Maintaining a keen focus in challenging times

26 March, 2020

With regard to preparing for when the epidemic is over, May expects the progress of the epidemic to be uneven, with countries reaching the post-epidemic phase at different times. However, he is confident that, country by country, the epidemic will be brought under control allowing industry to open up and supply to be resumed. In preparation for this, he believes companies should work with suppliers to ensure that they are among the first to start to receive deliveries.

During the whole period May maintains that companies should focus on their own planning processes to maximise the use of inventory. He anticipates that inbound supply and outbound demand will continue to be unpredictable for some time and maintains that closely managed rapid sales and operations planning (S&OP) processes should be used to drive supply chain decision making on a day-by-day basis. May believes senior management visibility of sales & operations planning (S&OP) processes should be enhanced to ensure quick decision making, high level awareness and executive accountability. May considers that supply chain disruption can be managed by understanding the location risk across the tiers. “It is important to avoid clustering of suppliers in one region and particularly around similar supply chains,” says. “This will be increasingly critical as the world becomes more volatile through climate change and other man-made impacts. That makes it important to look beyond selecting on lowest price only and understand the overall value and the risks in the supply chain.”

Understanding how to optimise business and operational practices in challenging times can only help companies to continue to triumph, even in the face of formidable adversity. It’s time to focus.

Ed Holden Editor