Practical Approach to Solving CG&R Supply Chain Disruptions

Authors’ insights expect consumer goods and retail supply chain disruptions to continue; offer five pragmatic solutions to gaining a competitive advantage even in this chaotic environment 

Boston, Mass., January 11, 2022 --  Global supply chain and operations implementation consulting firm, SGS Maine Pointe, a member of the SGS Group, announced the publication of its white paper for the consumer goods and retail industry, titled “The Pragmatic Approach to Tackling Supply Chain Disruptions.” Authored by Maine Pointe thought leaders Tiffany Pankratz-Umbehr and Jeff Staub, the white paper offers five pragmatic solutions to the supply chain disruptions the industry has suffered since the beginning of the pandemic.  

“The consumer goods and retail industry has faced many different types of supply chain disruptions, and these are likely to continue in the foreseeable future,” said Pankratz-Umbehr, Senior Managing Director and head of the Consumer Goods & Retail practice at Maine Pointe. “But disruption does not have to mean lack of control, to the contrary, by following the five points outlined in our paper, CG&R leaders can restore stability, add greater flexibility, and remain competitive even during a period of prolonged turbulence.” 

In addition to actionable guidance, the white paper also includes real-life case studies showing exactly why some companies failed, and why others succeeded – and how Maine Pointe was able to implement lasting changes to help its clients transform their supply chain into a competitive advantage. 

The five solutions outlined in the white paper include: 

1. Address the labor dilemma. Companies are facing a labor shortage as long-term employees opt for retirement, and companies see an entrenched skills bias and complacency. Solutions to this dilemma include higher salaries and retention incentives, as well as investing in high-potential employees. Companies can also overcome this dilemma by building the right type of organizational model, and gaining a better understanding of what employees at all levels really want.
   
   
2. Make data visible and accessible. Value leakage across the supply chain is highly prevalent in many companies, and most executives have low confidence in the data they see, which may come from incompatible systems. Improving visibility and insight into the end-to-end supply chain can be achieved with greater transparency, and a streamlined solution with advanced analytics that complements the existing ERP architecture. 
   
   
3. Integrate business planning. Integrated business planning, or SIOP, is the foundation of modern forecasting accuracy. With a 360-degree, cross-functional view, this strategy better facilitates alignment between sales, sourcing, operations, and finance, allowing for information to be synthesized. As a result, this cross-departmental and collaborative supply chain decision-making allows for better decision making and a more resilient supply chain.
   
   
4. Prioritize improvements for ROI and speed of implementation. After identifying a problem, how do you fix it? This paper outlines specific steps in creating and executing a process, starting with understanding the value leakage, identifying the cost of the problem and the methods to fix each issue, estimated cost, and then establishing a rank based on ease of implementation and cost.
   
   
5. Strengthen the core. This final element takes some political will and requires a strong commitment. Rather than seeing one-off solutions, the white paper recommends creating embedded holistic problem-solving and sustainable change management. 

The paper also outlines actual case studies of companies that benefitted from the Maine Pointe approach, including one company that had relied on supply chain relationships that had been built based on past performance and pricing history – but that legacy system had never presented any scorecard data. The COVID disruption rendered that past performance data irrelevant, and a new scorecarding system and business intelligence tools exposed some unexpected anomalies. Refined forecasting and new KPIs produced new strategies and long-term dividends. In another example, a Maine Pointe client approached their procurement on a transactional basis and had concerns about market turbulence. Maine Pointe was able to deliver significant cost savings, reduce risk, and upskill the production department with industry leading practices.  

“The disruptions of the past few years need not result in disaster,” said Jeff Staub, CEO of SGS Maine Pointe. “In this white paper, we present some of Maine Pointe’s proven approaches to tackling supply chain disruptions in the CG&R space, controlling the many variables and unpredictable scenarios that may appear, and implementing the right changes within the organization.” 

About SGS Maine Pointe  

SGS Maine Pointe, a member of the SGS Group, is a global supply chain and operations consulting firm trusted by many chief executives and private equity firms to drive compelling economic returns for their companies. We achieve this by delivering accelerated, sustainable improvements in EBITDA, cash, and growth across their operations, procurement, and logistics. Our hands-on implementation experts work with executives and their teams to rapidly break through functional silos and transform the buy-make-move-fulfill supply chain to deliver the greatest value to customers and investors at the lowest cost and risk to business. We call this Total Value Optimization (TVO)™. 

SGS Maine Pointe’s engagements are results-driven and deliver between 4:1-8:1 ROI. We are so confident in our work and our processes that we provide a unique 100% guarantee of engagement fees based on annualized savings. www.mainepointe.com 

About SGS 

We are SGS – the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company. We are recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. Our 96,000 employees operate a network of 2,600 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world. SGS has been delivering ESG and sustainability solutions and services to clients for the past 25 years and has been a carbon neutral company for the past seven years.