Last-mile supply network configuration canvas
We developed a six-step procedure with a last-mile supply network configuration (LMSN) canvas that can help managers in the retailing industry better understand their organization’s existing “last-mile” capabilities and options available for reconfiguration to stay relevant in the fast-changing retail landscape.
Given the unique characteristics of each organization, we provide a customized two-day facilitation workshop using a configuration canvas template as a tool for decision-making managers to engage in discussions regarding the capabilities and reconfiguration of their LMSNs. The workshop is also available for teaching in a classroom environment to senior undergraduate or first-year graduate students as a three-session (2 hour each) curriculum, culminating with a mini-project that maps, analyzes, and recommends reconfiguration options based on at least one real-world case. Past workshop participants include T2 Tea, Unilever, and senior undergraduate students at Arizona State University, among others.
An excerpt of the SHOP framework is illustrated below:
Step 1a: Construct a product portfolio matrix
§ Objective : Understand your company’s key product attributes.
Step 1b : Understand target consumer profiles
§ Objective :Understand your company’s key consumer types, their value, and their expectations.
Step 1c : Review business model
§ Objective :Understand whether your company’s business model (value creation, delivery, and capture) is aligned with the product types (captured in Step 1a) and consumer profiles (captured in Step 1b) to maximize consumer satisfaction.
Step 2 : Evaluate mapped LMSNs
§ Objective 2a :Understand your company’s current LMSN setup.
Step 3 : Conduct hotspot analysis
§ Objective : Understand to what extent the deviation of your company’s LMSN(s) from the benchmark affect operational performance. Identify root causes of sub-optimal performance and corresponding areas for improvement.
Step 4 : Conduct LMSN (re)configuration and options analysis
§ Objective : Understand the costs and the benefits of various options to reconfigure your company’s LMSN.
Step 5 : Develop an action plan
§ Objective : Formulate an action plan, implementation timeline, and determine targets to evaluate success of intervention.
Step 6 : Conduct an after action review
§ Objective : Evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented intervention, making adjustments to the action plan as appropriate, and continuously watch for changes in the market environment and the emergence of new market opportunities.
The LMSN configuration canvas template is available to download for free below. For more details, please feel free to get in touch @ stanley.lim@asu.edu.
Also featured in:
(1) https://ctl.mit.edu/news/four-last-mile-routes-successful-omnichannel-retailing
(2) http://cmr.berkeley.edu/blog/2019/1/sears
(3) https://twitter.com/CMR_UCBerkeley/status/1122917438905962496
(5) SupplyChain 24/7
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