Understanding supply chain management
A supply chain ensures that a company's goods reach its customer in the least time. It fulfils customer satisfaction and business profitability - two significant goals for any firm. With the rising demand for reduced delivery time, organisations are looking for ways to optimise their supply chain operations. For that, a good supply chain design is crucial.
As a supply chain manager, you will be responsible for managing the flow of goods, finances and data, right from procurement of raw materials to delivery of finished products. Supply chain management programmes enable you to develop efficient and economical supply chains. Today, these programmes also teach about the role of technology in these processes.
This article will discuss what is supply chain design and its impact on fintech companies. But first, let's understand the supply chain better.
What is a supply chain?
Before diving into what is supply chain design, you must understand what supply chain is. Simply put, supply chain refers to the process of producing goods and selling them to customers. Every activity of the company, from sourcing raw materials to delivering finished products to customers, comes under the supply chain. The supply chain also takes care of the flow of information from one end to another.
Managing the supply chain is crucial as any issues in its functions can give rise to many concerns. These include shortage of raw materials, poor quality of goods, delayed delivery of products etc. All these problems will have a negative impact on the company's profits and reputation.
In a competitive market, companies must be looking for ways to reduce company costs while meeting customer demands regarding delivery. Only a perfect supply chain design can ensure this. Now, what is supply chain design? Read further to understand.
What is supply chain design?
Supply chain design is the process of making sound decisions regarding various supply chain elements. A good design will benefit the company as it ensures a smooth process from procurement of raw materials to delivering finished goods to customers.
The supply chain involves various elements, each of which should be in the right place for the company to benefit from them. Supply chain design aims at optimising the flow of goods and information while ensuring maximum efficiency. There are a variety of factors that influence the development of supply chain design.
First, you should look into the location of its facilities to ensure quick delivery of goods with reduced costs. You should then check out the suppliers' locations before creating the design. Regulatory requirements and infrastructure availability are two of the other factors to take into consideration.
While deciding on the production facility, organisations should check the availability of a skilled workforce. Transportation is another crucial element influencing the development of supply chain design.
What is fintech?
The term 'fintech' is a combination of two words: 'finance' and 'technology'. Fintech refers to the companies that use technology to automate and enhance various aspects of financial services and business processes. It is a rapidly growing industry which serves the interests of both companies and customers.
The impact of supply chain design on fintech
Today, supply chain design has turned out to be a crucial economic factor ensuring the survival of modern companies. Various parties such as sellers, buyers, carriers, technology providers and financial institutions are involved in the supply chain design. By coordinating the alignment of cash flows with goods and information flows within the supply chain, companies are strengthening efficiency in cash flow management.
The working conditions these days are making every party involved in the supply chain rely on each other for revenue. Hence, companies are now focusing on building and maintaining good relationships with their supply chain partners. Their efforts towards cultivating these relationships are reflected through various company policies and decisions.
Firms are now using the power of advanced technologies like AI, machine learning and analytics to their advantage. Additionally, they are also fulfilling stakeholder demands by implementing sustainable practices in various activities including production. This way, the high degree of economic interdependence between parties within the supply chain has shaped many business decisions.
Thus, changes in trade credit and inventory policies can negatively affect cash flows. Also, disturbances in the firm's interactions with different parties of the supply chain will not favour its capital structure. That explains why companies invest in financial technology today to automate and improve their activities along the supply chain.
Why choose Imarticus Learning?
The Digital supply chain Management Course by Imarticus Learning helps understand the role of technology like these fintech solutions in the supply chain. The programme equips you with the knowledge and skills to develop a digitally enabled supply chain. It allows you to use technological developments to your advantage and optimise supply chain operations.
By joining Imarticus Learning, you will get the opportunity to experience case-based learning. You will be working on 15+ case studies, 1 complete end-to-end simulation project and 3+ industry-recognised tools.
Imarticus will also provide all the placement assistance required. We conduct career mentoring sessions and mock interviews to prepare you for the job. Visit Imarticus Learning and grab the chance to join the course now.
