Supply Chain transformations are HARD! How do I get started?

Last year, I was privileged to not only attend but, also, speak at the APICS Conference in San Antonio.  The sheer size, breath of material covered, and depth of knowledge at the conference was mind blowing and I must admit that I was bit intimidated.  Fortunately, passion for continuous improvement drove past my fears and I had an incredibly enjoyable and intimate discussion with a couple hundred supply chain professionals on the transformation of Berry’s Supply Chain.

It was with great enthusiasm that I said “YES!” when APICs asked me to repeat my presentation at an online event on Wednesday, 23-May.  Won’t you join me for lunch (12-1 PM CDT) to discuss Berry Global’s efforts to build an End-to-End Supply Chain? Not sure if this is something that might interest you?  Check out the abstract below.

Building an End-to-End Supply Chain: Berry Global Case Study Part 1

Creation of an end-to-end supply chain must start with an honest evaluation of where you are.  Have you ever tried to generate route directions without a starting point? It is impossible!  Google, Apple, MapQuest – they just spin, lost in the enigma of “where are you now” until they can pinpoint your location.  Once you know where you are, you can start the journey for where you want to be.

At Berry Plastics, we evaluated our reality in 2014, leveraging Berry Supply Chain SMEs, industry experts, and consultants. We learned that we lacked supply chain maturity and we were infants in the journey to nirvana, an Integrated, End-to-End Supply Chain.  With multiple planning systems, wide spread excel usage and off platform manual efforts, lack of a demand plan, and inconsistent processes, we lacked the ability to efficiently predict and control our results. 

Once, we understood where we were, we needed a strategy, a map, for navigating to our desired destination.  This is not an easy task for a company that has completed over 40 acquisitions in 30 years and has grown to nearly $8B in annual revenue. Berry’s approach was to create Centers of Excellence (COE).  This allowed us to leverage dedicated, subject matter experts to evaluate best practice, create new processes, evaluate systems and tools, determine a repeatable implementation approach, and execution/implementation strategy.

Part 1 of Berry’s journey included the creation of a multi-faceted project portfolio, branded, STEPs to Success.  STEPs (Streamline – Transform – Enable – Pursue) attacked multiple areas within the end-to-end supply chain, including transactional efficiency, data sharing, policies, and relationships through four programs or key pillars: Customer Interfaces, Warehouse & Transportation Operations, Supply Chain Systems, and Integrated Planning. Our approach was to move our enterprise from reaction to integration, improving all aspects of the supply chain and increasing profitability.

Passion. Zeal. Both seem insufficient to describe my enthusiasm for this discussion.  We can always improve, always advance, always evolve to the benefit of all stakeholders: consumers, customers, employees, suppliers, and stockholders. There is no RIGHT way for how to get started, but perhaps I can help to stimulate some ideas or answer some questions. 

You can register using the following link: http://www.apics.org/credentials-education/events/event-landing-page/2018/05/23/default-calendar/building-an-end-to-end-supply-chain-berry-plastics-case-study

Let’s share the supply chain continuous improvement journey!  Together, everyone wins!

Christine (Reed) Barnhart