As companies navigate tariffs, geopolitical risks and high interest rates, there is an emphasis on reducing costs and inventory levels to free up cash and maintain profit levels while successfully serving customers’ ever-changing needs. The most successful companies are upgrading their planning processes and rolling out automation and advanced technologies.
Industrial automation is no longer optional—it’s the foundation for competitiveness and profitability. In this Supply Chain Byte, Lisa Anderson shares what manufacturers must consider when investing in automation to boost efficiency, improve responsiveness and stay ahead in a rapidly changing marketplace.
Honor your team members. Manufacturers have no hope of scaling up to meet the surge coming down the pike without the engagement of their teams. Excitement is building as high tech meets high touch in manufacturing, and the best companies see their talent as a strategic asset.
"SIOP" stands for Sales, Inventory, Operations Planning (SIOP). Depending on the industry or organization, you may also hear it referred to as “S&OP” or Sales and Operations Planning. Sometimes, it is even referred to as “IBP” or Integrated Business Planning. Typically, they mean the same thing. The most important words to emphasize are planning and alignment.
It is past time to ensure your supply chain is ready for growth. As companies scale up, shortages and lead times are extending. Develop plans to take advantage of the opportunities by preparing your supply chain to scale.
Since tariffs went into effect, supply chain vulnerabilities have been exposed. We are in a global supply chain with wildly varying levels of risk and exposure depending on the country of origin, product composition and each specific company's strategy.
Artificial intelligence is not only integral to manufacturing, distribution, mining, and forging, but it will also power productivity and enhanced customer value across every company in the future. Thus, it is an imperative to pay attention to current uses of AI and to think strategically about AI applications to drive productivity, profitability and performance.
Success or failure will depend on your talent. If you wait for stability to invest in talent, your competition will pass you by.
The announcement of reciprocal tariffs has created extreme volatility in the stock markets and nervousness among executives. Geopolitical, supply chain, and cyber risks plague the end-to-end supply chain and have stimulated additional debates about control in the Panama Canal, Greenland, and global supply chains.
In today's VUCA-laden (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) environment, every executive must focus on common sense solutions that cut through the sludge to deliver increased productivity, profitability, and performance. Only those companies that are prepared to pivot and enhance customer value while delivering bottom line results will thrive in the [...]
