Manufacturing and supply chain expert Lisa Anderson, president of LMA Consulting Group, predicts supply chain disruptions to continue through 2023. Her press release that suggests implementing a sales, inventory, and operations planning (SIOP) or sales and operations planning (S&OP) process to mitigate the swings associated with disruptions was picked up by Quality Digest.

 

“You have to get in front of supply chain disruptions,” says Anderson. “For example, bring in strategic inventory stockpiles and gain available capacity before you need them. While this is simplistic, sometimes simple is what works best. When I was VP of operations with a plant in a hurricane zone, we brought in excess materials before the hurricane season because we knew supplies would be delayed if a hurricane hit. Once it hits, it’s too late.”

There is no doubt that the Ukraine crisis will create further supply chain disruptions. “Ukraine has a huge wealth of natural resources,” notes Anderson. “They are a big supplier of metals and other commodities, which will impact many supply chains. We are already feeling it at the gas pump. That is why it’s so important that companies look holistically at their supply chains. The supply chain is integrated within a company—meaning that every department is interconnected to the supply chain. It is also interconnected with customers and suppliers. Implementing a SIOP process to proactively align all departments, customers, suppliers, and other supply chain partners will result in predicting demand, setting customer expectations, planning resources and capacity, and smoothing supply spikes—all while improving cash flow and increasing profitability. It can be done, and the rewards can be significant.”

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