Today's world is characterized by volatility and uncertainty. Cooperation is needed to survive in this harsh business climate. Cooperation in supply chains are practiced and well known but in today's tough and volatile environment it is simply not enough. Wastes and unnecessary processes have to be eliminated to secure a competitive advantage. Incorporating lean in supply chains get more and more attention and embrace in the modern literature and media. Lean implemented in supply chains is praised to create a proactive supply chain that successfully eliminate waste and create efficiency. In the thesis the negative aspects, the angle that is very seldom described in the literature, of incorporating lean in supply chain is researched. I will view lean from the management perspective and research the negative aspects, their cause and impact on the entire supply chain. Being aware of the criticism of lean from the employee and society perspective this research serves to find if lean from the management perspective is a flawless story. To achieve the aim of this thesis I conducted a survey research where 100 supply chain executives from different countries, different industries and of different designations within supply chain management were asked to share their lean experience. The summary of my research show that lean incorporated in supply chains is not only a sunshine story. I can conclude problems, even a mismatch, with the lean concept incorporated in supply chains- the time sensibility lean brings. In my research it became obvious that lean supply chains are very sensitive to delays and that the consequences of the delays will strike very hard - hence the lean supply chain can also be seen as more vulnerable and fragile compared to ordinary supply chains. There is no question about the fact that any company, any network of companies or a supply chain for that matter, are better off without delays. A delay will always be negative. In a lean environment, where time aspects such as Just-In-Time and a pull scenario are present, a delay will immediately ruin the entire execution and the consequences will naturally spread in the supply chain. In today's volatile and ever changing world I believe that leanness in supply chains are indeed needed but to an extent where the time factors are viewed realistically in order to avoid drastic consequences. My conclusion is that supply chains should be realistically lean, bearing the time factors of lean in mind, to avoid being mean. I encourage every supply chain to identify their lean level in order to avoid a mean result.

In today's highly competitive global marketplace, organisations are under pressure to find new ways to minimize risk and maximize profits. Profits can increase by reducing the cost of inputs or increasing price of the outputs. Hence, procurement contributes by reducing the cost of inputs by sourcing materials at lower costs. Consequently, this creates a challenge to the buyer as supply risk issues are more likely to occur with lower cost sources that might include new suppliers or unreliable sources. Unfortunately, logistics planners, too, drive new initiatives intended to be cost effective such as "Just-in-Time" (JIT) manufacturing. This adds an additional challenge to the buyer of ensuring uninterrupted supply while the system has actually eroded the supply buffer that would have enabled achieving the goal of low cost supply at lower risk. Hence, supply managers have to deal with the ever-increasing challenges in pursuit of a balance between supply risk and lower cost of supplies while ensuring sustainable supplies. For these reasons, this study aims to develop an implementation plan for the supply risk management. The plan developed from a case study undertaken at Safripol, a large manufacturing chemical company located in Sasolburg, South Africa. The complete study of the implementation plan, from the literature to empirical studies, were conducted by various means, including a study of journals and procurement textbooks, analysis of the supply data of Safripol, an experiment of a proposed plan, and a survey. The literature study initially discusses various approaches suggested by other writers and finally concludes with a proposition of a seven-step process. The process starts with (1) human resource allocation, (2) supply base categorisation, (3) vulnerability assessment, (4) evaluation of the implication, (5) cost/benefit analysis, (6) risk treatment, and it finally ends with the strategic alignment (7). These steps address the major issues that are critical to successful implementation of supply risk management, particularly in large manufacturing companies like Safripol. However, the empirical study went further to investigate the application of the seven-step process. This involved commissioning of a multi-disciplinary team to review the process. The team applied the seven-step process in conducting a full assessment and evaluations of supply risks for four selected suppliers of specific material. The team composed of Safripol employees who are involved in the supply chain of the specific material reviewed. In addition, the analyses of the steps were captured, and stored in a tool developed in Excel worksheets. That enabled the process to be systematic, repeatable and easier to apply. Populated worksheets resulted in a formal knowledge resource database that will enable Safripol to manage supply risk plans and execute action plans in case of supply interruptions. Finally, the study indicated that the seven-step process is practical and applicable to Safripol. In addition, the study found that the process adds value in managing supply risks. Thus, the study achieved its goal of developing an implementation plan for supply risk management. However, the study concludes by providing future fields of study and recommendations in an effort to contribute further to development of supply risk management. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009.

In today's highly competitive global marketplace, organisations are under pressure to find new ways to minimize risk and maximize profits. Profits can increase by reducing the cost of inputs or increasing price of the outputs. Hence, procurement contributes by reducing the cost of inputs by sourcing materials at lower costs. Consequently, this creates a challenge to the buyer as supply risk issues are more likely to occur with lower cost sources that might include new suppliers or unreliable sources. Unfortunately, logistics planners, too, drive new initiatives intended to be cost effective such as "Just-in-Time" (JIT) manufacturing. This adds an additional challenge to the buyer of ensuring uninterrupted supply while the system has actually eroded the supply buffer that would have enabled achieving the goal of low cost supply at lower risk. Hence, supply managers have to deal with the ever-increasing challenges in pursuit of a balance between supply risk and lower cost of supplies while ensuring sustainable supplies. For these reasons, this study aims to develop an implementation plan for the supply risk management. The plan developed from a case study undertaken at Safripol, a large manufacturing chemical company located in Sasolburg, South Africa. The complete study of the implementation plan, from the literature to empirical studies, were conducted by various means, including a study of journals and procurement textbooks, analysis of the supply data of Safripol, an experiment of a proposed plan, and a survey. The literature study initially discusses various approaches suggested by other writers and finally concludes with a proposition of a seven-step process. The process starts with (1) human resource allocation, (2) supply base categorisation, (3) vulnerability assessment, (4) evaluation of the implication, (5) cost/benefit analysis, (6) risk treatment, and it finally ends with the strategic alignment (7). These steps address the major issues that are critical to successful implementation of supply risk management, particularly in large manufacturing companies like Safripol. However, the empirical study went further to investigate the application of the seven-step process. This involved commissioning of a multi-disciplinary team to review the process. The team applied the seven-step process in conducting a full assessment and evaluations of supply risks for four selected suppliers of specific material. The team composed of Safripol employees who are involved in the supply chain of the specific material reviewed. In addition, the analyses of the steps were captured, and stored in a tool developed in Excel worksheets. That enabled the process to be systematic, repeatable and easier to apply. Populated worksheets resulted in a formal knowledge resource database that will enable Safripol to manage supply risk plans and execute action plans in case of supply interruptions. Finally, the study indicated that the seven-step process is practical and applicable to Safripol. In addition, the study found that the process adds value in managing supply risks. Thus, the study achieved its goal of developing an implementation plan for supply risk management. However, the study concludes by providing future fields of study and recommendations in an effort to contribute further to development of supply risk management. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009.

Thesis (D.Phil.)--Rhodes University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 189-207).

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2019 / Performance measurement of supply chain in the healthcare environment has presented with a number of challenges, and studies exist to confirm this. These problems include rising costs, excessive demands, shortage of supply, and escalating level of customer dissatisfaction are the true reflection of supply chain issues faced by the hospitals. This study aims to find out an effective solution to measure supply chain performance within a hospital in Cape Town. The relation among trust, SCM/IT integration, firm’s performance, and knowledge exchange were investigated. A mixed research method (both qualitative and quantitative) was conducted involving five managers and 80 employees from the hospital. A number of interviews and a close-ended questionnaire were used for data collection. Content analysis was used for qualitative data and the descriptive results were generated through SPSS V25. Hospital and healthcare environment have been used interchangeable in this study. The research findings showed that trust levels between the hospital and its suppliers has no direct impact on supplier integration, but that its influence is interceded by knowledge exchange. Knowledge exchange plays an important role in influencing supply chain performance in the hospital. IT integration and knowledge exchange have a positive impact on hospital–supplier logistical integration between the hospital and its suppliers. In addition, knowledge sharing in supply chain may subsequently build strong relationships among SCM partners and may automatically influence hospital performance. This study recommended that the hospital should develop an approach that facilitates the dynamics of the hospital in order to manage the buyer-supplier relationship. Further research can be done on factors that contribute to buyer/supplier trust development in the healthcare environment.

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

No description available.

Thesis (doctoral)--FernUniversität, Hagen, 2007. / Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references and index.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Florida, 2006. / Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 267 pages. Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Zugl.: Magdeburg, Univ., Diss., 2009