sourcing – OM in the News

The Chronic Pain of Drug Shortages

Despite repeated warnings that critical drugs have been and will remain in short supply, corrective action has been painfully elusive.

A confluence of factors contribute to the persistence of the problem. These factors have been identified multiple times over the years, but addressing them and their effects on patients’ health requires overall system changes that call for full congressional and business cooperation. The current blog does not cover the policy changes needed for improvement; they are beyond its scope. However, it […]

By Corinne M. Karuppan, Ph.D.|2023-04-03T19:59:23+00:00April 5, 2023|Tags: bullwhip effect, competitivness, continuous replenishment, flexible-manufacturing, inventory management, JIT, lead time, logistics, outsourcing, productivity, respsonsive supply chain design, safety stock, shortage, sourcing, strategic capacity management, supply chain management|

TikTok Inspired Chipotle’s Fajita Quesadilla

Social media can greatly influence customer demand, and disrupt operations. Such is the case with TikTok and Chipotle.

Two TikTok influencers, Keith Lee and Alexis Frost, endorsed a menu hack that went viral. Initially, the restaurant wasn’t ready for the off-menu item, and some restaurants wouldn’t let customers order the item. This put stress on Chipotle’s systems and employees—not to mention creating unhappy customers who went online to complain about not being able to get the quesadilla.

However, Chipotle decided to listen […]

By Ross L. Fink, Ph.D.|2023-03-22T05:02:29+00:00March 26, 2023|Tags: food supply chain, inventory management, new product design, product design, sourcing, voice of the customer|

Starbucks Adds A New Flavor: Olive Oil

CEO Charles Schultz’s latest slick innovation for Starbucks adds a spoonful of extra virgin olive oil to a variety of hot and cold coffee beverages at the Milan roastery location.

Italian customers expressed mixed reactions to this unusual blend of ingredients.

Video Spotlight:

Introducing Starbucks new coffee ritual: Oleato™ (Feb 21, 2023, Starbucks Coffee)
Olive oil in coffee? Starbucks introduces ‘Oleato’ (Feb 22, 2023, Reuters)

This post is based on The Guardian article,

By Lisa M. Spencer|2023-03-18T00:45:45+00:00March 17, 2023|Tags: forecasting, idea generation, inventory management, location planning, product design, purchasing, quality, sourcing, strategy|

Fordless Fords: Shortages Due to Regulatory Issues

Tribar Technologies is a Michigan-based supplier for Ford’s blue oval badges. Violations of an environmental protection regulation limited Tribar’s production in August, resulting in shortages of the badges for Ford’s F-Series pickups.

Ford has decided to ship many of the badgeless vehicles to dealers and retrofit once badges are available, which will increases costs for the automaker and dealers.

This part shortage is the latest in a year of supply chain crises and shortages. Ford has stated that it intends to “restructure […]

By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2022-10-13T18:16:27+00:00October 13, 2022|Tags: downstream suppliers, lean production, sourcing, supply chain strategy|