Supply Chain Management (SCM) is an integrative activity to more effectively connect the operations of the business to its suppliers and customers with the objective of improving overall performance. By linking suppliers, the company and its customers into one continuous “chain”, it is possible to increase speed and quality, reduce cost and inventory levels and more reliably meet the customer’s requirements. SCM incorporates the supply management, logistics (both into the company and out to the customer), new product development, marketing/sales, and cross-functional business processes to realize improvement in three areas across the chain; resource deployment, resource efficiency and resource alignment. Resource deployment identifies the best way within the chain to achieve the customer requirement, focusing work at the point where it is most effectively performed. Resource efficiency strives to eliminate redundancies throughout the chain and ensure that work is done correctly upstream so rework/scrap is eliminated. Resource alignment focuses on ensuring that all participants in the chain are working to the same requirements, schedule and plan to eliminate the problems associated with expediting, short lead-time changes and excess inventory. Specific tools and strategies are deployed to achieve improvements, consistent with a companies’ current capabilities. At the heart of successful SCM is effective management/use of information and deployment of consistent business measures across the entire chain.

Why Supply Chain Management?

SCM is a natural extension to implementation of Lean Manufacturing in a business. It provides a structure for engaging the supply base into the internal improvement efforts to reduce lead-time, cost and inventory while increasing quality and delivery performance. The connection to the customer facilitates deployment of “pull” systems to improve flow and communication and ultimately can lead to revenue growth by enhancing the relationship between company and customer. Additionally, SCM provides a framework for connecting other functional groups such as engineering, marketing and sales, purchasing and information technology into an overall improvement initiative that is consistent with a lean manufacturing program. As a stand-alone activity, SCM can generate significant reductions in procurement and logistics costs, improve customer satisfaction through delivery performance and assist in reduction of inventory levels, both raw material and finished goods.

All of the following training courses have been designed by Seven Pines Consulting Group specifically to enable a company’s self-sufficiency. The sequence of the coursework is structured to provide critical internal skills and knowledge at a level appropriate to the capability of the specific organization while also guiding the improvement process. All material can be customized to meet the unique needs of the individual or organization.

TRAINING COURSES AND CONSULTING SERVICES

Integrated Planning – Process Overview (1-day course)

In this training session participants will learn how Integrated Planning works and applies to their business. The course will introduce the concepts of Sales and Operations Planning, Master Scheduling and Operations Scheduling and create the linkage between the three Planning/Scheduling Levels and the associated planning horizons to enable participants to work effectively in an Integrated Planning environment. Examples relevant to the specific business will be employed to enable participants to trial the work process while learning the concepts. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who will have interaction with the planning process and need to understand how decisions have been made and the basis for those decisions.

Sales and Operations Planning (2-day course)

In this training session participants will learn about the Sales and Operations Planning Process and how to apply it to their business. Topics include Demand Management and Planning for Demand; Supply Planning and Alternatives in Supply Processing; Balancing supply and demand to maximize business performance and tradeoff decision-making; The role of Sales and Operations Planning in Factory and Sales Planning Processes; and using Historical data to enable effective forecasting and business planning decisions. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who will play an active role in the Sales and Operations Planning Process.

Integrated Planning (2-day course)

In this training session participants will learn about the Integrated Planning Process and how to apply it to their business. Integrated Planning connects the annual business plan of the company with tactical execution at the operational level through a progressively more detailed combination of planning horizons and product specifics/details (e.g. product families versus individual SKU’s). It links the cross-functional groups within the business through Sales and Operations Planning with factory and supplier execution via Master Scheduling and Operations Scheduling to maximize operational efficiency and alignment.

Participants will understand the key process steps; the different decision-making criteria at each level of the process; and the monthly process for integrating these decisions. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who will play an active role in the Integrated Planning Process.

Master Scheduling (2-day course)

In this training session participants will learn about the Master Scheduling Process and how to apply it to their business. Master Scheduling is the process that translates the high level demand and supply decisions, made in the Sales and Operations Planning Process, into product family volume forecasts that enable efficient operational and supplier plans to be created. Topics include Defining Operational Loading Strategies; Establishing Time Horizons for Resource Planning and Adjustments, Aggregating Demand and Managing Supply Planning for Long Lead Time Materials. Discussion will also include consideration of integrating the planning activity with available ERP/MRP Systems. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who will play an active role in the Master Scheduling Planning Process.

Operations Scheduling (2-day course)

In this training session participants will learn about the Operations Scheduling Process and how to apply it to their business. Operations Scheduling is the process that translates the mid-level demand and supply decisions, made in the Master Scheduling Planning Process, into detailed unit volume/SKU firm schedules that fulfill discrete customer orders. Effective operations schedules minimize unnecessary changeovers and lost production, optimizing the available resources, both human and capital, to efficiently and reliably meet customer demand. Topics include Level Load Scheduling; Establishing a Firm Schedule Horizon; Managing Mix Variation and Customer Requests. Discussion will also include consideration of integrating the planning activity with available ERP/MRP Systems. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who will play an active role in the Operations Scheduling Planning Process.

Supply Management Overview (2-day course)

Introductory and Overview course for companies contemplating or implementing an integrated supply management process. In this training session participants will be exposed to the entire range of activities and processes which enable successful utilization, integration and management of the company’s supplier base. The course will explore both the risks and opportunities to deploying an integrated supply management process with discussion specific to the particular company’s current situation. Topics such as commodity strategy, supplier partnership, contract management and supplier performance management will be covered. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who will play an active role in the Supplier Management Process.

Supplier Performance Measurement (2-day course)

This course teaches the fundamentals of measuring, managing and improving supplier performance. Most supplier performance issues arise because of a lack of consistently applied and shared performance measurement of the supplier. Once measurement systems are in place, a proactive and exception based supplier management process can be employed which reduces crisis management of suppliers and lays the foundation for consistent and focused operational improvement. Topics covered are appropriate supplier performance measures, supplier scorecards and dashboards, gap analysis and continuous improvement processes and supplier team meetings. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who will participate in the management or improvement of the supply base.

Supplier Materials Management (2-day course)

This training session will be focused on teaching the tools and processes to connect supplier materials management with the company’s internal lean manufacturing practices and measurement systems. Different approaches for achieving effective material replenishment will be reviewed considering the type of supplier relationship, type of material purchased, material leadtime, internal planning horizon and customer committed leadtimes. Methods for utilizing internal systems such as MRP/ERP and Kanban to forecast supplier requirements and facilitate material releases will be covered as well. PARTICIPANTS: All personnel who interact with suppliers and materials management.

Supplier Relationship Management (2-day course)

This course explores the company-supplier relationship; type, timing, resource investment and management process for the company to achieve the best short and long term business results. Considers the development of commodity strategies to drive selection of the appropriate supplier relationships (Strategic Alliance, Preferred, Collaboration and Conventional) and how to structure the organization to support these relationships. Utilizes the Supplier Relationship Model (11 Categories of interaction) to identify areas of risk and opportunity in current supplier relationships and to target areas for change or improvement. Implications of the supplier relationship are discussed for contract duration, contract terms and conditions, senior management involvement and strategic information sharing. Opportunities presented by strategic alliances will be explored in detail to establish the “case for change” in economic, performance and resource sharing terms. PARTICIPANTS: Senior and mid-level personnel who interact with suppliers and materials management. In companies where engineering plays a major role in the supplier relationship, engineering management should participate as well.

SCM Certification Program: Supply Chain Management Fundamentals (25-day course; 1-3 employees per company) Multiple Companies

Lean CERT II – Supply Chain Management (SCM) Fundamentals is intended to connect the ongoing internal Lean improvement efforts with the companies supply base and customers. Most companies who have progressed internally with Lean practices find that suppliers can become the next bottleneck, whether for quality and delivery issues or a combination of both. Further, changing customer ordering patterns and shrinking lead-time requirements place strain on the companies manufacturing operations and the supply base. Application of SCM tools and techniques can facilitate a company’s ability to effectively support and align customer requirements and engage suppliers in solving problems and ultimately focusing on continuous improvement. Participants will be exposed to a suite of SCM methodologies through classroom learning, hands-on activities and implementation of a company based project that will employ these tools to make an improvement in either supplier performance, customer service levels or inventory turnover.
The format consists of five, 1-2 day Lean Academies, multiple company based kaizen or improvement events and the matching of teams from different participant companies to work and learn together.

SCM Certification Requirements

One key SCM Sponsor & one - three Lean/SCM Champion certification candidates per location or company. SCM Champion participants’ time requirement is 25 days per person over 6-9 months plus an on-site SCM project implementation. Each participating company will host an on-site benchmarking visit, SCM Overview, and Kaizen/SCM Improvement event.