Tag Archives: suppliers

Mondelez International calls for transparency and sustainability in palm oil supply chain

Posted on by

One of the world’s leading confectionery, food and beverage companies, has called out to its suppliers for 100% sustainability and 100% transparency in the sourcing of palm oil.

Mondelez International announced in a statement this week that it has challenged its supply chain, as well as the global industry, to be more sustainable and transparent in the production of palm oil.

In 2013, the company announced an action plan for palm oil, which looked to work with its suppliers to achieve 100% traceability to supplier mill level by the end of 2015 while publishing sourcing policies.

This came after the company also ceased buying from palm oil suppliers linked with allegations of illegal forest clearance.

The global palm oil market is forecast to be worth around $92bn by 2021.

“Throughout the years, Mondelēz International has continuously raised the bar for itself and its suppliers and there has been substantial progress in suppliers implementing sustainability policies and improving traceability. Nevertheless, there is more the industry needs to do in the palm oil supply chain to prevent deforestation. Mondelēz International’s suppliers have achieved industry leading levels of traceability with its Palm Oil Action Plan but there remains a gap between the current state and our goal,” said Mondelez in a statement.

Mondelez has called on its suppliers to do more, challenging them to “commit to palm oil concession mapping as a vital step to accountability and change” and “act faster to eliminate deforestation in their palm oil supply through time-bound remediation plans or Mondelēz International will cease contracts with upstream suppliers engaged in deforestation.”

Read more at Mondelez International calls for transparency and sustainability in palm oil supply chain

Subscribe us for new updates and share your opinions with us in the comment box.

Top 20 Supply Chain Management Software Suppliers 2017

Posted on by

The market for supply chain management (SCM) software, maintenance and services continued its growth in 2016, generating more than $11.1 billion, a 9% increase over 2015 revenues, according to the research firm Gartner.

That total includes applications for supply chain execution (SCE), supply chain planning (SCP) and procurement software. Since the market’s 2% decline in 2009, the market has posted double-digit growth in four of the past six years, according to Gartner. The SCM market is expected to exceed $13 billion in total software revenue by the end of 2017 and exceed $19 billion by 2021, Gartner forecasts, with software as a service (SaaS) enabling new growth opportunities.

“It continues to be a good year for the supply chain overall,” says Chad Eschinger, managing vice president of Gartner. “The Cloud-based segment grew 20%, which is consistent with what we’ve seen in recent years.”

The push for Cloud capabilities also fueled some of the acquisition activity over the last year. Eschinger cites examples such as Infor’s acquisition of GT Nexus, Kewill’s acquisition of LeanLogistics, Oracle’s acquisitions of LogFire and NetSuite, and E2open’s acquisitions of Terra Technology and, more recently, Steelwedge.

“Broadly speaking, we’re seeing cyclical consolidation,” Eschinger says. “For some companies it’s a land grab, for others it’s an effort to add functional and technical underpinnings to go to the Cloud or provide a fuller complement of Cloud capabilities.”

Suite vendors are increasingly inclined to offer end-to-end solutions, Eschinger says, tying in customer relationship management capabilities, replenishment, network design, clienteling and more. In addition to supply chain efficiency, these solutions are also aimed at improving and standardizing the consumer’s experience.

“The Amazon effect continues to wreak havoc in retail and for manufacturers selling direct-to-consumer,” Eschinger says. “Everyone wants real-time visibility into inventory, so data and the associated analytics continue to be front and center for most organizations.”

Read more at Top 20 Supply Chain Management Software Suppliers 2017

Let us know what you think about this article and subscribe us to get updates.

Related articles

Supply chain risk is a growing concern for the Pentagon

Posted on by

As the reliance of The Defense Department and its major contractors on vast global supply chains to provide the systems and weapons the DOD needs to perform its mission increases, so too does the risk. These potential risks come in many forms: the financial failure of a critical supplier; a supplier in violation of labor or environmental standards; or foreign infiltration into critical systems. The government is pushing contractors to provide more information about their supply chains, and this analysis will walk you through the supply chain of DOD’s (and the federal government’s) largest contractor, Lockheed Martin Corp., and uses it as an example of how Bloomberg can help you identify and report on potential risk areas.

Critical Nodes

It is possible to identify 350 of Lockheed’s suppliers by using the supply chain function SPLC on the Bloomberg Professional Service. Bloomberg’s entire supply chain database contains more than 1 million customer/supplier relationships. The same data also shows that some of these companies are highly reliant on Lockheed as a customer. Quickstep Holdings Ltd., a manufacturer of composite materials based in Australia, receives an estimated 70 percent of its revenue from Lockheed. Any change in Lockheed’s fortunes could have downstream effects on highly dependent suppliers like Quickstep.

For the Pentagon, Honeywell International Inc. is a much more critical supplier than Quickstep. Honeywell is a top 10 supplier to Lockheed as well as the other big five defense contractors: Boeing Co., General Dynamics Corp., Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon Co. Many defense programs could be disrupted, and alternative products and suppliers might be difficult to find if Honeywell’s goods and services were suddenly compromised.

Read more at Supply chain risk is a growing concern for the Pentagon

Share your opinions with us in the comment box below. Subscribe to get updates and contact us for discussions.

Related articles

Two thirds of buyers not managing supply chain risk effectively

Posted on by

Almost two thirds of buyers think their organisations are not managing their supply chain risk effectively.

Responding to a mini-poll held during a webinar organised by Supply Management in association with business information publisher Bureau van Dijk, 63 per cent of listeners said they didn’t believe their organisations managed threats in the best way.

Ted Datta, BvD’s strategic account director – London, said a majority of negative response underlined the increasing awareness among companies and buyers of the key importance of good supplier risk management. This was increasingly important because legislation was covering new and wider areas, said Datta.

“Know your suppliers, business partners and third parties,” he said, emphasising buyers needed to be up-to-date with new risks as situations changed every month. Datta said as there was so much information to monitor, companies could segment their supply base to identify key strategic suppliers and monitor those suppliers ‘in real time’ or as frequently as possible depending on their resources. Others could be reviewed in a more structured way, he said.

David Lyon, head of procurement at Cancer Research UK, told the webinar, Enhanced supplier due diligence: the implications for supplier risk management, reputation was vital for a charity and it had to ensure suppliers were aligned with its core purpose. “As an organisation that spends 80 per cent of every pound donated on our core mission of research, we must work hand in hand with all our suppliers,” he said.

Read more at Two thirds of buyers not managing supply chain risk effectively 

What do you think about this topic? Share your opinions with us in the comment box.

Related articles

6 Steps To Supply Chain Risk Management Success

Posted on by

6 Steps To Supply Chain Risk Management Success

Lean production may traditionally be considered the linchpin that holds successful supply chain management together, but reducing your exposure to risks is becoming a key priority for maritime companies.

Our dependence on, and partnerships with suppliers, whether it be via outsourcing or mitigating stock opens up a whole world of exposure for marine businesses and their procurement teams. That’s why risk management is so crucial to the supply chain.

Navigating risks really is the key to management success. With the global expansion of supply chains comes ever more complicated business structures and so countless issues can arise causing disruption, delays and ultimately money going down the drain.

Both buyers and suppliers can be hit by a number of unavoidable problems. From natural disasters to terrorism or cyber attacks. Each problem can have big effects on both upstream and downstream partners.

So what can you do to mitigate risk?

The best way to reduce exposure is to make sure you and your company keep up to date with developments in the maritime sector. And to follow a few key steps…

1. Choose your suppliers carefully

Conduct audits of your suppliers on a regular basis and if necessary, inspections to make sure they are committed to risk management like you are.

2. Authenticate suppliers’ insurance cover

It’s worth remembering that a certificate of insurance is only evidence of the insurance cover as it was when it was written.

3. Clearly define contract scopes and draft contracts

Be careful when defining contract scopes and draft contracts.

4. Understand the extent of your exposure

How much risk are you and your business exposed to?

5. Put a plan in place

Identifying risks is the easy part, now you have to get an action plan in place.

6. Lower the threat of risk by purchasing the right cover

Making sure your policy covers your company’s specific exposure mix and risk tolerance is important.

Do you have any ideas to add regarding risk management in supply chain? Share your opinions in the comment box or send us a message for discussion.

Related articles

Six trends changing the face of supply chain finance

Posted on by

Six trends changing the face of supply chain finance

Supply chain finance is revolutionising the way companies buy and sell, but its full potential has yet to be realised.

The amount of cross-border SCF conducted today is just a tenth of what could be done say European banks. One reason is the complexity of SCF. However innovations in both developed and emerging economies promise to change that modest uptake in the coming years.

Making SCF easier to use and understand is essential if it is to become the norm in financing global trade. Several trends should speed that process:

1. SCF is becoming widely accepted in cross border trade

Bankers expect the European and US crossborder markets to grow 10-20 per cent a year for the rest of this decade. Already some banks have seen annual growth of 30-40 per cent andin the UK and Germany that figure is closer to 70 per cent, according to Demica.

2. More buyers are financing their suppliers

SCF has traditionally focused more on the relationship between suppliers and their banks. This is changing. New technology is helping buyers use SCF to help their strategic suppliers at better rates than they might find elsewhere, thanks to often higher credit ratings.

3. Non-bank players are emerging as an alternative source of SCF

New entrants, including peer-to-peer lenders, dynamic discounters and early payment marketplaces help buyers and suppliers exchange purchase orders, invoices and accelerate cash transfers. Private investors, financial institutions or even buyers provide funding for these new solutions to invest in their own payables.

4. Providers unite to offer a global service

Fragmented banks are recognising the need to partner logistics companies, local banks, export credit agencies and other transaction banks to offer corporates solutions across the supply chain. That is a change from the more fragmented approach until now.

5. Technology is replacing the paperwork

Electronic documentation is playing an ever greater role in international trade business as corporates automate trade supply chains toimprove speed and efficiency. That means corporates who use a number of banks require them to deliver electronic solutions on a common platform.

6. Countries are getting involved

Governments around the globe are paying more attention to supply chain finance. The UK for instance has initiated an SCF programme with some of Britain’s leading companies and banks. In the US, the Treasury’s Invoice Processing Platform uses electronic invoicing to ensure that suppliers are paid on time or even early.

Do you have any opinions about supply chain finance? Share it with us in the comment box.

Related articles