2012-05-25T12:49:16Z http://blog.sourcinginnovation.com/atom.aspx Quick Blogcast tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-25:72a0b9e8-94b6-4648-8282-00ac522edaea the doctor 2012-05-25T10:00:00Z 2012-05-25T10:00:00Z After hearing about the recent NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) Interagency Report (7622) on 10 Practices to Secure the Supply Chain, it got me wondering as to who should set the standards. Supply Chains are global, so it shouldn't be a single government agency, even if it's a standards agency. While supply chains run on technology -- it's only one of the three corners of the supply chain triangle, with the other two being talent and transition (management). But, of course, supply chain standards are probably not high on the WTO ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-24:3937d4ae-9b41-43b0-97e9-3adda644d02f the doctor 2012-05-24T10:01:00Z 2012-05-24T10:01:00Z In yesterday's post, we asked how much an enterprise supply management solution really costs because the up-front license cost or annual subscription fee is only one part of the puzzle -- and until the full puzzle is understood, it's hard to figure out what the true cost is and, ultimately, what's the right solution for the organization. The difficulty is the plethora of license models, and add-on fees, that have been invented by on-premise and SaaS/Cloud vendors over the years in an effort to get a leg-up on their competition (and a siphon ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-23:dddea1f3-0090-461e-9451-46b9daa4ebd0 the doctor 2012-05-23T10:00:00Z 2012-05-23T10:00:00Z Pardon my language, but GFQ: Good Fracking Question! With the way that most providers price these days, it's really hard to tell and bravo! to Chain Link Research (CLR) for taking up the issue in a recent 2-part piece on SaaS Pricing: Insanity or Good Deal for Users (Part One and Part Two). When I first broached the subject back in 2009 in my series on An Enterprise Software Buying Guide (Part I: Overview, Part II: Cross Functional Team Formation, Part III: Need Identification, Part IV: Potential Solution Identification, Part V: Cost Model Definition, Part VI: Cost ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-22:0af58cb7-196e-4cae-a9e5-6e1320970287 the doctor 2012-05-22T10:00:00Z 2012-05-22T10:00:00Z And download the new BravoSolution sponsored Sourcing Innovation WhitePaper on Taking the First Step on Your Next Supply Management Journey [registration required] today if you haven't already. The acronyms and acclamations are still flying fast and furious in the Supply Management space and phrases like VFS, Hi-Def Sourcing, Next Level Supply Management, and Next Practices aren't going anywhere -- and neither is your organization unless it's on the road to improving it's Supply Management practices (unless it's in the Hackett Group 8% and has a solid plan to stay there). Chances are that, right ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-21:5e5d7bdf-9f47-4d27-92ac-4975002f004c the doctor 2012-05-21T10:03:00Z 2012-05-21T10:03:00Z Today's guest post is from Ayush Sharma, a Strategic Sourcing Consultant with Trade Extensions in the Americas. His particular speciality is the application of optimization to Retail Sourcing, Dedicated Transportation, 3PL Logistics Sourcing, and Direct and Indirect Materials Sourcing. Ayush has a Masters degree in Supply Chain Management from the University of Texas at Dallas, certifications in Lean Six Sigma and Supply Chain Management, and has served as a Technical Director for a local branch of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM). We started the series off by discussing the importance of supply and demand chain ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-20:62c65e0a-728b-4e8c-b3d8-f198ca21ae42 the doctor 2012-05-20T09:59:00Z 2012-05-20T09:59:00Z Long time readers will know that the doctor has been telling you to set up operations in Halifax (if you haven't already) if you're doing business in North America and Europe or if you're shipping between North America and Europe, India, and/or southeast Asia (including most of southern China) due to its strategic location (on a time-zone halfway between Los Angeles and London) and ready, quick access to many global ports from the Port of Halifax. (the doctor still stands by his 2006 post that said Halifax is The Best Place to Do International Business in Canada!) ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-19:8669fa78-4fb0-4ef6-a3a6-5710ababb698 the doctor 2012-05-19T10:00:00Z 2012-05-19T10:00:00Z ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-18:892b2927-f5e2-417f-81a8-b687203d9684 the doctor 2012-05-18T10:02:00Z 2012-05-18T10:02:00Z Today's guest post is from Ayush Sharma, a Strategic Sourcing Consultant with Trade Extensions in the Americas. His particular speciality is the application of optimization to Retail Sourcing, Dedicated Transportation, 3PL Logistics Sourcing, and Direct and Indirect Materials Sourcing. Ayush has a Masters degree in Supply Chain Management from the University of Texas at Dallas, certifications in Lean Six Sigma and Supply Chain Management, and has served as a Technical Director for a local branch of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM). We started the series off by discussing the importance of supply and demand chain ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-17:4bdd76bc-ac98-4756-9799-7b1012875735 the doctor 2012-05-17T10:01:00Z 2012-05-17T10:01:00Z Today's guest post is from Ayush Sharma, a Strategic Sourcing Consultant with Trade Extensions in the Americas. His particular speciality is the application of optimization to Retail Sourcing, Dedicated Transportation, 3PL Logistics Sourcing, and Direct and Indirect Materials Sourcing. Ayush has a Masters degree in Supply Chain Management from the University of Texas at Dallas, certifications in Lean Six Sigma and Supply Chain Management, and has served as a Technical Director for a local branch of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM). Yesterday's post discussed the importance of supply and demand chain integration as the key ... tag:blog.sourcinginnovation.com,2012-05-16:f5e7e3bb-90e2-4762-872e-c592f13c7d6f the doctor 2012-05-16T10:00:00Z 2012-05-16T10:00:00Z Today's guest post is from Ayush Sharma, a Strategic Sourcing Consultant with Trade Extensions in the Americas. His particular speciality is the application of optimization to Retail Sourcing, Dedicated Transportation, 3PL Logistics Sourcing, and Direct and Indirect Materials Sourcing. Ayush has a Masters degree in Supply Chain Management from the University of Texas at Dallas, certifications in Lean Six Sigma and Supply Chain Management, and has served as a Technical Director for a local branch of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM). Supply and Demand Chain integration has been viewed as key to an efficient, profitable ...