Assessment 1:
Write a 600-800-word response to a series of questions about the supply chain of an apparel retailer. Zara is the flagship brand for Europe's fastest growing apparel retailer and has about 1500 stores in major cities around the globe. After reading the Harvard Business Review article, "Rapid Fire Fulfillment" (linked in the Resources under the Required Resources heading), answer the following four questions about Zara's supply chain:
• Explain why the company's supply chain strategy is successful. For example, the selection and management of suppliers and determination of information needs and systems.
• What advantage does Zara gain against the competition by having a very responsive supply chain?
• What advantage does the company gain from replenishing its stores multiple times a week compared to a less frequent schedule? How does the frequency of replenishment affect the improved customer satisfaction?
• What information infrastructure does Zara need in order to operate its production, distribution, and fast fashion retail network effectively?
Submit your answer in a Microsoft Word document in 600-800 words. All written assignments should follow APA rules for attributing sources.
• Ferdows, K., Lewis, M. A., & Machuca, J. A. D. (2004). Rapid-fire fulfillment. Harvard Business Review, 82(11), 104-110.
Assessment 2:
Dell has been selling computers for over 25 years with its unique, direct build-to-order sales model. After reading the related articles from the Capella library (linked in the Resources under the Required Resources heading), answer the following questions:
• Why has Dell's direct supply chain been so successful?
• Describe the main supply chain challenges that Dell is now facing and provide your recommendations for solving them.
• Was Dell's decision to sell its products via retail outlets a viable solution? Do you agree with this distribution strategy? Why or why not?
Your assessment should be written in a Microsoft Word document 600-800 words in length. All written assessments should follow APA rules for attributing sources.
In 600-800 words, respond to a series of questions about the past success and current challenges of Dell's supply chain, and offer your thoughts regarding Dell's distribution strategy, based on assigned library articles.
• Gray, M. (2007). Revolving around the customer [supply chains customisation]. Manufacturing, 86(6), 28-31. doi:10.1049/me:20070603.
• Kapuscinski, R., Zhang, R. Q., Carbonneau, P., Moore, R., & Reeves, B. (2004). Inventory decisions in Dell's supply chain. Interfaces, 34(3), 191-205. doi:10.1287/inte.1030.0068.
• Blanchard, D. (2012). Dell taps into innovation to reach emerging markets. Industry Week/IW, 261(11), 45.
Assessment 3:
Conduct a case study analysis on the different characteristics of the supply chain of a company you choose and, in 800-1000 words, respond to a series of questions regarding the company's supply chain strategy.
• Blanchard, D. (2010). Supply chain management best practices (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
• Bhatnagar, A. (2009). Textbook of supply chain management. Lucknow, India: Word-Press.
• Drake, M. (2011). Global supply chain management. New York, NY: Business Expert Press.
• Greeff, G., & Ghoshal, R. (2004). Practical e-manufacturing and supply chain management. Oxford, England: Newnes.
• Farooqui, S. U. (2010). Encyclopedia of supply chain management: Volume I. Mumbai, India: Himalaya Books Pvt.
• Farooqui, S. U. (2010). Encyclopedia of supply chain management: Volume II. Mumbai, India: Himalaya Books Pvt.
• Farooqui, S. U. (2010). Encyclopedia of supply chain management: Volume III. Mumbai, India: Himalaya Books Pvt.
Conduct a case study analysis on the different characteristics of the supply chain of a company you choose. Select one company from the list below to focus on:
• L. L. Bean.
• Amazon.
• Starbucks.
• Intel.
• Johnson and Johnson.
Research and write about the company that you have selected from the above list and respond to the following questions. You can research your responses in any of the resources noted in this course, in the Capella library, and on the Internet:
• Describe their business model and explain their supply chain strategy.
• Discuss the global challenges that they face in their supply chain.
• Discuss the importance of aggregate planning to their supply chain and their partners.
• What role does demand forecasting play in their supply chain strategy?
• Explain how pricing promotions are used to change demand.
Write your answer in a Microsoft Word document in 800-1000 words. All written assessments should follow APA rules for attributing sources.
Assessment 4:
Create a 10-slide PowerPoint presentation to explain a selected company's transportation and warehousing strategy to potential investors and lenders.
For Assessment 3, you selected one company from the list below and wrote a paper about their supply chain strategy and their use of forecasting and planning to develop their strategy. You may use either the same company or a different company from the list for this assessment.
• L. L. Bean.
• Amazon.
• Starbucks.
• Intel.
• Johnson and Johnson.
Create a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation to explain your selected company's transportation and warehousing strategy to potential investors and lenders. You can research your responses in the Capella library and on the Internet.
When creating your presentation, include the following information:
• Slide 1: List the presentation title, the company name, the date, and your name.
• Slide 2: Describe the overall transportation objectives of the company.
• Slide 3: Describe and evaluate the modes of transportation that the company uses to move products from factory to customers.
• Slide 4: Identify the locations of the factories and warehouses.
• Slides 5-6: Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the locations for the organization's factories and warehouses.
• Slide 7: Analyze the economic and political factors that can impact their transportation and warehousing network.
• Slide 8: Describe how technology is used to manage the organization's transportation and warehousing network.
• Slide 9: Make recommendations for improving the organization's transportation and warehousing network.
• Slide 10: List of references using APA format. Include at least three resources
You may use additional slides, if necessary. Provide your information as a bulleted list on the slides and insert explanations where applicable.
Use the notes section in MS PowerPoint to add additional information and clarity to your presentation.
Reminders:
• Provide a minimum of three references that you used in formulating your responses.
• Verify that you have included all of the required sections in your presentation.
• Check for proper use of mechanics and apply APA standards to citation of sources.
Assessment 5:
In 800-1000 words, respond to a series of questions about a selected company's information management system. In Assessment 3, you selected a company from the list below and wrote a paper about their supply chain strategy and their use of forecasting and planning to develop their strategy. In Assessment 4, you prepared a PowerPoint presentation for a company from this list. For this assessment, once again choose a company from this list, either one you analyzed in a previous assessment or one you have not used before.
• L. L. Bean.
• Amazon.
• Starbucks.
• Intel.
• Johnson and Johnson.
Research and write about your selected company's information management system (IMS) and respond to the following questions. You can research your responses via the Capella library and the Internet.
1. Describe the company's information management system.
2. Does its IMS give the company a competitive advantage over their competition?
3. How does the IMS help coordinate between supply chain partners?
4. Explain how the IMS helps to monitor orders and inventory levels and satisfy customers.
5. Explain why managing information is equally or more important to the company than moving products.
Write your answer in a Microsoft Word document in 800-1000 words. All written assessments should follow APA style and formatting guidelines for attributing sources.
• Blanchard, D. (2010). Supply chain management best practices (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
• Bhatnagar, A. (2009). Textbook of supply chain management. Lucknow, India: Word-Press.
• Drake, M. (2011). Global supply chain management. New York, NY: Business Expert Press.
• Greeff, G., & Ghoshal, R. (2004). Practical e-manufacturing and supply chain management. Oxford, England: Newnes.
• Farooqui, S. U. (2010). Encyclopedia of supply chain management: Volume I. Mumbai, India: Himalaya Books Pvt.
• Farooqui, S. U. (2010). Encyclopedia of supply chain management: Volume II. Mumbai, India: Himalaya Books Pvt.
• Farooqui, S. U. (2010). Encyclopedia of supply chain management: Volume III. Mumbai, India: Himalaya Books Pvt.