SCM for Digidream the Objective of This

¶ … SCM for DigiDream The objective of this study is to propose a company concept for DigiDream Inc. founded in 2011. This study will discuss company management information and select the best system for the company needs without worrying about compatibility with legacy systems. This work will and select a compatibility legacy system and create the proposed SCM Company for creation of a Tablet generic made computer and will describe the reasons behind having supply chain management (SCM). Appropriate software packages for the company will be researched and analyzed.

A description of the management of the SCM system will list the advantages and benefits in providing the selected SCM and will finally compare it to another SCM product not chosen. Supply Chain Management & Marketing System Juttner (2004) states that conceptual and empirical research on the concept of market orientation has long suggested that interfunctional coordination is key to achieving the main goal of marketing" specifically that of creating superior customer value.

According Juttner SCM has become a strategic priority in many of today's companies and the "synergies between SCM and marketing have been widely acknowledged, leading some to conclude that better coordination could define competitive superiority in new ways." (2004) However, Juttner states that despite "these strong arguments for an integrated approach, in many businesses, the supply side still seems to be disconnected from the demand side and supply chain mangers have only a faint idea of the drivers behind customer demand." (2004) The benefits of a Supply Chain Management System includes: (1) Lowering costs for supply and storage; (2) A smooth flow of goods inwards and outwards; (3) Better management of inventory; (4) A powerful delivery scheduling; (5) Lean and flexible operations; (6) end-to-end visibility of supply and demand; and (7) A faster response to events in any part of the supply chain.

(Enabling Solutions, 2011) Supply chain management system should enable the company to track its processes beginning with marketing, then manufacturing, orders, payments and billing and shipment to customer. (Enabling Solutions, 2011, paraphrased) II. SCM: Comparison of Oracle SOA Suite and Microsoft Dynamics NAV This study next conducts a comparison of the Oracle SOA Suite and the Microsoft Dynamics NAV SCM solution.

The Microsoft Dynamics NAV SCM solution is such that enables capabilities in meeting the following needs in business: (1) Financial management -- accounting and finance solutions enable tracking and analysis of business information. Included is end-to-end integration and efficient management of the company's general ledger, payables, receivables, inventory analytical accounting fixed assets, and cash flow as well as performing bank account reconciliations and collections.

Financial processes can be managed "across multiple currencies, locations, or companies." (Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (2) Manufacturing -- Microsoft Dynamics NAV provides an integrated suite of manufactured applications that provide the tools to "plan, manage, and execute a world-class manufacturing operation." (Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) Efficiency gains are one benefit of this SCM as well as effective management of production orders, bills of material, supply planning a capacity requirements planning. Management of the manufacturing process from product configuration, supply, and capacity requirements planning for scheduling and shop floor are included.

(Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (3) Supply Chain Management -- streamlines sales, purchasing, and pick/pack/ship cycle as well as customizing workflow processes to meet specific needs and to keep pace with competitive markets and low margins. (Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (4) Business Intelligence and Reporting -- included is reporting, analysis and budgeting solutions that assist the company in improving and driving critical decision-making throughout the organization.

Included as well is direct access to real-time, business-critical information and a wide range of analytical and reporting tools that assist in budget management, and creation and consolidation of reports. (Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (5) Customer Relationship Management -- customer relationships management enables an automation of many day-to-day tasks for sales, customer service, and marketing professionals. Included is management of customer records, sales histories, creation, and launching of marketing campaigns and tracking of customer activity.

(Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (6) Workplace collaboration -- assist business collaboration through expanding access to business applications, information, and processes. (Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (7) Configuration and Development -- Microsoft Dynamics is inclusive of built-in-tools for business management solution adaptation. (Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (8) Human Resource Management -- Microsoft Dynamics NAV provides support for HR processes and assists in organizing and controlling information about employees.

(Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) (8) Project management -- support long-term and job -- and project-related activities assist in budgeting projects costs and automating billings as well as enabling better resource management, tracking, costs and usage as well as capacity for planning and predicting availability. (Microsoft Dynamics NAV, 2011) Juttner states that the argument for the combination of "marketing and SCM strengths is compelling." (2004) Successful innovation is reported as having "become a key driver for revenue growth, competitive margins and, in some cases even survival.

The ability to bring this innovation to market quickly, efficiently and ahead of competition is becoming increasingly important." (IBM Institute for Business Values and Global Business Services, 2006) Required for a product launch that is efficient are factors including integration and coordination among multiple functional areas, including product design, procurement, planning, manufacturing process and sales, and marketing." (IBM Institute for Business Values and Global Business Services, 2006) According to Oracle Corporation, higher-quality products are created through "concurrent engineering of new products and manufacturing processes" which enable product release into the market faster and in a streamlined manner in the "hand off between product development and manufacturing.

This was initially and traditionally accomplished in "departmental silos which has contributed to longer product lifecycles, delayed product launches, and eventual loss of market share." (Oracle Corporation, 2008) However, Oracles 'Agile Product Lifecycle Management' solutions enable the organization in its management all the product lifecycle aspect so that the organization is enabled in the area of new product acceleration, interactions, cost management, and faster-to-marketing on new products.

(Oracle Corporation, 2008, paraphrased) It is reported that the Agile Product Lifecycle Management solutions "offer global visibility and secure, timely control of product information." (Oracle Corporation, 2008) Business leaders are reported to be "…tackling the complexity of their application and information technology (IT) environments with service-oriented architecture (SOA), which enables the development of modular business services that can be easily integrated and reused. The SOA approach to design exposes the applications as reusable services and integrates them through the use of standards-based communication protocols.

Rather than building business applications from scratch, this allows the creation of reusable and composite business assets built from existing services." (Oracle Corporation, 2008) Oracle SOA Suite enables the organization in their integration and unification of applications to enable better provision and maintenance as well as evolution of the rapid integrations in a cost effective manner. All of which can be handled by internal nonexpert IT personnel according to Oracle's report. Furthermore, the organization's capacity to forecast change is supported by "real-time visibility.