International Operational And Logistical Strategies - Essay Example

?INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONAL AND LOGISTICAL STRATEGIES s Total quality management Total quality management encompasses combined management effort to improve and advance the quality of the company’s products at all levels. It has to do with meeting the customers’ quality expectation. Total quality management aids at improving effectiveness, flexibility, and effectiveness of an organization to meet the needs and expectation of all involved stakeholders (Bowersox, Closs and Cooper 2009, p. 40). It facilitates planning and organizing to understand the contribution of all involved stakeholders. The frequently wasted energy and effort is eliminated through concrete and effective planning and organization. In total quality management, the leaders’ works on productive strategies of ensuring quality service management and total elimination of the detected problems and shortcomings (Juran, 2008, p. 17). The ideology of total quality management accesses the management capability of managing people and business processes to meet customers’ quality expectation. Businesses provide the best outcome in satisfying the customers need through a well working combination of the total quality management and effective organization leadership (Medori, 2007, p. 520). The guiding principle behind total quality management is suppliers-customer interface. The interface should be functional in internal level and in external level. Total commitment to quality is very essential in achieving the desired customer quality. To achieve the expectation of the total quality management ideology, frequent transmission of the quality messages together with the need and desire to change the culture of an organization for quality advancement are very fetal and necessary. The three main elements in total quality management are people, process, and systems available in the organization (Jarrett 2006, p. 57) In total quality management, the term quality refers to meeting fully the needs and expectations of the organizations’ customers. The component of quality in total quality management includes; reliability, maintenance, availability appearance, performance, delivery, cost effectiveness, and delivery. The understanding of the organization on all this needs necessitate total quality management (Joseph 2008, p. 50). After comprehensive understanding of the customer’s needs, the organization must strategize on the best means of achieving them for the sake of the customers (Slack, Chambers, Johnston, 2010, p. 19). The initial stage in achieving the quality expectation of the customer is conducting market research. Research helps in understanding the actual and real needs of the customers. The collected finding should be communicated to all relevant organization departments. For an organization to effectively meet the expectation of its customers, the involved stakeholders, department, activities must be integrated. The organization changes should also be based on customers’ satisfaction. Proper integration of all interfaces is very necessary in achieving total quality organization (Zimmerman, 2006, p. 23). To meet the reality of total quality management, the process of transformation must start from the top. Senior managers must have the will and desire to achieve quality in the organization service delivery. They must demonstrate their total commitment and will of offering quality services to their customers. The operational managers must follow the suit of their seniors (Harrison and van Hoek, 2008, p. 87). Communication on the need and commitment to quality service delivery is also very relevant and demanding. The principles, ideologies, and benefits of total quality management must be communicated and understood by all playing partners. Frequent interaction and consultation in the organization is the real way of developing the required quality attitude and perception among the organization workers. The other core requirement in the total quality management initiative is comprehensive and practical quality policies. The qualities policies should be aided through thorough planning and provision of resources to implement the planed policy. The agreed policies must be discussed and agreed upon by all the involved stakeholders. After the agreement on policy to be implemented, the managers have the responsibility of reviewing and monitoring the agreed policies to make the necessary rectifications. The agreed policies should be communicated to all the relevant stakeholders (Kitazawa 2010, p 225). Total quality management in a business is achieved through total combination of effective leadership, relevant policies, practical action plans, and total quality management approach. On the other hand, to attain the expectation of the total quality management policy, the organizational leaders must have the will and capability of coming up and publishing cooperate values, beliefs and objectives (Kitazawa, 2010, p. 225). They must also be fully committed and involved in implementing the published policies and ideologies. Communication and motivations among all the involved team players is very essential. Proper motivation in this case improves effective employee participation in the organizations activities (Kitazawa 2010, p. 225). The total quality management is a very popular process for many international organizations. It’s outrageous outcome has attracted a substantial number of international companies. The Nike industry is among the international companies which are popularly known for using this process (Nike inc 2012, p. 4). To ensure it meets the expectation of its customer globally, the company has come up with very productive channels of accessing their customers. The channels aim at getting an understanding of the customer’s quality needs and expectations. Nike Company has a very active website which is easily accessed by the company’s entire customers. The company has a systematic and prompt ways of responding to their customers’ questions and concerns. Nike Company also uses football teams and other teams which uses their products to meets their customers. The suggestions and information collected from the company’s customers are integrated and discussed by the company’s managers and other relevant stakeholders. The initial discussion of the customers’ suggestions takes place in the company branches in various countries. The branches recommendations are then integrated in the company’s headquarter (Nike inc 2012, p. 4). After through and comprehensive discussion, the company managers and policy makers compiles a final policy draft on behalf of the company (Nike inc 2012, p. 4). The manager then educates and informs all the company’s global playing partners on the policy content. The plan of implementing the policy is then agreed (Nike inc 2012, p. 4). The required resources are then provided to ensure the policy is fully implemented. In Nike Company, senior managers are fully committed to quality improvement of the company’s products. They organize global trips for their employee to improve their morale. The total quality management has greatly improved the company performance as compared to their competitors (Nike inc 2012, p. 4). The total quality management has a very severe consequence if poorly managed. It demanding and commitment nature complicated the consequences of its down fall. The super sport company underwent very severely reputation for poor management of the total quality management ideology. The company incurred very severe loss. After introducing the policy in the company, the management did not understand its appropriate implementation. On the other hand, all the involved stakeholders were not in cooperated in the policy making process. The workers were not motivated enough to implement the policy. The content in the quality management policy were not displayed to the staff members. Additionally, the company allocated very limited resources in the implementation process As a result of this entire shortcoming, the Company lost large number of its customers. The company failed to meet the quality expectation and needs of the customers. Moreover, the company closed some of its branches due to limited management resources. Poor management of total management policy also tarnished the reputation of the company. Supply Chain Game The success of any supply chain is defined by the customer in the market place. The introduction of a new supply chain is based on understanding of the market place and customers’ needs. The strategy must meet the desires of both the end customer and the market (Chan et al 2009, p. 54). For the success of any supply chain, the chain must provide the rights goods and services to the customers at the right time, destination and at the right price. Proper understanding of the customers in the market is very important when introducing a new supply chain in the market (Towill and Christopher 2002, p. 4). The end desire of any supply chain is to meet the desired need of the customer and the business. On the other hand, an effective chain supply must expense less from the company when meeting the customers’ needs and demands. For a company to fit effectively in any competing market, its supply chain must have an active acceptance and sustenance of any uncertainty. According to mason-Jones and Towill (1999, p. 61), the company effective supply chain must have the capacity of meeting the demands of the customer, the product under supply, and the dynamic nature of the market. Lean supply strategy has to do with coming up with value stream that has the capability of eliminating any potential waste. The strategy works at ensuring a level schedule in the supply chain. Lean eliminates the following wastes; waiting time, transportation time, inventory, over-processing and motion time. The process employs continuous advancement strategies that eliminate the unwanted steps in the supply chain. Elimination of the irrelevant steps in the supply chain reduces the supply cost and the time required for a product or a service to reach the required destiny. It increases the company profit on the supplied product (Booth, 1996, p. 236). The core purpose of the lean supply strategy is to address the dynamic nature of the customers’ demands and expectations. It also ensures that the supply chains are flexible to react to the changes in the nature of the market. In reference to Vonderembse et al (2006, p. 224), organizations with proper lean supply strategy are always better positioned in the market On the other hand, agility entails using the available market knowledge to identify and exploit the available opportunities in a dynamic market. It came as alternative of lean principles (Richards 1996, p 64). It is the process of recognizing profitable opportunities in the business sphere and reacting to them for the benefit of the business (Sharif and Zhang, 1999, p. 10). The agile supply chain constitutes interaction between an organization and the market. To achieve the best outcome of the agile supply chain, the organization should be flexible. The process employs the available technology, method, tool, and technique to address the unpredicted market problem. Agile supply chain capitalizes on the market changes through prompt market supply to the customers. Agile and lean have proved their usefulness in their areas of specializations. With the robust nature of the modern market, a strategy that can incorporate agile and lean functions is important. `Leagile’ strategy is a combination of the two strategies (Naylor et al 1999, p 100). Lean and agile strategies is very appropriate in week seven chain supply chain. The lean strategy is relevant as it will help the supply chain to have concrete strategies on how to reduce the unnecessary wastages. It will necessitate the relevant methodology and idea of eliminating the unwanted steps in the supply chain. The outcome of the introduction of the lean strategy in the chain supply will be to increase the profit as well as developing confidence with the supply’s customers. It will also facilitate the identification and utilization of the productive market strategies. The seven week chain supply will be capable of detecting and reacting to the changes in the market (Verma and Boyer 2010, p. 54). Application of supply chain and logistical tools and techniques British America tobacco supply chain diagram Major strengths of British American tobacco supply chain There are some very outstanding strengths of the British American tobacco supply chain The supply chain provide for distinct delegation of responsibility among different stakeholders. Every involved stakeholder in the supply chain has a specific role to play. The role and obligation depends on the stakeholders positions in the supply chain. In this case, the company has been relieved some of the very complicated risks and cost associated with undertaking many responsibilities The promotion cost is distributed all over the supply’s chain. Every participant has a part to play in promotion. The well distributed promotion obligation increase the product outreach surface area. The company is relieved the warehousing costs and risks. The products are distributed to the suppliers and wholesaler. Prompt distribution of the company’s products have tremendously reduced the company’s operations cost. Weaknesses There is no direct feedback from the customer to the company. The supply chain limits the company an opportunity of understanding the customers’ perception on their products. In regard to this, the company can not enjoy the total quality management benefits There is immense waste of time from the manufacturer to the customers. The company product takes very long time before they reach to the customer. The distribution chain is very big and complicated. The channel denies the customer quality and fresh company’s product The company’s complicated supply chain increases the products cost. It is expensive to supply a product by using many middle men as compared to direct distribution of a product. Agile supply Modern supply chains emphasis on down streaming the collaboration between the company and the customer. The agility chain supply is very competent in ensuring there is close contacts between the company and the customer (Hoek et al 2001, p 127). The Process aims at accessing the customer ahead of other competitors. The agile supply is also commonly known for achieving mass customization through facilitating an avenue for direct contact between the customer and the organization. It has well functional structures which detects and masters the market change. The agile supply also provides interaction between different companies (Kehoe and Boughton, 2001, 517). There is freedom in the agile supply which necessitates material control, compatible planning, and effective regulation of the supply chain by the producer (Jacobs, Chase, and Lummus, 2010, p. 90). If applied in the British American tobacco supply chain, agile supply technology can have a very rewarding outcome to the company. It has the capacity of creating a platform for direct interaction between the company and the customers. Through this interaction, the company will be enlightened on the quality expectation of the customers. The company will also get immediate feedback on the quality of their products. The process can also reduce the cost of the product through elimination of the middle men. On the other hand, the agile technology supply will give the company the required authority to control the flow of the company’s products from the production unit to the ultimate consumer. The authority to control the supply chain will enhance timely and efficiency marketing of the company products. Through proper management of the agile technology in British American tobacco supply chain, the company will have the capacity to identify the unexpected changes in the market. The identification of unplanned change in market will necessitate prompt and timely action for the benefit of the company (British America 2012, p. 23) Logistics/supply chain plans Resources implication Time The time required to supply the company’s product from the company to the consumers will be minimized. With the adoption of agile supply technology, the company’s product will be supplied direct to the consumer. Direct supply of the product to the consumer will increase efficiency in the supply of the company product to the destined customer. The new supply chain will also reduce the promotion time. New products will be advertised at the right time to the consumer. The introduction of agile supply chain will facilitate the reduction in the time wasted in middlemen ware houses. Cost The elimination of the middlemen will reduce drastically the cost of the company’s products. The application of the agile supply has the capability of reducing the promotion cost. Reduced promotion cost is equivalent to reduction in the cost of selling price of the company products. The elimination of the cost incurred in the middlemen warehouses is necessary for cost reduction. Human Resource The number of people in the supply chain will be reduced through the implementation of the agile supply chain technology in the company. The company requires only qualified representative to access the customers. Middlemen and other irrelevant human resources will be replaced by direct interaction between the company and the client. On the other hand, the personnel required in extensive promotion exercise will be irrelevant in the company supply chain. Conclusion Direct contact between an organization and the customers is a very effective invention. Proper management of the supply chain is very relevant and important. For a company to attract and retain more customers, endeavor to meet the customers need is relevant and essential. Companies and other business organization have the obligation of conducting comprehensive research to understand the needs of the customer to fit in the modern contemporary and dynamic world. References Booth, R., 2006, Agile manufacturing: An integration model for the design of agile supply chain, int. J.Phys. District. Logiest manage, 31, 235-246 Bowersox, D., Closs, D. and Cooper, M., 2009. Supply Chain Logistics Management. (3rd ed). London: McGraw-Hill. PRINT. Harrison, A. and van Hoek, R., 2008. Logistics Management and Strategy: Competing Through the Supply Chain. (3rd ed). London: Prentice Hall. British American tobacco. Retrieved on 27 March 2012 from www. Bat.com/group/sites/uk..nsf/vwpagesweblives/do52afvs2? Hoek, R., 2001, Measuring agile capacities in the supply chain, international journal of operation and production management, 21, 126-147 Jarrett, R., 2006, Five myths about customer satisfaction, quality progress, 29, 57-60. Jacobs, F., Chase, R. and Lummus, R. 2010. 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International Journal of Logistics: Research and Applications [Online]. 5 (3), Retrieved on: 27 march 2012 from http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&hid=8&sid =c938a8b1-6f4f-40c6-aa35-39906df3814a%40sessionmgr13 Verma, R. and Boyer, K. 2010. Operations and Supply Chain Management: World-Class Theory and Practice, London: Cengage Vonderembse, M., Designing supply chains, towards theory development, International production journals, 100, 223-238 Zimmerman, R, 2006, Designing customer survey that work, Quality progress, 14, 22-28. Read More