Supply Chain Management

Supply chain management refers to the management of the network of relationships among interconnected organizations and business units within a company, including procurement, production facilities, logistics, marketing, material, and service providers, encompassing material suppliers as well. It also consists of related systems that facilitate the forward and backward flow of finance and information. Additionally, it covers a broad process from the original manufacturer to the end customer, with benefits such as adding value, maximizing profit through efficiency, and ensuring customer satisfaction.

Therefore, the objectives and advantages of supply chain management are quite comprehensive. In short, supply chain management involves the control of the flow of goods and services related to the design, production, storage, sale, and delivery of a product. The supply chain is essentially the life cycle of a product from conception to consumption.

In today’s business environment, a multi-channel strategy involving multiple sales channels between a company and its customers has made supply chain management more complex. Consequently, information flows are no longer unidirectional but have become multidirectional. Due to this additional challenge, software has become a crucial tool for supply chain management. Good examples of this are Warehouse Management Systems (WMS) or Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP). These applications coordinate the relationship between suppliers and buyers based on product-related information and financial flows.