“You have to get in front of supply chain disruptions. 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, comments Manufacturing and supply chain expert Lisa Anderson, president of LMA Consulting Group.
Lisa Anderson predicts supply chain disruptions to continue through 2023. She suggests implementing a SIOP/S&OP (Sales and Operations Planning) process to mitigate the swings associated with disruptions. LMA Consulting Group works with manufacturers and distributors on strategy and end-to-end supply chain transformation to maximize the customer experience and enable profitable, scalable, dramatic business growth.
There is no doubt that the Ukraine crisis will create further supply chain disruptions. “Ukraine has a huge wealth of natural resources. 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 is 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 (sales, inventory and operations planning) 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 smooth supply spikes while improving cash flow and increasing profitability. It can be done, and the rewards can be significant,” she says.