Follow the leaders: Scoring high on the supply chain maturity model - The Indian experience

In this India Value Chain Study report, we describe how companies in India are responding to the challenge of cost control and responsiveness in five key supply chain areas. These areas are:

• Synchronising supply, managing demand: Customer-driven planning
• The perfect product launch: Product introduction and lifecycle management
• Effective customer order management: Perfect order attainment through realtime order processing
• The procurement opportunity: Realising benefits through holistic sourcing
• Efficient logistics services: Driving efficiencies in logistics operations

In 2003, when IBM last undertook a supply chain management study of this magnitude, the top objective of leading supply chains was to increase profitability – while, at the same time, reducing costs and improving quality. Now, companies are moving away from a direct focus on cost reduction to put increasing responsiveness and customer servicing within its set of three top objectives.

Globally, the focus on supply chain quality seems to have reduced significantly since 2003, but Indian respondents still expect some delay before quality can be de-focused. Among other subtle differences in supply chain across the globe, Indian supply chains are the most focused on responsiveness, followed by Australia/New Zealand (ANZ) (see Figure 1). The United States and Japan, meanwhile, have maintained their focus on profitability.

The Indian supply chain is still being tasked with ongoing focus on profitability, hence the new supply chain challenge: how to maintain profitability and, at the same time, meet new demands for service and flexibility.

To read the full study, download the PDF file at the top of this page.