be tracked and recorded using information systems. By tracking and recording, professionals can see areas where the supply chain can be improved, making the whole process more efficient. Understanding the process ensures the correct products reach the correct destinations on time by making the correct decisions. Accuracy and efficiency of the supply chain are heavily controlled by information systems, requiring the need for MIS professionals to understand it.
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Yes, MIS professionals need to understand supply chains because information systems are very closely related to most companies’ supply chains. Supply chains rely on an accurate and efficient flow of information to operate and remain competitive, so its important for MIS professionals to understand how this information flows through the supply chain so that they can enable companies to operate at their most efficient level through improving information systems and responding to areas of need, such as manual communication tasks or other areas that can be disrupted/negatively impacted by human error.
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Yes, MIS professionals definitely need to understand supply chain. Supply chain not only goes into many different things throughout the business world, but it is also very closely linked with MIS. MIS deals with the flow of information and how to make it as seamless as possible, whereas supply chain deals with the flow of materials with the goal to make it as efficient and seamless as possible. Looking at the diagram, it is essentially merging the two worlds so that the flow of information assists the flow of product through a supply chain system, without one, the other would be rendered useless.
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Yes, MIS professionals do need to understand supply chains because it allows them to have better ideas about the company functionality and adapt the appropriate software in order to be efficient. The supply chain is very critical for any company because it have a direct impact on the firm’s success. So, MIS professionals can make a difference by knowing the complexity of the supply chain operations and adapt the adequate modules to make the supply chain process more performant as shown in the diagram. When MIS professionals are more familiar with the supply chain, they can help on the performance of the supply chain management and reduce its cost which lead to more profitability.
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Yes, it is important for MIS to understand supply chains in order to understand which processes will hold the company back and increases costs. Understanding the supply chain allows one ti understand each department and overall flow of a company. Cutting out one or more processes may increase efficiency and decrease costs.
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Yes, MIS professional need to understand supply chains because there are different operating system and software modules that are related to the supply chain. For example, SAP SCM solution. The SAP solution covers from supply chain networking to supply chain coordination. Some of the different S.C modules that needs to be understand are SNP, PP/DS, TP/VS, DP and gATP. Therefore, it is important for MIS professionals to understand the basic fundamentals of what supply chain is to aid them on building the SAP SCM solution.
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Yes, MIS professionals need to understand supply chains to better optimize the software they are developing. By having a better understanding of the supply chain the MIS software is managing, the better these professionals will understand the needs, and shortcomings that their software may have. Additionally, better understanding of the supply chain could give a particular MIS software a competitive advantage, as it is better at managing some part of the supply chain, such as the upstream or downstream activities.
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MIS professionals should hold a stable understanding of SCs to better optimize their software developments. MIS professionals should observe and understand all moving parts to an org’s SC, especially those areas that use or are Internet enabled. If an MIS professional understands the dynamics and nuances of an org’s SC, they can gain greater insight into developing a stronger solution via web/database design.
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MIS professionals should definitely be able to have an understanding of the supply chains because each and every part of the supply chain involves software and these softwares often need to speak to each other. Having an understanding of what the supply chain actually does will aid in understanding of what is necessary in the software and how it can be improved. It is very necessary to have a thorough understanding so that all of the softwares can speak together and be most efficient while handling the supply chain.
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it is a must for MIS professionals to understand the supply chain management, due to the responsibilities of MIS professional that have to deal with software development as well as creating the flowchart, database, and etc. Having the basic understanding of the “language” within Supply chain can go a long way and notice what to do and what is needed to improve, how to improve as well as the possibilities of starting from scratch. MIS professionals are also the bridge between business people and non-business people, having the understanding of both “languages” can be easier to communicate and work toward the same goal in the team.
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MIS professionals definitely need to understand supply chain management. Information management systems drive just about every company’s operations. Without MIS professionals to design, implement, and improve these systems, they are essentially useless. By understanding how the supply chain works, MIS professionals can leverage that knowledge to help build or customize an information system that will best fit a company’s needs.
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MIS professionals definitely need to know about supply chain. They are a major part of it, due to the flow of information which MIS is often part of. Along with that, MIS professionals take care of the systems that supply chain professionals need to use. When MIS and Supply Chain professionals work together, the systems that are created and maintained are best for the company.
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
This article describes how the internet has changed the supply chains: Link
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
Think for 100 seconds, and summarize a few key things that you learned in the class in week 2 – Crocs case and Lecture about How the Internet Affects the Supply Chain?
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The main point that I grasped from the Crocs case would be Crocs core competencies and how they were able to distinguish themselves from competitors. One competency that caught my attention would be Crocs flexible supply chain and how it helps Crocs increase profitability. Another competency would be Crocs croslite material and unique design material that attracted a niche market, which overall increased sales. In class, we discussed how IT drives change by offering data insights and an overview of real-time or super-computing. Lastly, we explained how eDesign has provided product innovation on the web. The application eDesign is able to bring different ideas from different teams in a company all together.
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A few key things that I learned in the second week of class are:
Crocs Case:
– Crocs’ highly flexible supply chain allows the company to easily adjust to fluctuating demands and gives the company a competitive advantage, which helps drive growth.
– Crocs made several changes to their supply chain to adapt for profits and adjust to growing demands.Internet Effect on Supply Chain:
– Virtually synchronize the supply chain and improve collaboration.
– The collaborative approach involved the sharing of data between suppliers, customers, and channel partners, leading to benefits of increased trust levels and broader optimization.
– eDesign minimizes product life cycles through integration and increase the flow of information. -
There were many key takeaways from Class Session #2 from the crocs case to the presentation on how the internet affected the supply chain across many industries. The main point I took from Croc’s core competencies was how thee were able to build an integrated vertical supply chain by owning all the pieces in the supply chain for their flagship product and how much of a difference it made for them and their profit margins. The main thing I took away from the presentation about the internet and supply chains is that companies must learn to adapt with the macro-environment in order to sustain whatever competitive advantage they already have.
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Main points and takeaways from week 2:
Crocs Case:
-One of Crocs core competencies was its “can do” culture, allowing the company its flexible supply chain and its quick move from database to ERP system
-Crocs smaller order sizes allows for higher margins and better interactions with customers
Internet Effect on Supply Chain:
– IT drives change with SC in many ways such as improving user experience and creating more options
-E designs shrink product lifecycle through integration and rapid flow of information -
Takeaways from Crocs Case Study
– Advantages a flexible supply chain has towards adjusting to market trends and customization.
– Importances of creating products in smaller batches (better quality control and less wasted, unsuccessful products)
– Importance of global market penetration and where to manufacture in elation to final end consumers.Takeaways from Lecture
– IT has been a great facilitator of the many moving pieces with SC (from in/out bound logistics, to sourcing and transportation, to communicating with vendors)
– eDesign improves realtime, cross company collaboration and design of “friendly” products
– eMediaries are types of online markets where exchanges happen between sellers and consumers – greatly increasing business. -
Takeaways from Week 2:
For most companies having one good product isn’t good enough because it cannot secure the companies future success. Companies have to be constantly evolving their processes to add greater value, become more efficient, and add additional products for different demographics. Crocs has done all of these things well and is why they continue to stay relevant long after they burst onto the scene. Companies must learn what works and what doesn’t work, often learning is on a trial and error basis. Ultimately Crocs learned that its competitive advantage was its supply chain and through trial and error they have been continuously fine tuning it. -
Takeaways from week 2:
– Learned Crocs is a prime example of a company succeeding due to its extremely flexible and responsive supply chain, and how having vertical integration in the production of its product is extremely effective
– Global distribution with early-on infrastructure to ensure market expansion, and share.
– IT, specifically the internet, has dramatically changed the way the supply chain operates from top to bottom. The four key impacted areas are: eDesign, eMediaries, Web-based collaboration, and eFulfillment
– Things that have remained constant in the supply chain are: “total cost” is always going to remain and matter, Trade-offs are forever, Risk and other forms of uncertainty, and lastly continuous change is always necessary -
Takeaways from Week 2:
-After reviewing the Crocs case, I have learned there is huge advantage to having a flexible supply chain. By having this type of supply chain, companies can cater to changing customer demands in a very efficient manner.
-IT has the ability to drive changes in supply chain dynamics through a variety of ways. One thing about this that I found most interesting was that due to Hyper-connectivity, companies are able reach out customers everywhere and at all times.
-One of the things that has not changed due to e-connectivity is the total cost of managing a supply chain. Because of the factors involved in a supply chain, it is very hard to minimize one cost without adversely affecting another.
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Crocs Case:
– Supply chains can be a major source of competitive advantage, particularly in Crocs’ situation. Because most supply chains in the shoe industry are not flexible, Crocs’ flexible one helped differentiate the company and strengthen supplier relationships.
– Expanding globally before the competition can be incredibly beneficial in regards to market share and competing effectively.How the Internet Affects the Supply Chain:
– The 4 key impact categories are eDesign, eMediaries, web-based collaborative planning, and eFulfillment.
– On a personal note, we are all incredibly affected by the internet’s effects on the supply chain. For example, our shopping has moved to different online marketplaces, such as Amazon, eBay, etc. We expect fast and free shipping, and easy returns. This has changed the way companies must design their supply chains. -
1. Crocs Case
Crocs’ flexible supply chain helps it improve efficiency of supply products
Fulfilling customer demand is its goals. Crocs uses in-house production to meet customers around the world and reduce the inventory of retailer. Therefore, Crocs’ flexible supply chain forces its core competencies to compare with other companies.
2. Internet Affects the Supply Chain
– The virtual world reduces distance between buyers and sellers, and shares the real-time information. Buyers and sellers could display their requirements online, and find the best efficient way to take the tradeoff business.
– Supply chain and internet combine that increase customer satisfaction. They enable online trade to be more reliable, visible and economical. -
-Crocs created an extremely efficient supply chain because they were able to take advantage of their flexibility, and commit to customer orders and fulfillment.
-Crocs created a different division throughout the world creating good infrastructure that was suited to a regions specific throughout the world.
-Crocs had a profit margin about double that of most shoe industry making their product much more efficient
– IT is essential in the supply chain management as it drives the advancement of the field through hyper-connectivity, communications, technology, and accuracy.
-Edesign facilitates real time, cross-company collaboration and the design of friendly products
-Efulfillment is the ability to match the physical on-the-ground capability of the company to match the speed of the data on the virtual supply chain. -
Crocs Case:
– a flexible and responsive supply chain allows Crocs to take advantage of a “hot product”, which they might not forcasted.
– Crocs hands-on marketing strategy generated excitement, which lead to more sales.
– Consumers found uses beyond what Crocs marketed its products for, which increased the excitement around the product line.
IT Supply Chain:
– IT components of supply chain require data inputs, and business transactions produce outputs. There is an abundance of big data that can be turned into useful information for supply chains.
– IT creates more accessibility to the supply chain, both internally and externally.
– IT implementation to supply chains increases the efficiency of supply chains. -
Crocs:
– Changed the shoe industry by creating a flexible supply chain
– Easily could handle changes in demand and are very good at handling sudden orders that needed to be filledIT Supply Chain:
– Eliminates locational boundaries
– Enables systems to be developed that help increase efficiency
– Helps improve location and inventory accuracy -
Main takeaways from Crocs case:
– Vertical integration and flexibly supply chain gave Crocs a large advantage over competitors within the footwear industry.
– Niche market focus allow them to grow their brand and develop their products with less competition.IT Supply Chain:
– Reduces location boundaries and increase access to consumers.
– Increase visibility and reduces inefficiencies. -
Key Takeaways
Crocs:
1. The competitive advantage that can be realized from a having a flexible supply chain and manufacturing process.
2. How different expansion strategies (vertical integration into materials, acquisition, and product expansion) can be supported by or limit core competencies of an organization.
Lecture:
1. The four impact areas that the internet has had on supply chains are eDesign, eMediaries, Web base collaborative planning, and eFulfillment.
2. The different types of marketplaces such as supplier centric, buyer centric, and Hybrid
3. How even though supply chains have innovated, there are still components that remain static. -
Some of the things I learned about the Croc’s case were
1. Their flexible/responsive SC.
2. That Crocs makes their products not just for fashion but also for a functional purposeSome things I learned about Internet and SC were
1. Many new businesses are taking advantage of E platforms to market and sell their products
2. They different market places with the whole e-commerce realm -
The key things I learned during this week’s class were:
– Crocs’ flexible supply chain allows it to be extremely responsive and adaptive to consumer demands and trends.
– Crocs strongly appeals to several niche markets such as hospital workers, people with disabilities, children, and people with diabetes.
– Companies that don’t adapt to changing technology/consumer demands don’t succeed (like Blockbuster, Circuit City, etc.)
– Collaboration is an effective way to optimize operations. -
Key Takeaways from Croc Case:
– Flexible Supply Chains enable companies to better compete in their industries and meet demand efficiently.
– Launching globally at the onset of a company provides unique opportunities to differentiate your product or service.Key Takeaways from Class Lecture:
– The Internet creates/created four key impact areas: eDesign, eMediaries, Web Collaboration and eFulfillment.
– Customers still have very specific criteria for evaluation of an effective supply chain. -
Key takeaways-
Crocs case:
-Seize the opportunity to cater to an unmet market
-React quickly to changes in demand. This would maintain return customers, along with steady and increasing profits.
-Acquiring global companies to incorporate their facilities and create a faster and more efficient supply chain to reach more customers.Lecture:
-eCommerce allows companies to reach more customers, reducing the need for traditional channels.
-Adapt to change in technology to survive and thrive in the marketplace.
-IT helps exchange real time information, allowing companies to know the needs of customers. Customers in turn get what they want. -
Here are a few takeaways I have from the class in week 2:
-Cros’ case taught me that flexible and responsive supply chain will help attract more retailers, meet customers’ demand and gain competitive advantage in the market.
-Cros’ case shows that selection of niche market is important as it will not only increase sells but also build long term relationship with customers, suppliers in that market.
-Cros’ case shows that the best way for a big multinational company to exploit their competencies in the future is expanding products.
-Having good products in supply chain business is not good enough, innovative products are needed in the long term.
-How IT has changed supply chain business and the benefits it brings to customers including removing geographic limits, improving user experience, and the efficiency of the business. -
Key Takeaways from the Crocs Case:
-Flexibility of Croc’s supply chain gives them a strong advantage over their competitors by fulfilling on demand orders, which raises customer satisfaction.
-Croc’s decision to launch globally as early as possible allowed them to establish distributors and customers on a larger scale, increasing profits and brand reputation
-Intertwining innovative products, a successful supply chain, and easy to access purchasing through Croc’s online retailers, results increased access to customers and higher demand for their products -
Key takeaways from class 2:
– Crocs’ supply chain flexibility and operational strategy provided them with success with a trend like comfortable, rubber, non-slip shoes.
– The ability to fill orders much. faster than your competition gives you a competitive advantage.
– Having a good product is not enough, you must create value with other outlets to be successful.
– IT drives change through things like: Easier user experience, efficiency, online purchasing, speed, created markets, and economies of scale -
Key takeaways from class 2:
– Crocs had a revolutionary supply chain for the current footwear industry. The flexibility and adaptiveness of the company helped them grow rapidly.
– The completely vertical supply chain allowed crocs to run the company the way THEY wanted to. Ownership of patents and each part of the manufacturing process proved to give them a competitive advantage.
– IT is a driver for efficiency in business. IT makes things easier to use as a user and as a company. Everything is done faster and cheaper because of IT. -
Key Takeaways from Class 2
– The importance of being agile and how supply chain can help with that.
– The importance of utilizing core competencies to compete with other companies
– How IT can drive change in many different ways
– Marketing towards niche markets can be incredibly profitable -
The main takeaway from Class 2 and our analysis of the Crocs case is that a company’s supply chain can be of its core competencies, and be very consequential in a competitive market. Crocs’ combination of their patent footwear design and their vertical supply chain helped give them a competitive advantage in their market.
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Takeaway from Crocs case:
– I learned about the advantage Crocs had over others in their supply chain, specifically with their ownership of Croslite. Owning Croslite, the manufacturing material, they are able to cut costs a lot by producing their own material instead of outsourcing it to a supplier.
– In the lecture, I learned a lot about the rapid expansion of IT in supplying for companies. I did not know that even businesses can trade supplies via auctioning and bidding online. I had thought that this was only available to consumers via sites like Ebay and Amazon. -
Takeaways from Crocs Case study:
– One of Crocs’s core competencies is that it has a flexible supply chain which allows the company to adapt to the ongoing changes in market trends.
– Next, Crocs is also at an advantage because of their self-made croslite material that makes them attractive and differentiates from other competitors.
Takeaways from lectures:
– IT has definitely affect in the way that SC work for instance; eDesign, eMediaries, web-based collaborative planning and eFulfillment.
– Total cost matters even more than other costs because you cannot maximize just one cost without adversely affecting other costs. Therefore, the goal is to minimize the total cost by optimizing across the SC. -
– Croc’s supply chain is one of the companies core competencies.
-Croc’s has a vertical supply chain
– E commerce allows businesses to reach a much wider audiene
-Cros products are not just made for style, but also functionality
– Business’s need to adapt to constantly changing technology -
Key takeaway from week 2
Crocs:
– flexible supply chain enables companies to reduce risk and own more control of product’s quality.
– Keep excess capacity is able to deal with the demand fluctuations and drive growth and revenue.
Lecture:
– In the marketplace, digital connectivity has both higher buyer and seller power.
– Collaborative planning between supplier, customers, and channel partners can share relevant sales data and material available in order to increase trust level and achieve broader optimization. -
Takeaways from week 2:
Crocs:
-Crocs supply chain is what puts it ahead of the competition. They are able to adapt to the change in markets more easily than most due to owning the formula to Croslite and their ability to control production.
-They have built their company around the niche markets.
-Crocs use a vertical supply chain.
Lecture:
-Edesign, emediaries, Efulfillment, and Web based collaborative planning all have affected the supply chain due to the internet.
-We learned the difference between supplier centric, buyer centric, and Hybrid markets. -
The main takeaway I got from the Crocs case was that adaptation in an industry can bring a huge competitive advantage to a company just starting out. Crocs’ supply chain model is really common in other industries, but considerably new for the shoe industry giving Crocs the ability to pivot from a small shoe startup to a major player.
The main takeaway I got from the lecture was that the internet has transformed the way organizations structure their supply chain and has effected supply chain with 4 impact areas: eDesign, eFulfillment, web based collaborative planning, and eMediaries.
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Key Takeaways from the Crocs case:
– Crocs flexible supply chain makes it easier to react to sudden changes in customer demand.
– Vertical integration allows Crocs to make sure their standards of business are enforced through each level of the supply process.
– E Commerce is a win-win for both sellers and buyers because each side has more access more members of the other side.
– Crocs ability to manufacture more quickly than their competitors (due to their unique uniform product) also gave them a strategic advantage.
– Companies must lead the market in innovation and technological comparability to succeed long term. -
In week 2 we focused on the Crocs case, and discussed some of the steps that the company took in order to be more efficient and differentiate themselves from may of their competitor. Discussing the core competencies of Crocs in detail, gave us a really strong understanding of all the things that set them apart and allowed them to be as successful as they were. When discussing the impact of the internet on supply chains it is amazing just how much it has changed the industry. The impact is undeniable and continuing to be more and more present all the time.
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Main takeaways from Week 2 were the core competencies of crocs.
-Crocs are able to succeed through their implemented supply chain system.
-They do not have the most popular shoes, but they make this up with their customer service.
-Crocs took on a huge risk doing business overseas, but it was a huge payoff because they saved so much money relying on international business. -
Main takeaways from the Crocs case:
– Being efficient in their supply chain enabled the company to lower cost
– Competitive advantage with the company is the use of Croslite material. This material increases comfort and functionality
– Croc’s developed a revolutionary supply chain system that allowed retailers to place smaller pre-books and to order within a season -
Key Takeaways
1) rom Croc Case:
– Croc’s Flexible Supply Chain allows the company to adapt to market changes in order to meet customers expectations and also give Croc a competitive advantage regarding its competitors.
– Croc’s Croslite unique material helped the company to target a niche market and make high profit margins.2) from Class Lecture:
– The Internet have a big impact on the supply chain by introducing four key impact areas which are: eDesign, eMediaries, Web Collaboration and eFulfillment that bring a new aspects of doing business for companies.
– Online retailers seems to do better in integrating their supply chain and provide another level of experience to their Customers. -
Takeaways from the Crocs Case:
1. Crocs realized competitive advantage from flexible supply chain management. This technique allowed the company to sell its popular product on demand. Creating a way to provide the product quickly to the customer at an affordable price for the company.
2. IT created efficiency – Crocs core competency would not be possible without the utilization of IT. As a result Crocs had high industry margins.
3. Using data for planning which allows the company to adjust to demand. -
Takeaways from the Croc’s Case
1) Croc’s was able to continue expanding and growing its company because it had a competitive advantage.
2) It is highly efficient to do business through the web because it expands the list of suppliers and customers.
3) Croc’s was able to develop an effective strategy that kept it sustainable through the 2008 recession.
4) The needs and demands of customers and suppliers sometimes affect how the supply chain is structured/organized for a company. -
Key take aways from week 2
– crocs has a flexible and responsive supply chain to meet all there customers needs.
– It drives change causing different buying patterns.
-The internet took a big toll on supply chains with eDesign, eMediaries, Web Collaboration and eFulfillment. -
Some of my takeaways from week 2:
1. Crocs has an incredibly effective supply chain that allows them to adaptive to demand and gives them a competitive advantage in the marketplace
2. The internet is a huge driver of supply chain because of the rise of e-commerce, online shopping, and faster communication
3. Crocs model of vertical supply chain is key to their responsiveness to demand -
Key Takeaways from Crocs and how internet affecting Supply Chain:
Part I:
Crocs core advantage was the flexibility to follow demand in a quick fashion by having the vertical supply chain, they own the supplier and the store.
and because they own the supply chain it helps them expand faster and improve faster including the advantages of taking over the niche market.
Part II
IT affects SCM so much that communication within the chain become faster, increasing the ability to collaborate with companies
create a real win-win situation for the whole chain by lowering cost and errors, forecasting more accurate demand and provide supply.
everything is on record as well as it is real-time so that damages or accidents can be control or prevent. -
My key takeaways from the Crocs case is how Crocs was able to establish themselves in such a competitive market, by establishing a superior SC mechanism – from sourcing and molding their Croslite material, to distributing them to distributors. They do this with extreme efficiency, as each retailer is delivered the season’s correct amount/variety of Crocs shoes based on accurate projected forecasts.
I believe the Internet impacts SCs by allowing for immediate and consistent collaboration between a number of links within the SC in real-time. SCs can communicate better information quicker than before the Internet. Also, the Internet is able to store and move large quantities of data efficiently.
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Crocs Case: My main takeaway from the Crocs case is how important a flexible supply chain can be. By being able to respond quickly to changes in demand, Crocs was able to hold and expand on the shoe market that they captured when they came out with their innovative shoes.
Lecture: My main takeaway from the lecture is how the internet has improved the communication of ideas and information between companies. Compared to paper transactions, online transactions increase the amount of data companies have access to as well as the speed that they can access it with. Being able to look at real-time data was unimaginable before the internet and has revolutionized supply chain activities.
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Edward N Beaver wrote a new post on the site Internet Enabled Supply Chain 6 years, 8 months ago
MIS 3537
Internet Enabled Supply Chains
Spring 2018Due Date: February 5, 2018
Refer to the case “Zappos.com: Developing a Supply Chain to Deliver WOW!”. Answer the following questions briefly.1. Is Z […]
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Edward N Beaver commented on the post, Progress Report for Week Ending, February 16, on the site 6 years, 8 months ago
Please see the professor about reorganizing your team.
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RFID at Metro case
– Provide an efficient supply chain for Metro because RFID has high read rate, and record accurate information.
– Metro spent upfront costs using RFID: process design, RFID infrastructure, and training.
– RFID increases on-shelf availability and reducing out-of-stock because it reduces human errors.
– RFID enables Metro to reduce cost such as labor cost. RFID has automatable devices and system, and it just needs a little human capital.
RFID technology
RFID is composed of tags, scanner/ readers. Antenna and host. The main components of RFID tags and they are passive tags, active tags, and semi-active tags respectively.
RFID could apply to door openers, equipment tracking, nuclear materials and monitoring products, etc.
Continue answers before:
Lecture about Information Goods Supply Chain:
Information goods are almost digital such as music, ebook. DVD and CDs are not digital, but they are all belonging to information goods.
Industry landscape: Internet changes the industry landscape of information goods, and there are more and more information goods with digital such as printing, textbook, computer.
RFID at Metro Case –
– Although there are a lot of RFID benefits, Metro needs to take into consideration of other variables (costs vs. benefits) that are critical to making its decision.
– Metro should focus on pallet-level tagging first instead of shifting to case-tagging because RFID tagging is still in its implementation phase at the company.
RFID Technology:
– Various benefits of RFID technology are that it reduces error, increases productivity, and efficient
– Depending on the types of tags the supplier buys, it can be costly.
Lecture about Information Good Supply Chain:
– Innovative technology can be disruptive to the industry (Blockbuster and Netflix)
– SaaS has simplified using software on the User’s end.
– SasS has a wide-range of benefits: scalability, reliability, and security
RFID at Metro Case:
-Benefits such as reduce labor cost and accurate inventory, which led to limited human error.
RFID Technology:
-Unique serial #’s
-Improve on-shelf availability
-Reduce out-of-stocks
Lecture:
-SaaS simplified software process
-New innovative technology infrastructures can change the industry platform.
RFID at Metro Case:
-There were three options under consideration: expand pallet level rollout, case level introduction and other (non RFID) process improvements
-Metro would be a first mover but have to put many upfront costs
RFID Technology:
-Allows for less labor and less human error
-Provides more information about the product and can be reused if reprogrammed
Information Goods Supply Chain:
-Not all information goods are physical (data from CD or DVD)
-There can be high manufacturing costs for products
-The iPod changed the world and was a consumer segment
RFID at metro case:
-They were torn between using rfid on pallets or per case
– the cost would very and the benefits for each were different
-we came to conclusion that the most optimal was per pallet
-RFID helps to reduce the labor cost and margin or error
-It also helps to consumer more data of what is in the warehouse and what is coming in or what needs to be bought more of
-Some of the cost of RFID are applications, training, and new team to elaborate the info
– We also learned about how the ipod has changed the world and how musicians get paid per view of there songs
RFID at Metro Case:
– RFID implementation costs involve significant upfront costs, for both Metro and its suppliers. These costs include:
1. Tag,
2. Hardware (reader, computer system, RFID printers),
3. Software (database, applications), and
4. Organizational costs (training, suppliers, innovation center, etc.)
– Challenges faced by Metro during the RFID rollout include human error, connection problems, technology problems, and lack of training
RFID Technology:
– RFID can be reused – reprogrammed
– RFID tags can be put on cases and even individual items
– Benefits of using RFID include reduced shrink, increased product availability, better data quality, and higher labor productivity
Lecture about Information Goods Supply Chain:
– Obviated the need for physical stores (i.e. Netflix)
– Disruptive innovations – change the industry landscape, affecting core assets and core activities
– SaaS is an information good, not a physical product
RFID at Metro Case
– RFID technology was very important for Metro.
-It helped them will them reduce shrink in the SC, lowered labor inefficiencies, and increased their SC productivity.
RFID Technology
– RFID technology can be flexible if need be. The technology itself can be reprogrammed to fit the businesses needs.
-It can keep track of many products that a business sells.
Lecture about Information Goods Supply Chain
-Businesses are starting to see the merits of RFID technology and are starting to implement these technologies themselves.
-RFID technology is a lot more effective than previous ways of monitoring the flow of goods throughout the supply chain
RFID at Metro Case:
– RFID provides significant advantages to Metro via increased labor efficiency, reduced human error, and more accurate forecasting.
RFID Technology:
– RFID can be very useful, but there is a variable cost element. In addition, some standardization is required as not all tags have the same abilities
– RFID capabilities and efficiencies only work as well as the people using them
Lecture:
– The HypeCycle depicts the adoption level of new technologies over time
– The curve varies by industry and scale of markets
RFID at Metro Case:
-Need to choose between RFID with Pallets, with Cases or Alternate all together
-Metro saw a high ceiling for benefits with RFID, but at an above average cost
RFID Technology:
-Reduces Shrink
-Reduces Human Error
-Limited to expertise of the user
Information Goods Supply Chain:
-‘Game Changing’ innovations, Disrupt an entire industry (Netflix, Ipod)
RFID at Metro case:
– A business must choose wisely when implementing technology such as RFID into its supply chain in terms of cost and operational efficiency.
RFID Technology:
– Can improve efficiency of warehousing, distribution, purchasing, and forecasting by supplying better data and information for a product. It can also reduce “shrink” of a product by tracking and notify if stolen or damaged.
Information of Goods:
– With information and data of customer preferences, it helps current and future companies innovate and create products that cater to the needs of a customer.
RFID tags are becoming a more realistic and effective option as the cost of implementation goes down and the reliability of the technology goes up. RFID tags can lead to faster, more accurate operations with potential for long term cost savings. The future of item level tracking seems to lie in RFID tagging.
It’s important to weigh out the costs and benefits of implementing a technology especially one that is new. In the case of Metro they had a ton of different risks and costs associated with being a first mover in their field. They should ultimately keep the end goal of item level tagging but continue to tag at the pallet level while they work through the growing pains.
RFID in Metro:
– Cost and time efficient by reducing labor times and increasing operating efficiency
– Cost of implementation high / standardizing issues
RFID in Technology:
– Composed of tags and scanners/readers
– building clearance and inventory tracking
RFID at Metro:
-Metro was indecisive between RFID tags at the pallet or case level
-Cost/Benefit Analysis was needed to make the correct decision that would benefit Metro the most
-Pallet level tagging was decided to be more beneficial than case level
RFID Tags:
-Increase inventory accuracy
-Decrease shrinkage
-Are reprogrammable
-Reduce manual labor
RFID at Metro:
-Learning the cost of RFID, and making the most informed decision of what is the best for Metro.
-Do analysis on Case-level vs Pallet-level, comparing Benefit vs Costs.
RFID technology:
– reducing labor work, lead to reducing labor cost.
– increase efficiency, reduce human error
– improve transparency for the company manage and plan supply management.
– depends on the quality of RFID tags, it could increase the cost of implying RFID technology in short-term.
Information Goods Supply Chain
– Blockbuster had faded, Netflix replaced it, is a good example of Online goods vs. Retail store.
– spotify vs. iTunes, subscriptions vs buying song one by one., indicate how information goods have changed.
In regards to RFID at Metro, Metro had a decision to make between RFID tags at case and pallet level or just another solution altogether. The class majority thought case level would be the best solution, but when a cost/benefit analysis was completed it showed that we were wrong. Pallet level RFID tags proved to be more beneficial. Overall, what I learned about RFID tags is that it is another, easier and efficient way, of tracking inventory. When implementing an RFID tag, it can be costly with everything involved in implementation. But with this technology, it reduces theft and shrinkage of products.
RFID at Metro:
– RFID helps to reduce the labor cost and margin or error.
-Provides advantages such as lower labor costs, lower human error, and more accurate forecasting.
-RFID can be flexible and meet the unique needs of every business.
RFID Technology:
– Faster and more accurate than barcodes
-RFID tags are reusable
-Can be costly, but it is an investment that has the ability to greatly benefit a business
-Increase inventory accuracy
-This type of technology can greatly impact an industry. Ex: Netflix putting Blockbuster out of business
RFID at Metro:
Metro’s Choices:
RFID tags at case or pallet level versus another solution altogether. The class voted for case level, but then professor exposed it would be more costly. When we saw the facts, most switched to pallet level as their choice. We learned that RFID is faster, more efficient, and removes the threat of human error from your inventory.
While the tags cost more for RFID, time is money in the supply chain, and it eventually saves you money to implement because it reduces theft and human error.
Week 7 Reflection:
RFID at Metro – Metro was considering implementing RFID tags but needed to compare costs of doing at the pallet or case level.
Some benefits of RFID technology are: more accurate inventory levels, reduce human error, and increase efficiency and productivity.
In class we discussed how technology can disrupt entire businesses and lifestyles as it advances and needs/wants are met (Blockbuster & Netflix).
I was a part of the group that presented and looking back on RFID technologies, it is a matter of balancing trade-off when you are adopting anything new and have to make decisions on how to implement it. Metro had to decide if the initial investment to adopt the RFID technologies would significantly improve their operations over bar codes. Then they have to decide how far they wanted to implement the technologies such as to all their supplier, warehouse, pallets, or cases.
RFID at Metro Case:
-Three options: expand pallet level rollout, case level introduction, and other types of process improvements.
-Reduces labor costs, shrinkage
-Increases worker efficiency, accuracy
FRID Technology:
-RFID composed of tags, scanner/ readers giving active information to an antenna.
-Reduces Shrink -Reduces Human Error
-Reduces labor needs
Information Goods Supply Chain
-Innovative technology has the ability to disrupt companies and businesses (Ex: Netflix put blockbuster out of business)
-Companies have to keep up with ongoing technology, and be able to incorporate it in their operations
RFID at Metro
-The technological benefits that RFID can provide a retail chain
-The cost considerations when thinking about implementing RFID
RFID Technology
-The many infrastructure components that are needed to make RFID technology work
-Data accurancy improvements that can be realized with RFID at the pallet, case, and product level
Lecture
-Considering a non-physical supply chain for digital goods such as video content
-The concept of software as a service and how it differs from cloud computing
RFID at Metro:
– After the financial analysis, the expand pallet-level is the most beneficial choice for manufacture.
– instead of hardware & software implementation, organization cost is the most complicated expenses for RFID.
– Compare to the advantages of being a first mover & a fast follower, I prefer to be a fast follower, which can reduce investment cost, retain the market with less money, and earn money faster.
Information goods supply chain:
– Information goods are one of the most disruptive industry.
– Related to the article, The Downside of Direct Downloads, video games are tended to bypass the physical channels.
– Once the physical channels are bypassed, their operation would slow down and decrease profits.
– These information goods companies are mainly making profits based on products self.
RFID at Metro Case:
– Metro wanted to be the first mover in using RFID systems by starting with pallet level rollout which was a success even with some issues
– Then, introduction of the case level that will be more beneficial and resolve the technical most the issues.
RFID Technology:
– RFID composed of tags, scanner/ readers that gives real time information.
– Using this technology can reduce Shrinkage, Human Error, and labor cost.
RFID and the Metro Case
– RFID has many benefits, Metro needs to be critical to other variables and considerations before they commit to a RFID implementation.
– Metro should implement pallet-level tagging instead of implementing RFID tagging because tech changes should be applied gradually.
RFID Technology:
– FRID benefits include that it improved accuracy, efficiency, and productivity
– RFID cons include that it can be costly and potentially not as secure
Lecture about Information Good Supply Chain:
– Innovative technology can radically eradicate how an industry originally operated (ie: Netflix’s overtake of Blockbuster)
– SasS benefits = scalability, reliability, and security
In the ever changing world today we see technology becoming even more and more dominant in all facets of the world. This is has been predominant in supply chains as well. We see that there is constant changes and updates to how companies handle their supply chains. RFID was a leader in this and I expect many more companies to follow suit.
RFID at Metro:
– Metro wanted to experience the first mover advantage of implementing RFID.
– There were 2 options for implementing RFID: Pallet and care level. There was also the option of not implementing RFID for process improvements. But after further analysis, pallet level implementation would have been the most beneficial.
RFID in Technology:
– RFID tags are cheaper to use versus labor.
– More information about an item can be stored. This offers accuracy and efficiency
– RFID is composed of scanners, antennas, readers, software, and hardware.
Information Goods Supply Chain:
– Information good is a type of commodity whose main value is derived from the information it contains.
– They are disruptive goods because new technologies and products rapidly change the landscape of the industry.
– SaaS and cloud computing has really changed the software industry and each has is own advantage.
RFID at Metro:
-Should they pick case level, pallet level, or something else entirely?
-Case level would be very expensive.
-Pallet was shown to be the most efficient
RFID in Technology:
-RFID is a great way to track things
-I first learned about RFID when I went to a music festival- the wristbands had RFID chips to track attendees and make sure they were valid
-Very useful to keep supply chain synchronized
Info Goods Supply Chain:
-New technology penetrating the market threatens existing companies. It requires companies to keep up to date or risk going out of business to the more innovative competitors.
-SaaS helps businesses collaborate more
– RFID Case showed the importance of calculating the cost and benefits
– For RFID, it’s best to implement RFID at pallet level
– RFID technology has the possibility to greatly improve the processes that a company goes through
– RFID can be more beneficial to certain products and industries compared to others
– RFID can improve accuracy, product knowledge and information, reduces shrinkage and other human costs
– It’s important for companies to stay on top of technological changes like RFID, if not, they run the risk of becoming irrelevant
There are a few takeaways I got from RFID at Metro case:
-It’s important for Metro to other variables before committing to a RFID implementation, not only based on their benefits.
-Some benefits of RFID include improving accuracy, product knowledge, information and reducing costs.
-The disadvantage of RFID include the its high cost and insecurity.
A few of the things that I took away from the topics covered in Week 7:
– RFID technology comes in passive and active varieties
A few of the things that I took away from the topics covered in Week 7:
– RFID technology comes in passive and active varieties
– Passive RFID tags, like on an EZ-pass, are rather inexpensive
– Active RFID tags are much more expensive but provide greater uses to the vendor/supplier using them
– It would be very expensive for Metro to package the goods at case level (so they should do pallet-level RFID)
– Innovative technologies have the power to upend decades-long established monopoly companies (like how Netflix disrupted the box office operations so severely)
RFID at Metro Case
-A cost benefit analysis had to be done to determine if RFID would be a worthwhile investment either at the case level or pallet level
RFID Technology
-There are two main types of RFID tags
-Currently the costs outweigh the benefits for this technology.
-It’s a great innovation in theory but until the variable cost goes down it’s not fiscally viable.
Lecture about Information Goods Supply Chain
-Information goods have disrupted their respective industries’ supply chains
-Created new methods of distribution
-SaaS has really transformed business in all industries
RFID at Metro Case
The metro case shows how RFID can support supply chain. It shows that RFID can be found in all sorts of technology like EZ pass and credit cards but there are some costs that come with using this technology.
RFID Technology
There are a lot of technical aspects to implementing RFID components which is why its expenses can outweigh the benefits. Additionally, it can be implemented throughout many areas of the supply chain process.
Lecture about Information Goods Supply Chain
RFID can help to collect data on the information to improve accuracy and assist with things like forecasting. How this is different from cloud computing.
RFID Metro Case:
How common RFID technology is used and its purpose to an organization. Creates a simplified scanning process to save time and increase productivity. It is a large investment, especially for Metro and each different method of rollout brings different benefits to the company, making it a difficult decision.
RFID Technology:
We use it more often then we think, example is EZ pass. Different levels of implementation bring different costs and functionality to an organization.
Goods Supply Chain:
IoT is disrupting several industries and products such as Blockbuster and DVD’s/CD’s.