Group Purchasing Organizations (GPOs) are a massive subset of the healthcare industry that negotiate lower costs for healthcare supplies by buying for several hospitals at once. "Group Purchasing Organizations" provides an analysis and critique of this industry.

The book describes the application of hierarchical planning techniques to all the major functional areas of supply chain planning, including production, distribution, warehousing, transportation, inventory management, forecasting and performance management. In particular, the book provides a comprehensive review and understanding of how hierarchical planning techniques and principles can contribute to the effective and efficient management and planning of supply chain activities. The book begins with a review of some well-known, original hierarchical production planning techniques and implementations dating back several decades. Building on this historical base, it then reviews numerous more current hierarchical planning methods and applications covering a wide array of supply chain activities. Additionally, the book offers a number of new and original hierarchical planning techniques and algorithms covering different components of supply chain planning. These algorithms range from simple algebraic calculations to mathematical optimization models. The book also offers an original approach to hierarchical supply chain performance measurement and monitoring techniques. It further offers an original approach for integrating supply chain performance measurements into measurement systems such as the balanced scorecard which evaluate total firm performance. The book is written to cover the interests of a wide variety of audiences ranging from private industry practitioners, to academic researchers, to students of operations, logistics and supply chain management and planning. It features numerous graphical illustrations highlighting both methods and requirements for integrated hierarchical supply chain planning.

Supply Chain Optimization captures the latest results in a segment of current research activity in supply chain management. This research area focuses on applying optimization techniques to supply chain management problems. The research papers that make up the volume provide a snapshot of state-of-the-art optimization methods within the field. This book presents rigorous modelling approaches for supply chain operations problems with a goal of improving supply chain performance (or the performance of some segment thereof). It contains high-quality works from leading researchers in the field whose expertise fits within this scope. The book provides a diverse blend of research topics and novel modelling and solution approaches for difficult classes of supply chain operations, planning, and design problems.

CAO is one of the most misunderstood and underutilized weapons available to retailers today. International consultant Barbara Anderson makes clear that in only a limited sense does CAO replace manual ordering. In its full sense it is much more--the optimization of manufacturer, supplier, and retailer distribution to the retail store-- based on consumer and store data and corporate policy. Anderson thus provides a framework and checklist for implementing CAO, and understanding of key terminology, solutions to likely problems, and ways to make CAO implementation successful, and in doing so she covers the full spectrum of retailing. A readable, easily grasped, comprehensive, unique book for retailing management and for their colleagues teaching it in colleges and universities.

Anderson points out that CAO is not an off-the-shelf system but an ongoing project, each phase with its own unique set of benefits and cost justification. Retail systems must support a vision where a product may bypass the store on the way to the consumer, or even the distribution center on the way to the stores. Consumers have a wide range of choices, not only of where to shop, but how to shop, and this demands ever greater levels of service. CAO systems help assure that the correct product is available at the store, that it can be located throughout the supply chain, and that it can be moved easily from any location. In CAO, all levels of operation work with real-time information, using decision-making tools that react and learn from new information. Her book thus shows there is no one right system, product, or approach for successful CAO. It's too big a leap to make in one step but consists of modules and functions that can grow in sophistication over time, and that not all retailers nor all categories within one retailer will use the same methods for forecasting and ordering. She also shows that the distinct separation of replenishment product from planning product is artifically imposed and that the separation of head-quarters from stores is also artificial. Indeed, integration does not mean the integration of separate systems; rather, of business functions themselves. Readers will thus get not only a knowledgeable discussion of what CAO should be, what it is and how it works, but an immediately useful understanding of how to make it work in their own companies.

Sharing accurate and timely supply and demand information throughout a supply chain can yield significant performance improvements to all members of the supply chain. Despite the benefits, many firms are reluctant to share information with their supply chain partners due to an unequal distribution of risks, costs, and benefits among the partners. Thus, incentive mechanisms must be in place to induce communication, cooperation, and collaboration among all members of a supply chain. The issue of Information exchange/sharing has been examined by various researchers over the last 15-20 years. However, there is no research book that compiles various approaches, analyses, key implications, as well as future development of this area. This book will serve as a handbook for researchers who are interested in learning the state of the art of the line of research in this area and explore open research topics in this area. Contributors, all leading researchers, have committed to delivering 18 chapters, broken into four distinct sections covering the Value of Information Sharing, Contracting and Information, Information Signaling, and Incentives for Information Sharing.

This work brings together some of the most up to date research in the application of operations research and mathematical modeling te- niques to problems arising in supply chain management and e-Commerce. While research in the broad area of supply chain management enc- passes a wide range of topics and methodologies, we believe this book provides a good snapshot of current quantitative modeling approaches, issues, and trends within the field. Each chapter is a self-contained study of a timely and relevant research problem in supply chain mana- ment. The individual works place a heavy emphasis on the application of modeling techniques to real world management problems. In many instances, the actual results from applying these techniques in practice are highlighted. In addition, each chapter provides important mana- rial insights that apply to general supply chain management practice. The book is divided into three parts. The first part contains ch- ters that address the new and rapidly growing role of the internet and e-Commerce in supply chain management. Topics include e-Business applications and potentials; customer service issues in the presence of multiple sales channels, varying from purely Internet-based to traditional physical outlets; and risk management issues in e-Business in B2B m- kets.

The Digital Transformation of Supply Chain Management offers a roadmap to all areas of supply chain management, with the idea of ecosystem as a center of gravity. The book describes the impact of Internet-driven global information and communication systems in enhancing supply chain management processes. It analyzes six building blocks of supply chain management, including consumer focus and demand, resource and capacity management, procurement and purchasing, inventory management, operation management, and distribution management. The book concludes by presenting the principal innovative solutions available now, or in the future, for managing and increasing the efficiency of supply chains. As supply chains are evolving toward an ecosystem that incorporates a wide range of digital technologies such as the cloud, big data, the Industrial Internet of Services, 3D printing, augmented and virtual reality, blockchain, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and many more, this book is an ideal resource.

In the 21st century, supply chain operations and relationships among supply chain partners have become highly challenging, necessitating new approaches, e.g., the development of new models. Supply Chain Strategies, Issues and Models discusses supply chain issues and models with examples from actual industrial cases. Expert authors with a wide spectrum of knowledge working in various areas of supply chain management from various geographical locations offer refreshing, novel and insightful ideas and address possible solutions using established theories and models. Supply Chain Strategies, Issues and Models features studies that have used mathematical modeling, statistical analyses and also descriptive qualitative studies. The chapters cover many relevant themes related to supply chains and logistics including supply chain complexity, information sharing, quality (six sigma), electronic Kanbans, inventory models, scheduling, purchasing and contracts. To facilitate easy reading, the chapters that deal with supply chain related issues are first, followed by studies on inventory, scheduling, purchasing and logistics. This book can be used as a useful resource of supply chain management by academics, students and practitioners. This book can serve as a helping tool in managerial decision making for investments in collaboration and information exchange to improve forecasts, scheduling and inventory management, and for supply chain managers to leverage product and process complexities into competitive advantage. Some interesting mathematical models can appeal to students and researchers interested in modeling the impact of information sharing in supply chains.

Channel coordination is a core subject of supply chain management. Over the past decade, much research effort has been devoted to exploring the detailed mechanisms for achieving supply chain coordination under uncertainty, generating many fruitful analytical and empirical results. Despite the abundance of research results, there is an absence of a comprehensive reference source that provides state-of-the-art findings on both theoretical and applied research on the subject. In addition, with the advance of knowledge and technologies, many new topics on supply chain coordination under uncertainty have appeared in recent years. This handbook extensively examines supply chain coordination challenges with a focal point on discovering innovative measures that can help tackle the existing and emerging challenges. The book is organized into five parts, which include chapters on innovative analytical models for coordination, channel power and bargaining, technological advancements and applications, empirical analysis, cases studies and review. This handbook provides new empirical and analytical results with precious insights, which will not only help supply chain agents to understand more about the latest measures for supply chain coordination under uncertainty, but also help practitioners and researchers to know how to improve supply chain performance based on innovative methods.

The Sixth Edition of Supply Chain Logistics Management presents Logistics in the context of integration within a firm's Supply Chain Strategy and Operations. The framework of Supply Chain Management is initially presented by creating a foundation for in-depth study of the five logistics operational components in Part Two. Challenges and strategies related to design and operational integration of logistics within a global supply chain are discussed in Part Three. Part Four focuses on administrative challenges related to cross organizational collaboration, performance measurement, and concludes with the challenges of managing risk and achieving sustainability. An essential feature of the overall presentation is the integration of topical materials and examples into the Supply Chain Logistics value creation process. Text materials are supported by study and challenge questions as well as contemporary cases. The presentation integrates the discussion of information technology throughout. Illustrations and examples highlight how firms deal with operational challenges and use logistics performance to gain competitive advantage.

This book emphasizes three key messages:
Value: While the traditional approaches to supply chain management have favoured cost minimalization, the authors believe that SCM is a value enabler with strategic decisions in supply chain design leading to value creation and tactical decisions in supply chain coordination leading to value capture.
Alignment: While trust-based collaborative practices are the ultimate goal, adequate economic incentives should be designed to ensure the much needed alignment.
Sustainability: Supply chain design should be viewed as a dynamic process rather than a set of activities held together by low transaction costs.

This book gives unique insights into the Supply Chain Event Management (SCEM) of world-leading companies. Aims, methods, instruments as well as resources and budgets in SCEM are discussed. The book offers real case studies from Top 100 companies. The reader will gain a strong understanding of the way to deal with problems along the supply chain and how to avoid them. SCEM allows timelines to be met with decreased cost and risks.

The Digital Supply Chain is a thorough investigation of the underpinning technologies, systems, platforms and models that enable the design, management, and control of digitally connected supply chains. The book examines the origin, emergence and building blocks of the Digital Supply Chain, showing how and where the virtual and physical supply chain worlds interact. It reviews the enabling technologies that underpin digitally controlled supply chains and examines how the discipline of supply chain management is affected by enhanced digital connectivity, discussing purchasing and procurement, supply chain traceability, performance management, and supply chain cyber security. The book provides a rich set of cases on current digital practices and challenges across a range of industrial and business sectors including the retail, textiles and clothing, the automotive industry, food, shipping and international logistics, and SMEs. It concludes with research frontiers, discussing network science for supply chain analysis, challenges in Blockchain applications and in digital supply chain surveillance, as well as the need to re-conceptualize supply chain strategies for digitally transformed supply chains.

The third-party logistics industry is a growing field. Relationships between third-party logistics providers and customer firms demand the creation of logistics contract where the necessary business and legal agreements are stipulated. Until now, the creation and negotiation of these agreements have been based on custom. This is the first practical handbook to support managers in the creation and negotiation of logistics contracts from the legal and economic perspective. The book provides the general framework and an extensive analysis of the content, structure and best practices of logistics contracts.

Fully grasp the core principles of logistics, distribution management and the supply chain, in addition to emerging trends and the latest technologies, with this definitive guide that offers clear and straightforward explanations. The Handbook provides practitioners and students with a complete, step-by-step overview of the many different aspects of setting up, managing and optimizing supply chains. Designed to offer a full appreciation of how supply chains are planned and operated, it is structured logically and delves into topics in more clarity and detail than disparate collections of research papers. Integrating both strategic and tactical insights, this textbook is underpinned throughout by real-world data and worked examples that bring the concepts to life. The seventh edition offers: Updates and solutions designed to meet the challenges faced by those studying and working in the sector New coverage of future supply chain related technologies, including artificial intelligence, data analytics, digital twins and autonomous mobile robots and how these can be used to optimize operations and increase productivity Online resources including lecture slides (tables, images and formulae from the text), acronyms and abbreviations and infographics. Written by an author team with extensive practical experience in some of the most challenging environments across the world, this seminal text is an invaluable resource for both practitioners and students, providing a useful desk reference for topics across the wide ranging and vitally important fields of logistics and the supply chain.

This is the first book entirely devoted to analyzing the "bullwhip effect." It examines in depth all the problems associated with the bullwhip effect, its consequences, and known tools to design well-suited supply chain management systems that can cope with it. International supply chains are a central topic in this book and analytical tools that permit handling the Bullwhip Effect for global supply chains are of primary importance. The book compares the various approaches for dealing with the increased variability that is at the heart of the Bullwhip Effect, all illustrated by real case studies.

The leading academic authorities contributing to this book have been involved in major studies carried out for international organisations, individual governments, and national trades' union organisations; in Vulnerable Workers they consider the growth of job insecurity, the prevalence of flexible or temporary work, and the emergence of precarious forms of self-employment. They look at the new market economies of post-communist Eastern Europe and China, where economic development may occur at the expense of workers' lives and health; 'misclassification' by employers of workers as 'contractors', denying them access to rights; and the plight of migrant, transient and 'invisible' workers. The impact of supply chain business strategies on the most vulnerable workers; and on the complex relationships between levels of job security and the presence of different kinds of risks are similarly assessed. The contributors also propose responses to the challenges they highlight. The role of employee representatives is examined, together with the potential to enhance worker capability through organisational change. New legislative approaches, and changes to traditional compensation and social security systems are considered. Academics and researchers, policy makers, regulators, trades unionists and occupational health professionals - and wise employers - will all find a use for this book.

The e-business environment has brought about a new kind of competition. Instead of the traditional mode of firms competing against firms, we now have supply chains competing against supply chains. ""Supply Chain Management: Issues in the New Era of Collaboration and Competition"" examines this new business landscape in background, touching on major issues of the supply chain, and readers the assets to obtain that important competitive advantage. ""Supply Chain Management: Issues in the New Era of Collaboration and Competition"" contributes to this interesting global phenomenon by collecting well-researched works that illuminate in SCM issues in the e-business environment.

Global competition requires a global approach to sourcing activities and China now constitutes one of the most attractive sourcing regions. This book highlights the inducements, advantages and obstacles faced by the enterprises in the development of a sourcing channel in China. A taxonomy of the various sourcing typologies is proposed and a normative model is described that, on the basis of some discriminating variables, suggests the most suitable sourcing choice. The book examines the paths leading to an effective sourcing channel and International Purchasing Office in China, providing concrete examples of successful sourcing experiences.

This insightful research review discusses some of the most influential papers in the economics field of global value chains. Focusing on globalization, fragmentation and coordination of production across geographical as well as enterprise boundaries. It pays particularly close attention to how businesses in developing countries are incorporated into global production and distribution networks. The review analyses many of the texts that framed the global value chain approach together with in-depth case-studies of particular sectors and policy-oriented research concerned with reducing poverty and accelerating growth in poorer countries. This review would be of great interest to students and researchers working in the fields of globalisation, geography and international business.

This book explores the essentials of RFID and the EPCglobal Network from the perspective of a practitioner that needs to make business decisions concerning the adoption of the technology. The perspective is from the supply chain management standpoint with emphasis on case studies and new thinking about the subject. The EPCglobal Network and RFID technology holds great promise for transforming business through the use of low-cost, radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to improve information flow and productivity.

Business practices are constantly evolving in order to meet growing customer demands. By implementing fresh procedures through the use of new technologies, organizations are able to remain competitive and meet the expectations of their customers. Designing and Implementing Global Supply Chain Management examines how various organizations have re-engineered their business processes in an effort to accommodate new innovations and remain relevant in a highly competitive global marketplace. Highlighting the creation of integrated supply chains and the emergence of virtual business communities, this publication is an appropriate reference source for students, researchers, and practitioners interested in trending approaches to external business functions used to efficiently respond to growing customer demands.

The Management of Transshipment Terminals: Decision Support for Terminal Operations in Finished Vehicle Supply Chains is a unique treatment of the transshipment operation and processes on the shipment of automobiles from the Bremerhaven harbor, Germany. It is an analytical, theoretical, and practical work that incorporates Network Optimization, Logistics, Distribution, Transportation, and Supply Chain Management into a framework of Information Systems for a comprehensive understanding of the development of transshipment terminals in the global economy. More specifically, the book examines the function of transshipment terminals and how they can be made more effective and efficient. In sum, the book is a novel treatment of a developing area in the global supply chain economy; and as such, it is an illustrated example of the manifestation of elements within the field of Operations Management on the increasing integration of the transportation logistic system.

The rapid advancement of technology and of Internet commerce in a globalized market has brought change at an unprecedented rate. This book focuses on the most significant developments taking place in the market, their impact on the accounting and finance function, the new efficient logistics solutions, and how new technology effects commerce. Based on an extensive research project in the US, Britain, Germany, France, Austria, Switzerland, and Sweden, The Internet Supply Chain explains what can be expected in business opportunities and in cost savings from selling and purchasing through the internet. The author goes on to suggest how accounting and logistics will need to be restructured to cope with, and make the most of the challenges and benefits presented by the Internet supply chain.