Delivering Customer Value through Procurement and Strategic Sourcing: A Professional Guide to Creating A Sustainable Supply Network

12. Visibility as an Attribute to Becoming Customer-Centric and Demand-Driven

An increasing number of companies are trying to base inventory replenishment on demand signals rather than on traditional forecasts. Consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies in particular are trying to use point-of-sale data as the demand signal. The concept of the demand-driven supply chain is starting to move beyond replenishment. Now some companies are revising production forecasts based on demand signals. If manufacturers can pass that information back upstream to raw-materials and parts suppliers, then supply chains will become more responsive to actual customer demand. That could be invaluable for retailers engaged in e-commerce, where consumers are unforgiving ...