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Jeffrey Miller, an associate partner in the Accenture Supply Chain Practice, is a leader in value chain performance and the development of new business models. We spoke with Jeffrey about the complexities of identifying actionable supply chain improvement opportunities that deliver sustainable improvement in a company's performance.
There are many challenges that a company faces when seeking to improve supply chain performance. The supply chain is a particularly complex system that offers numerous opportunities for enhanced performance. But, to make the right improvements, appropriate supply chain performance metrics must be chosen. Determining which metrics to collect and then how to interpret them requires a clear connection between the measured process and its contribution to revenue, cost, and capital performance. The difficulty is that there is often a gap between supply chain operational measures and the financial outcomes a company is trying to achieve. To make significant progress, you have to have the supply chain operational side connected to the financial side. For example, if I am an assembler of computers, continuity of supply will likely be one of my most important supply chain performance goals. I must understand my suppliers'' capabilities to respond to surges in my demand and connect these capabilities to my financial outcomes. Performance targets are built around these metrics. So the question becomes "How do I determine the contribution each of my core supply chain operations make toward my business and financial goals?" This is a different question, for example, than simply asking, "How can logistics improvement contribute to cost minimization?"
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