Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP)

Abstract

Supply chain management (SCM) facilitates delivery of the right products or services to the right place in the right quantity for the right price. It also uncovers dormant synergies or enhances existing synergies among trading partners. This chapter outlines the fundamental strategies, members, and activities of a supply chain, and how information technologies enable better management of the supply chain. Currently, basic challenges in improving supply chain performance are embedded in the adversarial tension of competitive markets. Overcoming inherent distrust and fostering collaboration among decentralized supply chain members is a major challenge faced by today's supply chain managers. The capability to provide visibility of the entire supply chain's status to each supply chain member through SCM software fosters cooperation, and thus information technology can be viewed as a critical enabler of supply chain coordination.