Diagnosing Greatness: Ten Traits of the Best Supply Chains

Contributor:  Book Review
Posted:  10/28/2009  11:36:00 AM EDT  |  0

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By Charles C. Poirier, Francis J. Quinn, & Morgan L. Swink

Published November 2009 by J. Ross Publishing

Diagnosing Greatness is the first supply chain book targeted at all levels and functions of business management. It explains how business performance can be enhanced through a concerted effort to implement improvements across a full supply chain network. Using a significant amount of academic studies, published literature and documentation from annual global surveys among supply chain and logistics professionals conducted by Supply Chain Management Review magazine, Computer Sciences Corporation and Michigan State University, the authors combine their first-hand experiences to present a clear and impressive substantiation of what industry leading firms are accomplishing through supply chain efforts. Specifics are given across a wide variety of industries of how a limited number of firms have achieved positions of greatness as their supply chain efforts have matured and industry-best practices have emerged.

The authors’ basic approach was to isolate the best supply chains through documented accomplishments and then diagnose what led to their superior execution. Findings enabled the authors to articulate the top ten sustainable competencies or traits of greatness that distinguish the leaders from the followers. Each chapter within this book covers a trait which firms in any business can calibrate itself against and initiate a plan for achieving similar progress.

Diagnosing Greatness shows how to achieve the greatest return, while better satisfying investors, suppliers, business customers and consumer groups. Using many case examples and actual action stories, the authors bring a new and higher dimension to business success by explaining how to optimize the process steps across an extended business enterprise; bring value to all constituents of a business enterprise, especially the end consumer; and achieve and maintain industry best business results.

Key Features:

• Unlocks the mystery to finding how businesses can eliminate costs and apply the savings to improve the top and bottom lines of their operating statement
• Provides practical advice and prescriptive steps for bringing improvements to purchasing and sourcing, transportation and warehousing, sales and operations planning, inventory management, and operating systems
• Presents clear descriptions to help firms achieve a perfect ordering and handling system, provide vendor-managed inventory capability, introduce forecast collaboration, and achieve matching of actual demand with ability to deliver
• Explains in simple and practical terms how leaders are combining other techniques to enhance their supply chain efforts, such as lean, quality, selective outsourcing and customer intelligence
• Gives the reader a step-by-step roadmap and business plan for implementation and success