DC Velocity - January 2009

coursework

no excuses

Have you been postponing plans to get an advanced degree in supply chain management because of your day job? That’s no longer an excuse, according to the University of Indiana’s Kelley School of Business. Through its Kelley Direct Program, the university now offers an online master’s degree program in Global Supply Chain Management that allows professionals to work and go to school at the same time.

This 30-credit-hour program consists of one weeklong residency on the University of Indiana’s campus in Bloomington, Ind. During the “in-residency,” students get to know their classmates and professors while taking a 3.0-credit-hour Supply Chain Overview class.

The rest of the courses are taken online using a course management system and live meeting software. The online courses cover the fundamentals of sourcing; distribution; and supply chain planning, modeling, and control. Participants will also learn about financial accounting and analysis, marketing and operations management, and project planning and management. The program can be completed in 15 months.

For more information about the program, visit kd.iu.edu/pro-grams/msgscm/ overview.htm.

be a hero!

In a tight credit market, a manager who finds ways to improve the company’s liquidity is likely to become something of a hero. But what can supply chain managers do to boost the company’s working capital? To provide some answers to that question, the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals and World Trade magazine are offering a seminar called “Optimizing Working Capital by Integrating Trade Finance and the Supply Chain: The New Operational Paradigm.”

Designed for senior-level supply chain and financial executives, the seminar will focus on the impact of different supply chain strategies and practices on working capital. It will include a brief primer on the three key metrics that supply chain officers can influence: days sales outstanding, days inventory on hand, and days payable outstanding. It will also cover how strategies like consignment inventory, vendor-managed inventory, and just-in-time delivery can impact working capital.

During the seminar, presenters will touch upon emerging initiatives such as reverse factoring and third-party inventory ownership. The course ends with a look at innovative uses and applications of trade/finance platforms and processes.

Scheduled panelists and presenters include senior executives from Motorola, Kraft Foods, UPS Capital, J.P. Morgan, Marsh Inc., Nike, TradeStone Software, and First Capital.

The seminar takes place March 10–11 in Chicago. For more information, visit cscmpworldtrade.com.

the head of the Hydra, the
apples of Hesperides, and
supply chain management

Managing today’s complex supply chain may seem like a task on par with the 12 labors of Hercules. Every day, supply chain analysts must take a mountain of enterprise data and distill it into information that can be used to plan and control their supply chains in near-real time.

But just as Hercules didn’t slay the Hydra or steal the apples of Hesperides all by himself, supply chain and logistics analysts don’t have to go it alone. There are places they can turn for help. One such resource is Georgia Tech’s upcoming seminar on “Supply Chain Analytics: What Every Supply Chain & Logistics Analyst Should Know.”

Scheduled for Feb. 3–6 in Atlanta, the course is designed to teach participants how to use analysis tools and business intelligence software to make better and faster decisions. Among other topics, it will look at how to determine reasonable inventory levels, predict demand, control last-mile costs, and reduce supply chain variability and risk.

For more information, visit www.scl.gate- ch.edu/scanalytics2009.

metrics mastery

There’s more to an effective performance measurement program than just collecting data. To get good results, you have to use the right metrics—measures that will help you achieve the outcome you’re seeking—and apply them effectively. That can be harder than it sounds.

The Warehousing Education and Research Council now offers a two-day seminar, “Using Metrics to Achieve Results,” that provides a roadmap to developing and implementing metrics. Instructors Kate Vitasek and Kimberly O’Donoghue will show participants how to link metrics to their overall corporate strategy to create the results they want.