Author Archives: Ellery

Inventory Record Accuracy:  A Step to Supply Chain Improvement

Managers of a large food condiments manufacturer bragged that their finished products Inventory Record Accuracy (IRA) was 99%.  They added that they met this level constantly, not just when I as a consultant was there auditing the manufacturer’s supply chain operations.    How do you compute the IRA?  I asked the warehouse manager.  The warehouse officeContinue reading “Inventory Record Accuracy:  A Step to Supply Chain Improvement”

Supply Chain Visibility: Monitoring & Measurement

Supply Chain Visibility is the ability to observe the activities and movement of merchandise from their sources to their final destinations. When it comes to setting up a system of visibility, two features must be present:  monitoring and measurement.  The first is monitoring in which its effectiveness depends on the abilities to sense, detect, andContinue reading “Supply Chain Visibility: Monitoring & Measurement”

What Do You Want from Supply Chains?

There is no straightforward answer to this question. Supply chains have multiple stakeholders.  These stakeholders consist of individuals and enterprises which serve as the links of the supply chains.  Every enterprise also has an internal supply chain, which makes the people of the enterprise stakeholders to the larger supply chain. Stakeholders, therefore, would differ onContinue reading “What Do You Want from Supply Chains?”

The Need for Clarity Before AI in Supply Chains

It’s near the end of 2025.  Just about everyone is talking about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and how technology firms are racing to capitalise on it. Executives want AI to be integral in just about every business area.  That includes supply chains.  Aside from all the automation firms are installing into their operations, executives are aimingContinue reading “The Need for Clarity Before AI in Supply Chains”

What’s the Metric for Resilience?

Many executives insist their organisations need to be resilient.  Given all the adversities and disruptions businesses had experienced, it’s understandable to believe resilience is vital. Resilience is “an organization’s ability to adapt to and recover from disruptions, such as natural disasters or market shifts, while maintaining core operations and continuing to function.” But how doesContinue reading “What’s the Metric for Resilience?”

Scolding My Subordinate Was Wrong

I scolded my subordinate manager the other day.  Yelled at him, in fact.  It was wrong.  I should not scold, much more yell, at a person whether he works for me or not.  When I scolded my manager, I negated the value of pointing out his mistake.  The manager ended up not realising his errorContinue reading “Scolding My Subordinate Was Wrong”

Goals Lead to Tangible Benefits

In one scene from the movie, Rocky, the title character played by Sylvester Stallone, is seen waking up at 4:00am, helping himself to a glassful of raw eggs, and then starting a jog. Rocky’s jog is the start of his preparation for his boxing fight with Apollo Creed, the current heavyweight champion in the movie. Continue reading “Goals Lead to Tangible Benefits”

What the Supply Chain Must Be

There are many things we like supply chains to be.  Popular examples are resilient, sustainable, and agile.  For some of those at the end of the chain, they’d simply want them to be dependable or on time, especially when it comes to deliveries.  And for many supply chain professionals, they’d want vendor supplies to beContinue reading “What the Supply Chain Must Be”

Make It Visible

The planet Earth and its Solar System reside in the Milky Way galaxy, a spiral collection of a 100 to 400 billion stars.  Yes, that’s billion, not million, and far more than a thousand or hundred.  We can only see only a few thousand of stars in the night sky and only so much moreContinue reading “Make It Visible”