Route to Market & Supply Chain Blog

Plane sight When travelling by air, my personal preference is to take only one plane to my final destination, where possible. I know this is more expensive than journeys with connections but I find it a much better overall experience given the…

Recondite complexity? I recently discussed how complexity negatively affects cost and service including how a floppy SKU tail inhibits growth. Do you understand the impact unnecessary SKUs have on FMCG success? CEOs should be seeking leaner and…

Time for action? If you have been dithering about making change for FMCG success, now is the time. With so much chaos around the world and COVID raising its ugly head once more, you will (hopefully) never have such a strategic discontinuity…

Deliver, deliver, deliver. Briefly, before we get stuck into today's article, I recently took a first-hand look at the ailing National Health Service in UK. Oh, how a little bit of demand and supply planning expertise plus a smidgeon of alternative…

Frustration Preparation Today I am getting ready to do business in my nameless but dysfunctional FMCG business. For “FMCG” you could substitute ANY business sector you wish. A full body suit made from flexible Kevlar with all the usual macho,…

Once More Unto The Breach You could hear the groans around the room when the FMCG CEO announced to the company that they had decided to implement Sales & Operational Planning (S&OP). After months of prevarication and toing and froing, a decision had…

Do you want fries with that? People who work in fast food outlets – I really cannot bring myself to label them as restaurants – must have specific training in dealing with non-standard orders. Can you imagine the temptation to audibly groan when in…

Blinkers? While you are tackling the day to day routine of crises, meetings, strategy and more crises while fending off the results pressure from global/regional HQ, you can lose a grip on the reality of how your company is operating. Creeping…

Too Little Too Late? Imagine Manchester City needing to score 5 goals in the last match of the season to win the English Premier League yet they do not start attacking with any intent until the 80th minute. Or the England cricket team needing to…

If you do not specifically agree on what is expected between two parties before you start a relationship then anything and everything but success is likely. Would you buy a used car from a politician? You buy a new car and you get a contract that…

Who coined that irritating term “Big Data”? How did we get there without normal sized data, slightly larger data, large data and bordering on big data? People working in or associated with extended Supply Chains may seem obsessed by data yet data…

Why do you need this transformation? If you: Do not have well-defined and aligned procurement and supply chain strategy Do not have strategically positioned procurement function Do not have clear procurement roles and responsibilities Do not have…

How do we deliver sustained excellence in supply chain and route to market in the challenging markets in Africa? I refer here to the entire supply chain from materials to shelf – i.e. supply chain and route to market (RtM). Although many of the…

To recap, last week’s introductory article - The 7 Essential Elements to Drive Change in your Supply Chain – considered the overall recipe for successful change. It was to understand: Why is change needed? What needs to change? How will the change…

I spent time over the Christmas break looking back at a lot of the great blogging work my colleagues have done during 2021. As I reflected, I reviewed some of our recent client project notes. Catching up on some filing (not usually a good idea over…