a) Supply chain strategy or design

b) Supply chain planning

c) Supply chain operation

Supply Chain Strategy or Design -

• Decisions about the structure of the supply chain and what processes each stage will perform
• Strategic supply chain decisions
  • Locations and capacities of facilities
  • Products to be made or stored at various locations
  • Modes of transportation
  • Information systems
• Supply chain design must support strategic objectives
• Supply chain design decisions are long-term and expensive to reverse – must take into account market uncertainty.

Supply Chain Planning -

• Planning decisions:
  • Which markets will be supplied from which locations
  • Planned buildup of inventories
  • Subcontracting, backup locations
  • Inventory policies
  • Timing and size of market promotions
• Must consider in planning decisions demand uncertainty, exchange rates, competition over the time horizon.

Supply Chain Operation

• Time horizon is weekly or daily
• Decisions regarding individual customer orders
• Supply chain configuration is fixed and operating policies are determined
• Goal is to implement the operating policies as effectively as possible
• Allocate orders to inventory or production, set order due dates, generate pick lists at a warehouse, allocate an order to a particular shipment, set delivery schedules, place replenishment orders
• Much less uncertainty (short time horizon)