Reverse Logistics Podcast

In this podcast Curtis Greve talks about how leading retailers and manufacturers leverage their reverse logistics capabilities to maximize sales.

Yes, a return center can help maximize sales.  How?  By leveraging returns processes and capabilities to efficiently pull unsold, guaranteed sales inventory out of the primary sales channel.  This “Recall” process provides the support network needed to ensure companies avoid out of stocks, avoid markdowns, improves relationships, all while maintaining an inventory position that will ensure customers have access to product when they want it.

The Reverse Logistics Podcast

Your host is Curtis Greve.

In today’s podcast, Curtis Greve talks about the primary differences between  distribution center operations and return center operations.  There is more than meets the eye when it comes to how product is handled in a return center, compared to a distribution center operation.  A company’s ability to deal with these differences will have a major impact on their overall profitability.  Return centers are housed in a warehouse, just like a distribution center but that is where the similarities end and the competitive advantages often begin.

The Reverse Logistics Podcast

Your host is Curtis Greve.

In this podcast, Curtis Greve covers recent studies that show the impact of reverse logistics on customer satisfaction.  Did you know that companies that are considered in the top 20% in terms of reverse logistics capabilities have, on average, a 12% higher rating in customer satisfaction than the lower 80% of companies?

Also, according to a study conducted by Harvard Business Review, for each 1.3% improvement in customer satisfaction, sale increase by 0.5%.  Extrapolated, this gives companies that are considered best-in-class in reverse logistics programs almost a 5% increase in sales.

Listen to today’s podcast and learn the four key areas that companies need to develop to improve their reverse logistics program and how that will lead to improved customer satisfaction and sales.

The Reverse Logistics Podcast

Your host is Curtis Greve.

The Reverse Logistics Podcast

Your host is Curtis Greve.

In today’s podcast, Curtis Greve talks about Disposition Management and why it is the key to maximizing the value of assets flowing through your reverse logistics pipeline.

There are only six possible dispositions for any item in a return center, whether it is a can of soup or an expensive computer.  Do you know what they are?  Do you understand how the disposition of the item impacts the value received for an asset and how that determines the cost of processing?  You will after you listen to this podcast.

RLP #1 – Disposition Management

The Reverse Logistics Podcast

Your host is Curtis Greve.

The Sustainable Supply Chain Management Podcast is hosted by Dr. Dale Rogers and Curtis Greve. This podcast is focused on sustainable supply chain management issues and best practices.

Podcast #4 – Asset Recovery

Join Curtis Greve and Dr. Dale Rogers as they discuss basics of Asset Recovery in their fourth podcast. Whether you call it Asset Recovery, Liquidation, or Salvage Sales, it is an opportunity to increased profits for manufacturer and retailers alike.

Successful manufacturers such as Nike, Dell, HP, Adidas, Foxconn, and leading retailers such as Walmart, Kohl’s, Canadian Tire and Target successfully integrated a Strategic Asset Recovery Strategy into their Sustainable Supply Chain Management Strategy. This approach enables these companies to maximize the value of obsolete inventory while removing slow moving or dead inventory from the primary stream of commerce.  A Strategic Asset Recovery Strategy will increase customer satisfaction and increase profits.

The Sustainable Supply Chain Management Podcast is hosted by Dr. Dale Rogers and Curtis Greve. This podcast is focused on sustainable supply chain management issues and best practices.

Podcast #3 Agility and Supply Chain Management

Agility will enable a company to get to the mythical next level by ensuring they focus on demand, not a misguided forecasts that can lead to expensive errors resulting in out of stocks, markdowns, unhappy customers, and lost profits.  Join Dr. Rogers and Curtis as they discuss what Agility is, what are the four “R’s” of Agility, and why Agility in Supply Chain Management will be the next evolution in supply chain management.

Podcast #3 – Agility and Supply Chain Management

Show Notes

What is an agile supply chain? A supply chain that is an interdependent network that is demand driven instead of an independent, forecast driven supply chain.

Is there a difference between being lean and being agile? Lean means no waste, reducing the fat. Agile means nimble.

What are the differentiations between a typical supply chain and an agile supply chain? Independent vs Interdependent

Agile supply chain must possess the following characteristics:

• Market Sensitive – supply chain is capable of reading and responding to real demand.

• Virtual – The use of information technology to share data between buyers and suppliers is, in effect, creating a virtual supply chain. Virtual supply chains are information based rather than inventory based

• Process integrated – collaborative working between buyers and suppliers, joint product development, common systems and shared information. This form of co-operation in the supply chain is becoming ever-more prevalent as companies focus on managing their core competencies and outsource all other activities. In this new world a greater reliance on suppliers and alliance partners becomes inevitable and, hence, a new style of relationship is essential. In the ‘extended enterprise’ as it is often called, there can be no boundaries and an ethos of trust and commitment must prevail.

• Network based – the supply chain as a confederation of partners linked together. We are now entering the era of ‘network competition’ where the prizes will go to those organisations who can better structure, co-ordinate and manage the relationships with their partners in a network committed to better, closer and more agile relationships with their final customers. It can be argued that in today’s challenging global markets, the route to sustainable advantage lies in being able to leverage the respective strengths and competencies of network partners to achieve greater responsiveness to market needs.

The Agile Supply Chain model suggests that ideally the supply chain should become a ‘demand chain’ – in other words, everything that is moved, handled or produced should ideally be in response to a known customer requirement. A supply chain tends, by its very nature, to focus on creating efficiency in terms of the flow of material from source to user. On the other hand a demand chain is focused more on effectiveness in the sense that it seeks to be market-driven responding to the needs of the market more rapidly. The key to this transformation – from supply chain to demand chain – is agility.

Source: “Creating the Agile Supply Chain” by Martin Christopher, Cranfield School of Management

The Sustainable Supply Chain Management Podcast is hosted by Dr. Dale Rogers and Curtis Greve. This podcast is focused on sustainable supply chain management issues and best practices.

Podcast #2 focuses on the impact of revitalized unions on America’s troubled business community.  Did the UAW cause GM to go bankrupt?  Was Chrysler’s management team at fault for their down fall?  What has more impact on a company, management or unions?

Podcast #2 – Unions vs. Management

Show Notes

Dr. Rogers and Curtis Greve debate and discuss:

1. The role of unions in the downfall of General Motors.
2. Why doesn’t Walmart have unions?
3. Is there a legitimate role for unions in business?
4. What do employee really want?
5. Everyone wants to be part of a tribe, that tribe could be a company or a union.
6. Can poor management alone drive companies out of business?
7. Can unions determine if a company stays in business or not?
8. Unions are a for profit business that makes money by collecting dues from members but do they provide any security?

The opinions of the hosts are based on their personal experience in the business community as executives, advisors, and as  hourly union members.  Comments and questions are welcome.

The Sustainable Supply Chain Management Podcast is hosted by Dr. Dale Rogers and Curtis Greve.  This podcast is focused on sustainable supply chain management issues and best practices.

Podcast #1-Risk Management considers the many issues and complexity of risk management and what executives should consider when developing strategic plans that address risks from a strategically sustainable point of view.

Podcast #1 – Risk Management

Show Notes

Dr. Rogers has identified 13 types of risks that should be considered when developing sustainable strategic plans.   The 13 types of risks are:

1. Design
2. Financial
3. Labor
4. Reputational (headline risk)
5. Process (better process reduces Ecoli)
6. Catastrophic event risk
7. Environmental risk (Sherwin-Williams avoidance – Burroughs/Unisys)
8. Human rights
9. Supply*
10. Capacity
11. Information risk
12. Ethical
13. Equity – equitable distribution of risk

All comments on this podcast, risk management, and sustainable supply chain management are welcome and will be posted.