MKT 465 Article Summary 2020

Team Name #: Team 1; Team Uno

Article #: 1

Title of Article: The Living Supply Chain

In a paragraph, summarize the overall message of the article (2 points):

The Living Supply Chain is all about re-imagining what supply chain is, and what it’s
becoming. We can figure that the supply chains are ecosystems that adjust and evolve
to meet the expectations or needs of the everchanging business world. The article
revolves around a contract manufacturer called Flextronics, which later evolves into a
supply chain company called ‘Flex’ in 2015. In short, the article describes the
transition of Flex becoming a company that’s different from others, along with where
the supply chain stands today and developing a plan for operations that can adapt to
the predicted future changes.

In a couple paragraphs, describe the top three take-aways from the article and
how do they relate to the supply chain management processes in the book (6
points)?
Throughout this article, there are some key takeaways that we found were most
important. Theses takeaways are the rules of the LIVING supply chains, the old and
new Serengeti rules, and the big changes that are driving supply chains.
The first key takeaway is that changes in the supply chain are not just about
technology, they are about true evolution in a biological sense. However, technology
is still important because it drives competitive value, but it needs to be combined with
other cultural values within the organization. The concepts that make up the
‘LIVING’ in supply chain include: Live, Intelligent, Velocity, Interactive, Networked,
and Good. These 6 components represent a natural evolution rather than a radical
one.
The second key takeaway begins with the new supply chain rule that states, “not all
enterprises are equal.” This rule means that if firms don’t respond to changes by
embracing the core components of ‘LIVING’, they will become extinct. Specifically,
with this rule, speed and velocity are the most important elements than everything
else. Enterprises with higher velocity are stronger and better financially. Companies
that have speed enabled by real-time visibility will improve customer satisfaction.
The second new supply chain rules states, “enterprises that mediate indirect effects
upstream and downstream in the supply chain through aligned strategies with thrive.
Those that do not will slow and become extinct.” The two core components for this
new rule are focused on velocity and visibility. Visibility enables velocity through the

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relative transparency of events, material, and flow to all key decision makers in the
supply chain.

Lastly, the third takeaway is the changes that drive the supply chain. The most crucial
changes are new layers of capabilities including historical data, Cloud computing,
changes in labor costs, unpredictability is more predictable through the use of new
tools and incorporating culture into our decision-making process. These changes
coming into the supply chain will impact the multi-enterprise networks of
organizations working in the supply chain. LIVING supply chains suggests that
today’s supply chain will live, change, and evolve differently than in the past and
companies need to be prepared for that.

In a paragraph, identify if there is anything from a supply chain perspective

that should have been considered in addition, but was not described in the
article (2 points)?
Some topics that should be considered in the article that was not mentioned are how
the LIVING supply chain will be implemented into the business world and how it will
affect current operations. The article did not mention anything about the extent to
which the LIVING supply chain will impact a company whether or not they operate
by the new core components. If the article adopted these topics, the reader would
have a better understanding of the process of implementing this new idea.