Report on Supply chain management

                Every business in the world has set system where the demand and the supply interact. The organization, running the business, has to deal with the supply and demand of the products that are needed to manufacture products as well as the delivery of the produced commodities out in the market. The entire integrated process of supply and demand, manufacturing of products and buying raw materials is known supply chain. Supply chain management assists the business organizations in maximizing their business output and maintains healthy customer service relationship. Supply chain management shadows every activity ranging from logistics, buying of the raw material, manufacturing the products and then selling them off in the market. The business companies also have to take in account of the external and market conditions that might affect the overall performance of their supply chain (Arndt, 2004). The conditions include the level of inflation, social activities going around or the political state of unrest in the country.

            The theories of supply chain management are based on two concrete facts. The first idea is that the supply chain for any organization or business is based on all the organization that are involved in the production and the selling of the product in the market. The second idea refers to the concept that the product that reaches the market is the collective effort of every organization and individual those have worked to make the availability of that particular commodity in the market available.

            Based on the basic concept of the supply chain management there are numerous approaches that can be used by the organizations to maintain their supply chain (Seuring, 2013). The approaches are to be chosen according to the type of business the organization is running, their demand and supply, number of suppliers and the demands of the customers they are dealing with. Despite the changes in the approaches the basic aim of every approach is to keep the integration between the demand and supply of the raw materials as well as the manufactured products intact.

            The first approach to the supply chain is the independent supply chain management approach. The approach is not much used in the current business market as the networks of the selling and the buying of the products have become more mixed-up up now (Wisner, Tan, and Leong, 2014). The independent approach to the supply chain management focused on the idea where everyone in the supply chain for a business works on their own views and perspectives towards the business. This created a lot of disturbance when used in the real time world. The deliveries of the raw materials got delayed which in turn lead to late delivery of the manufactured products in the market. This approach can be sued in the business that does not have to approach people outside the four walls for their actives in the supply chain.

            On the other hand, integrated approach to supply chain management is one of the most widely used models in the business world today. As the dynamics of the business world have changed, it is very crucial to make the deliveries of the raw material on time while making sure that he manufactured products also reach the market on time (Ballou, 2007). Integrated supply chains are formed after healthy relations are formed between the supplier and the organization. Additionally the integrated approach can be applied vertically in the organizations where the suppliers to buyers are collaborated and horizontally, when all the participants of every certain level in the supply chain are working on one idea.

            Integrated supply chain approach is efficient in its operations as well as is very cost effective as the activities of the supply chain are performed in a very systematic and centralized manner. In addition to the many benefits of the integrated approach there are few drawbacks as well. If the members of the supply chain are not collaborative in nature and do not share the same stance over the business, it becomes very hard for the organization to make a healthy environment for the efficient operations of the supply chain. In such cases semi integrated approach to the supply chain management can be employed.

            With the expansion in the research approaches and the concepts of the supply chain, the experts have reached to the conclusion that according to the dynamics of today’s business world, it is harder for the organizations to have an absolutely integrated approach both vertically and horizontally. The companies can make use of the semi integrated approach where the different participants of the supply chain are allowed to make their perspective clear and then take actions and decisions according. In the end the decision of the different groups in the system can be integrated through the use of technology (Storey,  Emberson,  Godsell, and Harrison, 2006). Through this way the organizations can make use of the ideas of multiple minds in the supply chain as well as the collaborative nature of the supply chain is maintained. Also the operations of the supply chain like logistics, delivery and supply of the products is not at all affected after all.

            On a broader level, the supply chain management seems to be combination of prominent activities that are part of the organizations business system. If we look carefully, there are multiple small scales activities undergoing in a supply chain that keeps the operations going (Carter, and Liane Easton, 2011). It is equally important for the organization to look for these minute details to ensure efficient and cost effective supply chain.

            This report focuses on the ways through the real time business organizations keep their supply chain at place. They surely look up to a model for the supply chain management but for the ground business activities numerous changes in the selected model are to be performed to mold them in accordance with the need of the time. To study these activities of the business organizations in more details, a primary research was carried out. The research study focuses on the day to day supply chain activities and challenges that the management faces and the relevant procedures they undertake to deal with the problems.

Introduction of Supply chain management to the Company

        Coffee#1 is an UK based coffee outlet chain. The organization started off with their business operations in the year 2001 with one small set up but now they have expanded their business to multiple outlets. Coffee#1 has a slogan that says that the coffee chain helps people in creating time for them. The coffee bar has specialized in coffee beverages and serves the customers with other snacks and fast food as well (Coffee1.co.uk, 2018). The motto of the company is to provide their customer with a relaxing environment to enjoy their coffee regarding it to be the fuel of life.

Supply Chain in Coffee#1 of Supply chain management

        Like any other business organization, Coffee#1 has a sophisticated supply chain that is managed by their supply chain department. The manager of the company was interviewed in the free time, to get a detailed insight of their supply chain activities. The interview consisted of open ended as well as close ended questions to ensure easy collection of data and lasted for fifteen minutes. The questions focused on the ways through which the company manages their supply chain activities. The interview questions are attached in the appendix at the end.

            Through the analysis of the information provided by the manager, we concluded numerous details about their supply chain management.

        The coffee chain focuses on the needs of their customers while making use of any model for their supply chain. They also ensure that the wages of the employees and the quality of the products is not at all affected. Coffee#1 follows a frequent and small order business model where they order small amount of the raw materials from their suppliers and the orders are made frequently. As they have multiple suppliers, some of them supply them with material on weekly basis and the rest on monthly basis. This way the products that they have in the store are always fresh and up to the expectations of their customers.

            Keeping the record of the stores to track supply and demand of the products is one of the most crucial activities of the supply chain management. The company uses P1 system that is based on latest technology. The system stores the usage information on hourly basis and gives constant notification if any of the products is out of stock or is nearly finished.

        As the customer relations are the most important to the company they never let their customer’s turnover affected by the increase in prices by making sure that their customers are made aware of the increase in prices of their items beforehand. Additionally, to deal with inflation the customers on tables are also assisted about the change in prices.

        Delivery of the supply to the manufacturing site is one of the most important activities in the supply chain management. It is evident that no supply chain can run without dependable number of transports at the hand of the company. The coffee outlet has ample amount of vehicles available to transport the supplies to the coffee outlets and to manage the supplies between the outlets as well.

        As the business is an ever evolving process that needs to be made better with time, the coffee company is making numerous efforts to make their supply chain more efficient. The company is looking forward to introduce new seasonal coffees and snacks in their menu. They are working on amending their supply chain to incorporate the new products as well.

Findings from the Supply Chain of the Company

            The motto of Coffee#1 is to ensure the quality of their products and to keep their customers at good terms. Their supply chain works with sophistication through the use of technology that ensures no storage of the supplies.

        From the analysis we have concluded that although the supply chain activities of the company are simple yet they are equally capable of keeping their business progressing. The company orders their supplies frequently and in less quantity that keeps their customers satisfied owing to the freshness.

            The company has an exceptional way of keeping the track of their supplies with the use of P1 system that is very appreciable in such small scale coffee business.  This technological advancement in the supply chain is making the integration between the supply and demand of the company smoother. Through the progress and success of the company with no delay in order or suppliers’ delivery we can conclude that the supply chain of the company is working very effectively and efficiently. As the company is looking forward to include new seasonal coffee options and snacks in the emu then they might want to amend some of the processes in their supply chain to ensure that same level of efficiency is carried out in the future as well.

Conclusion on Supply chain management

                Supply Chain is considered to be the backbone of any business. It is clearly evident that no company can achieve success unless the schedule of their deliveries from the market and to the market is on time. Supply chain management is the way through which the different buyers and sellers working in a supply chain can be scrutinized to work in collaboration for the collective benefit of the company. There are a number of approaches through which collaboration in the supply chain activities can be achieved. Business organizations can make use of the independent approach, integrated approach or the semi integrated approach to keep their supply chain working smoothly.

            Coffee#1 is an UK based coffee and snacks outlet that provides their customers with quality products with a relaxing environment.    The Company has a simple but effectively working supply chain that works using technology. Coffee#1 is working on adding new products in the menu and improving their supply chain. With the same efficient supply chain and new items the coffee outlet will surely leave many others behind.

References of Supply chain management

Arndt, H., 2004. Supply Chain Management. Gabler Verlag Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden GmbH, Wiesbaden.

Ballou, R.H., 2007. Business logistics/supply chain management: planning, organizing, and controlling the supply chain. Pearson Education India.

Carter, C.R. and Liane Easton, P., 2011. Sustainable supply chain management: evolution and future directions. International journal of physical distribution & logistics management, 41(1), pp.46-62.

Coffee1.co.uk. (2018). Coffee #1 | About. [online] Available at:https://www.coffee1.co.uk/about/ [Accessed 11 Oct. 2018].

Seuring, S., 2013. A review of modeling approaches for sustainable supply chain management. Decision support systems, 54(4), pp.1513-1520.

Storey, J., Emberson, C., Godsell, J. and Harrison, A., 2006. Supply chain management: theory, practice and future challenges. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 26(7), pp.754-774.

Wisner, J.D., Tan, K.C. and Leong, G.K., 2014. Principles of supply chain management: A balanced approach. Cengage Learning.