Inventory Management A-Z – Supply Chain & Business Operations

This MBA style course prepares and empowers you to make a REAL difference. Turbo-charge your career and your business.

This course is for the new or aspiring supply chain & operations manager, the ambitious procurement professionals, the striving logistics supervisors, hands-on production planners and the practical business optimization analysts.

• Take control of your supply chain to have and “impact” and “improve” your business operations – manufacturing, services, retail, logistics industrial operations and production.
• Equip yourself to take a new leading role in your workplace – improving your processes, systems, business / organization.
• Understand the fundamentals, then details of the essentials of supply chain management, the core business trade-offs, essential analysis, calculations and basic optimisation methods.
• Become the Supply Chain Management authority in your team on improving the operations systems in your business.

Course Sections:

1. Introduction to Supply Chain Management

2. Stakeholders and Relationships

3. Components of a Supply Chain

4. Types of Supply Chain and Value Stream Mapping

5. Forecasting Demand

6. Demand Management

7. Bullwhip Effect

8. Sales and Operations Planning

9. Inventory Management

10. Measuring Performance with Metrics / KPIs

In this course, you will learn:

• Objectives:                           What are the “Aims and Objectives” of a good Supply Chain. How to balance the “Trade Offs”
• Type of Supply Chain:          The difference between an “efficient” and a “responsive” supply chain and why you can be both
• Relationships:                       Segment your Stakeholders and Tailor your Relationships. Are you transactional or collaborative?
• Forecasting:                         Quantitative and Qualitative Methods of Forecasting Demand.
• Excel work-throughs:           Worked examples in excel of the most common quantitative forecasting methods and calculating forecast error.
• Reducing Variation:              Why demand variation is the enemy and how you can control it
• Bullwhip Effect:                     Control the Bullwhip Effect: What it is, how does it happen (to us all!) and how to control it
• Improve a Supply Chain:      By reducing Delays, Uncertainties and Decision Tiers
• S&OP Planning Structure:    MRP, ERP and Software integration
• Inventory:                             The core reasons we “need” inventory and why it really costs us so much more than most managers think
• KPIs:                                      5 essential supply chain Metrics to give you a “deep” and “balanced” view of your performance

Business operations come in all shapes and sizes with a host of unique challenges; but good supply chain management is essential to them all. Whether you work in retail, manufacturing production, distribution and logistics or even service companies such as restaurants, retail, hospitality or health and beauty; –  an effective supply chain is a key determent of your business’s success. Getting a strong control and continuously improving your business supply chain operations is essential to remain competitive, improving profitability, improving customer satisfaction, reducing costs and improving delivery.

A solid grasp of the “wider” supply chain picture is essential to be considered for a managerial position or seek promotion as higher roles require greater stakeholder relationships, building partnerships and business agreements either with other supply chain functions within your business or external companies.

Take control of your career and equip yourself with a solid base in Supply Chain Management; full of practical insights and tools that you can use right now to unlock the potential of yourself and your business!

FULL COURSE CONTENTS

1. Introduction to Supply Chain Management

A Life Changing Supply Chain

Welcome

The Supply Chain of Life – Blood

Why is Supply Chain Management Important?

What is Supply Chain Management?

Aims and Objectives of a Good Supply Chain

Key Activities in Supply Chain

2. Stakeholders and Relationships

Stakeholders and Relationships – Introduction

The Main Stakeholders

Suppliers, Producers and Distributors

Retailers and End Customers

Stakeholders and their Relationships

Vertical and Horizontal Relationships

Segmentation of Suppliers

Transactional vs Collaborative Relationships

3. Components of a Supply Chain

Components of a Supply Chain – Introduction

OEMs, Supplier Tiers and Internal Functions

Other Components of a Supply Chain

A Typical Supply Chain

4. Types of Supply Chain and Value Stream Mapping

Efficient vs Responsive Supply Chains

Matching Supply Chain Type to Product Type

Value Stream Mapping

VSM – An Example talk-through (VSM – example map)

5. Forecasting Demand

Forecasting Demand – Introduction

Why do we Need a Forecast?

The Golden Rules of Forecasting

Collaborative Forecasting – What

Collaborative Forecasting – Why

Collaborative Forecasting – How

Forecasting Methods

Quantitative Forecasting

Forecasting using Moving Averages

Forecasting using Weighted Averages

Forecasting using Exponential Smoothing

Calculating Forecast Error

Spotting Trends from Noise

6. Demand Management

Waiting for the Barber – Story

Demand Management – Introduction

What is Demand Management?

Causes of Demand Variation

External Demand Management – Methods

Internal Demand Management – Methods

7. Bullwhip Effect

Bullwhip Effect – Introduction

Demand Management through the Supply Chain

The Bullwhip Effect – Background

The Bullwhip going up the Supply Chain

Why Does It Happen?

Reducing Delays to Improve a Supply Chain

Reducing Uncertainty to Improve a Supply Chain

Reducing Decision Tiers to Improve a Supply Chain

8. Sales and Operations Planning

Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) – Introduction

What is S&OP for?

S&OP – Planning Structure

Independent vs Dependent Demand

Bill of Materials (BOM)

Materials Requirements Planning – Overview

MRP continued

Enterprise Resource Planning – ERP

Supply Chain Management Software

9. Inventory Management

Inventory Management – Introduction

What is Inventory?

Types of Inventory

Why do we Need Inventory?

Why Else do we Hold Inventory?

Costs of Inventory

Financial Costs of Inventory

Ordering Costs of Inventory

Holding Costs of Inventory

Operational Costs of Inventory

10. Measuring Performance with Metrics / KPIs

Measuring Performance – Introduction

What are Metrics?

Business’s Perspective on Performance

Categories of Supply Chain KPIs / Metrics

Selected Metrics / KPIs for Supply Chain

Inventory Turns / Turnover

Days On Hand / Days Inventory Outstanding

Cash to Cash Cycle Time

Customer Lead Time

On Time In Full % (OTIF)

Fill Rate %

Wrap Up

Congratulations