SCMAP Perspective is our fortnightly column on PortCalls, tackling the latest developments in the supply chain industry, as well as updates from within SCMAP. On this column, Henrik Batallones recaps key takeaways from the recently concluded 2024 SCMAP Supply Chain Conference.
For the people
It can be difficult to pay attention to everything being said from my position – with the production team, at stage left – during the recently concluded 2024 SCMAP Supply Chain Conference. But there will be something that gets through, that captures my imagination, that could possibly change the way I see the role our profession plays.
This time it came from one of our speakers during our panel on the customer experience. Landers Superstore’s Alfonso Caparas was discussing supply chains from the perspective of the retailer and the customer when he said something that pretty much answers one of the key questions we were posing during the conference.
“The supply chain is the product,” he said.
Our theme this year is “One Supply Chain Going Beyond the Extra Mile”, and that key question, of course, is “how do we go beyond the extra mile?” More of, is there still a place beyond the “extra mile”? It can be challenging considering how supply chain is often seen as a cost center, as the primary means of moving a product across its lifecycle, from the producer to the consumer – and how it’s (almost) always here where costs must be cut in order to remain competitive.
Our panel on customer experience was a continuation of a thought that was well articulated by our former president Christine Pardiñas – you may remember it if you read the magazine we distributed during last year’s conference. “Supply chain is the customer experience,” she said, arguing that how the product reaches us, whether we bought it at a physical store or through an app, defines our happiness with the product as equally as actually using it. Pons, seemingly, took that and simplified it even further.
Indeed, the supply chain is the product. I mean, for one, if the product is not there, there is no product. Sounds too simplistic to the point of being silly, but how can our customers get our value – and allow it to improve their lives as they initially thought it would – if our supply chains are not able to bring it to them when they need it?
But supply chain, of course, is not just about moving the final product to our customers. It encompasses, again, the entire lifespan of the product. A lot of things influence what the final product looks like: what materials we choose during the research and design process, how we actually produce the item, how we store the item, how we deliver the item, how we deal with waste and returns. All this dictates how competitive we are alongside a shelf (or a search result) full of other items, whether in price or in value.
So, yes – the supply chain is the product. That means our work in supply chain – across the supply chain – provides us many avenues to go beyond the extra mile. Of course, I have no one-size-fits-all answer, but let me attempt to point you towards one direction. A common theme that emerged from the 22 people that spoke on stage during the conference is how our supply chains impact people – whether it be directly, like our customers or the people that work in the business, or indirectly, as is the case of those who live in the shadow of our work, like those affected the most by climate change, or those in the middle of geopolitical flashpoints. So how do we go beyond the extra mile? Think of the people. Think of the people whose lives will be impacted by our work. How can we uplift them, whether it be by giving them an effective (and cost-effective) product, or by leaving them a better world? There are many answers. You can see it in how government is working to further make our supply chains competitive – a stronger backbone to the national economy – or how companies are embracing innovative approaches to technologies, or investing to improve the only planet we call home.
The great thing with these conferences is that we cannot promise answers to everything. Insights lead to more questions, which lead to more insights, and so on. Lucky for us, as we can continue to mount these events for the industry’s benefit. It’s rewarding, even if it’s very, very tiring.
On behalf of the entire SCMAP team, I would like to thank our speakers, sponsors, partners, and especially our delegates, for making the 2024 SCMAP Supply Chain Conference undeniably our most successful yet. I know this means we have to up the ante next year. We hope to have you around by that time, again.