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Is there a conflict between product availability and freshness?
Supply Chain teams often struggle between maintaining high level of product availability and offering fresh products to consumers. They believe that these two objectives have an inherent conflict. If we improve availability, freshness would suffer due to higher inventory, and vice versa.
Their worries are justified if the company continues to operate the way it has always been.
How do we break this inherent conflict? The key is to challenge some of the current practices which feed this conflict.
Can we refresh demand outlook more often?
Can we be decipher the evolving demand patterns at a granular level?
Can we respond faster to the demand shifts?
Better sensing and faster response break the conflict. We can see product availability and product freshness improving simultaneously.
That’s the enticing world of agile supply chains…