Supply Chain Survey Research

A short while ago, I was flattered to be approacahed by Sanjay Menon, PhD, Lousisiana State University - Shreveport who was interested in continuing the supply chain research he began a few years ago. His original research used an expert panel (Delphi) to frame some basic questions regarding supply chain management - including developing a snapshot of best practices and basic management trends.


Dr. Menon is revisiting his research questions (with limited assistance from me) and expanding them to include: 1) how different people perceive supply chains and value chains, 2) how supply chain considerations drive human resource practices, 3) how organizations address performance measurement (KPIs) and who is responsible for those measurements, and 4) what the perceived state of the art in supply chain management today.


Unlike many surveys I have seen and participated in, this survey was designed to answer some very basic questions and can be completed by almost anyone in about 20 minutes. (I don't know is a valid answer for most questions). The results of the survey are intended to be published in academic, peer-reviewed publications. There are no sales or marketing efforts associated with the survey and you are invited to participate.

For the friends and colleagues I made during my tenure as the Chief Technology Officer of the Supply Chain Council, I encourage you to participate in the survey to help to frame answers for questions we have been asking since the 1990s. For those of you who are seasoned in value chain and supply chain practice, I would ask you to contribute your knowledge to help understand how to link management practice and measurement to the managers and exectuves who are responsible for their planning and execution.

What is your reward for participating in the survey? Your anonymity will be protected. You will not be put on a never-ending mailing list. You will receive a summary of the findings and there may be an opportunity for you to participate in additional research.

Thanks and the link to the survey is here.

In Search of the Perfect Order Webinar

As I mentioned in a previous post, the Value Chain Group was kind enough to host one of my webinars - this time, an overview of Perfect Order Fulfillment. In the one hour that we devoted to the topic, we were able to discuss how perfect orders are calculated and some of the issues associated with capturing and using the measurements.

As a special note, in the webinar I mentioned a survey that Louisiana State University at Shreveport's Sanjay Menon, PhD, and I are conducting on metrics, supply chain management, and human resources. If you are interested in this research please feel free to send him (or me) a note.

The webinar introduces the use of a powerful metric that has been termed a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) by practitioners, research organizations, academics, and consultants. While the measurement of Perfect Order Fulfillment may be the state of the art in fulfillment measures, it can be difficult to implement. Failing to reach consensus on the definition of the order, the required delivery times (what constitutes early/late), or quantities (e.g.,blanket order agreements, call-offs) can make any measurement impossible. Imperfect execution (inconsistent purchase order agreements, failure to collect delivery information, or an inability to link invoice accuracy with the on time in full delivery of a customer's order) can make it impossible to measure perfect order fulfillment but other measures (On Time In Full, Fill Rate, etc.) may provide acceptable alternatives.

The VCG recorded the webinar and has passed along a link to for those who may have missed the original broadcast. The recording includes the PowerPoint presentation and an audio recording of the event. The link to In Search of the Perfect Order uses GoToMeeting and will ask for an email address prior to launching a Windows Media file that will play the audio recording and show the accompanying PowerPoint presentation.