ARTICLE TITLE

Pagh, Janus D., Cooper, Martha C., "Supply chain postponement and speculation strategies: How to choose the right strategy", Journal of Business Logistics, Vol. 19, No. 2, 1998, pp. 13-33.

 

ABSTRACT

Effective management of a supply chain includes thinking creatively about how to integrate and perform logistics and manufacturing activities. Postponement and speculation strategies offer opportunities to achieve delivery of products in a timely and cost-effective manner by rearranging the conventional production and logistics structures, which are often designed and managed autonomously. Supply chain advancements have frequently been achieved by reducing risk and uncertainty through the employment of sophisticated forecasting techniques, with a low degree of cooperation and integration between the manufacturing and logistics processes. By employing the concept of postponement and combining it with a holistic view of the supply chain, a small number of best practice companies have managed to increase the performance of their firms and the supply chain as a whole.