Elements of a Successful Material and Supply Chain Management Program: Part I - Program Management

May 5, 2021

It is no secret that the telecommunications landscape is changing rapidly. As pressure on Service Providers to upgrade their network infrastructure, grow their market share and maintain margins continues, material management plays a key role in helping providers meet these goals.

A supply chain is a strategic asset that should continually evolve to meet the demands and challenges of your business and the industry. With better management of materials, it is possible to show significant cost reduction, enhanced delivery schedules and increase customer satisfaction.

In this series, 6 Elements of a Successful Material and Supply Chain Management Program, we explain the six tactical elements that make up a successful supply chain program.

Part I: Program Management

To understand how your supply chain is operating, you must have a pulse on its overall efficiency. Proper program management and oversight of your supply chain should include the following four elements:

An effective program management team.

The team should have a well-defined hierarchy with clear roles and the authority to direct action amongst operating teams outside their direct department.

Management by metrics.

The team should operate by well-defined Service Level Agreements (SLAs) to keep key elements of the supply chain on-track. The SLA reporting should be frequent, with targets, and drive action from the program management team.

Frequent operational calls.

The program management team should hold frequent operational calls with key stakeholders within the supply chain. SLA reports should be reviewed as part of these calls with specific takeaways and tasks being documented within an action register.

Focus on continuous improvement.

The team should use the SLA reporting and the operational calls as platforms to identify and implement improvements into the operation. As target performance is achieved, new targets should be set. Additionally, the team should review volume shifts and changing trends on a defined frequency to identify operational improvements needed.

KGPCo has operated successful supply chain and material management programs for over four decades. Our strong supplier relationships, vast inventory and advanced nationwide distribution network means we can deliver when and where our customers need us. Learn more.

Part two in this series covers supply chain catalog management. It's often overlooked, and never should be.