Service levels sweep to top of supply chain priority list

Increasing service levels
to customers is the top
priority of supply chain
managers, according
to the ninth annual
Barloworld Logistics
supplychainforesight
survey.
Just over half of the
more than 350 respondents
surveyed mentioned it as a
top supply chain objective.
“This is a very
significant finding because
it has never even featured
as an objective on previous
surveys and it has become
the top priority,” said
Johan Dekker, head of
solution development for
Barloworld Logistics.
“Supply chain management
is about servicing the end
customer and it seems the
realisation has finally hit
home that getting closer to
the customer is essential in
modern-day business.”
Other important
objectives include lowering
procurement costs,
improving communications
with customers, aligning
the supply chain with
the business strategy,
optimising the distribution
network and improving
inventory deployment
across the supply chain.
“It is clear that the cost
focus of the last couple
of years has to some
extent been replaced by a
renewed commitment to
service orientation,” said
Dekker.