Introduction to Personal Supply Chain Management

Supply chain management is not a topic at the forefront of too many minds right now. It’s a prominent topic in major corporations, but on the local, and especially individual levels, it doesn’t quickly come up in conversation. I’m hoping to change that. Regardless of who you are or where you are (both geographically and chronologically), you have a supply chain that is used to operate your life on a daily basis. Don’t believe me?

Do you have a home? What do you use that home for? Do you have a car, a bike, or shoes? What do you use them for? Do you consume anything? What do you consume and why do you consume these things?

For some of us, we have a home to satisfy basic shelter needs. Others may have homes that are used to entertain guests or help others that are down on their luck. Some of us eat alone; others may have large parties to engage socially and fellowship. Some of us use cars to commute to work; others may use them to travel all over the place. Most of us consume television, food, fuel, cellular service, and stuff for our hobbies. Some consume materials while making arts, crafts, or even major construction projects.  

These are all great things, and I want you to continue to enjoy what you do in life and also free up some resources for your goals; be they a new house or sending money to help orphans in Uganda. With a stagnant economy, however, it may be tough to find the resources to accommodate these goals. The days of anticipating sizable raises and lofty promotions are, for most of us, just not here anymore. And why is that? Well, it’s because this same economy is just as stagnant for your employer. In the corporate world, companies are learning to shift their focus from revenue growth to diminishing operating costs through supply chain optimization.

My assertion is that you can do the same. How liberating would it be if you could allocate more of your resources to your goals (capital projects) without having to wait for a raise (revenue growth)? The same principles that apply to the corporate world can be applied to your personal life. Over the next few weeks, I’d like to help you optimize your personal supply chain. I will submit a new post every other week, starting this Saturday. Please share with your friends and subscribe to get updates. Here is a rough outline to what I’ll be covering (please email me with requests for other topics or if you’d like to ask a question):

-          Carrying costs- the costs of ownership

-          SLOB- slow moving and obsolete inventory and what to do with it

-          Inventory planning- how to forecast future demand and use that knowledge to reduce costs

-          Logistics optimization- how to reduce the cost of doing life

-          Vendor selection- considerations for choosing when and where to buy

-          Procurement- how to buy the things you need (or- let’s be honest- want)