Sustainable Supply Chain Management

Question: Discuss about the Sustainable Supply Chain Management. Answer: Introduction: The internal process focuses on the management intervention affecting financial or customer outcomes. Supply chain management involves integration and coordination of downstream and upstream activities starting from the procurement of raw materials to finished goods. The need for communication in supply chain management cannot be overstated (Qiang et al. 2014). Recently, a friend of mine narrated me his horrible experience he had with one of the suppliers. A large number of items had been ordered that was supposed to be put in a large container and shipped to Singapore via the ocean. However, the supplier learnt that all the packets would not fit in the large container that was agreed upon. Rather than alerting about the issue, the supplier made his own decision and removed a large number of products without communication. No warning was provided to my friend or the customers. Upon delivery of the products, the ignorant customers received it in a poor condition. The customers were disappointed as they had waited for the products. This situation would have been avoidable if communication was made by the supplier via email, text or call (Zhu, Sarkis and Lai 2013). Therefore, from the above experience I can infer that communication is the key to supply chain management. It may be painful for the supplier in the beginning, but it shall avoid the customers from getting disappointed. If majority of the time spent by the suppliers is to get worried about the blame for delays, he shall be more likely to upset its customers due to the different ways of doing business. Even when it comes to cooperating with different staffs in the organization, the communication process is strained. Both theoretically and in my opinion, proper communication between suppliers and stakeholders can bring creative ideas and improving the supply chain practices. However, if there is limited communication, the ability of the procurement department may influence the end to end process (Ellram and Cooper 2014). Based on the theoretical concepts and studies, I devised a few steps that a successful individual applies at the organization. These steps are inspired by my friend as he follows them to manage supply chains effectively by improving communications. Firstly, the stakeholders or suppliers need to be prioritised. Secondly, he believes that regular meetings with suppliers and stakeholders must be held. He holds meeting on a weekly basis so that proper communication can be made. My friend also uses email that presents a summary with the suppliers. In my opinion, the best strategy and step is to offer options. A list of options shall influence the stakeholders in communicating well and the decision shall not fall out of hand (Turker and Altuntas 2014). Conclusively, I have learned to be clear with the stakeholders for managing the internal process management effectively. Based on the lesson learned from my friends experience, I have learned that the stakeholders must tackle the concern effectively. Quick calls or visits must be paid to the stakeholders for effective communication. References Ellram, L. and Cooper, M., 2014. Supply Chain Management: It's All About the Journey, Not the Destination.Journal of Supply Chain Management, 50(1), pp.8-20. Qiang, N., Huang, Z., Ke, N. and Yang, Y., 2014. Overview of supply chain risk management and the current issues of closed-loop supply chain in China. International Journal of Business Continuity and Risk Management, 5(3), p.236. Turker, D. and Altuntas, C., 2014. Sustainable supply chain management in the fast fashion industry: An analysis of corporate reports. European Management Journal, 32(5), pp.837-849. Zhu, Q., Sarkis, J. and Lai, K., 2013. Institutional-based antecedents and performance outcomes of internal and external green supply chain management practices. Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management, 19(2), pp.106-117.