Supply Chain Management (SCM):
The supply chain, given its wide scope, going through several company departments and sectors, requires a strategic management to meet its needs. The idea is that all processes integrate a larger system, which, in the end, contributes to the bottom line of organizations.
Supply Chain Management is the process of managing the links and professionals involved in a company's production, distribution, purchasing, financial and tax process. In this context, the circulation flow of goods, services and strategic information for this work is part of SCM.
In other words, the company's relationship with its suppliers, partners and customers must work accordingly, thus favoring a more cost-effective, dynamic and profitable operation for those involved. And that is why this management impacts the company's productivity and competitiveness.
Always with the purpose of optimizing production and offering products to end consumers on time and according to their expectations, several methods are used to improve control at all stages.
Another important item that should be highlighted is the impact that proper control of Supply Chain Management has in relation to costs for a company. By strategically connecting all members of the production chain, such as the company's human capital, its technical infrastructure and the relationship with partners and suppliers, managers can quickly notice the difference in their management.
Processes are optimized, costs are reviewed and the number of failures plummets, along with bottlenecks and other incidents that can impair quality and end customer satisfaction - which, unfortunately, happens quite often, especially among companies that do not rely on efficient supply chain management.
However, it is necessary to consider a common reality in manufacturers: often outsourced companies and suppliers are involved in the process, making chain management an even more complex task. This is because it becomes very difficult to ensure the integration of all these agents as well as evaluate the performance of important processes, which are often outside the scope of internal management, since they are executed externally.
It is very clear then that the success of supply chain management is in the fine alignment among all parties involved. The balance in the flow of operations, then, is what ensures that all processes can keep up with demands, avoiding bottlenecks, shortages and slow deliveries, for example.