Prompt #6: Evaluating Sources

Adam Seeton
Evaluating Sources Prompt #6

In an article written by Lauren Xiaoyuan Lu and Jayashankar M. Swaminathan from the business college at the University of North Carolina, they make an argument about why behavioral actions are so important in a supply chain. They continuously bring up the issue of trust with in a supply chain. They say one of the keys to a successful supply chain is having a trustful relationship with your suppliers and distributors. With all of the competition between supply chains, it is important to have good communication between the suppliers and distributors so that you can build trust with them. I agree that the most important part of a business is communication and building that trust between your co-workers. As we know today, a lot of businesses are selfish and do what is best for themselves. It is just a part of being involved in the business world. Lauren and Jayashankar explain that researchers are now looking into these behavioral issues that may now appear in supply chain management.

Lu, Lauren X. and Swaminathan, Jayashankar M., Supply Chain Management (2015). International Encyclopedia of Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2nd edition, edited by James Wright. Elsevier, March 2015.

Apple's New Supply Chain?

Adam Seeton

Apple has debatably the Number 1 supply chain in the world right now. Based out of China, Apple has been able to keep customers and suppliers on board year by year. Now, within the next six weeks, we may be seeing Apple add another Supply Chain that will be based out of India. Government officials believe that the new plant will be out of Bangalore and run by Wistron Corp., a Taiwanese manufacture. This will help Apple sell much more Apple products in India. India is a huge smartphone using country, but always decide to buy the cheaper phones. Another reason why Apple is willing to add another supply chain in India is because of how much the sales growth has been slowing in China. This is not only beneficial to Apple, but to India as well. If Apple decides to finalize the deal, it will open a lot up for India and the technology industry.

Page, Paul. "Today's Top Supply Chain and Logistics News From WSJ." The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, 24 Mar. 2017. Web. 27 Mar. 2017.

Walmart's New Purchases

Adam Seeton

Recently, Walmart has decided to start buying small online retailers so that it can compete with Amazon and display items that you would not see every day at Walmart. Walmart already have bought Moosejaw, ShoeBuy, and just added a hipster clothing website, ModCloth, to that list. They wanted to broaden its audience to appeal to the wealthier consumers as well. The only issue with this whole process is that not all suppliers want to be involved with Walmart. Many of the suppliers are not agreeing to their supplier deals because they do not want to see their products next to Walmart. Because Walmart is a corporation that is discount-driven, meaning they sell things cheap, they do not want to downgrade their products. Walmart is standing firm that it will not be controlling with their new small online businesses even though they may be tempted to put these companies under their wing.

Page, Paul. "Today's Top Supply Chain and Logistics News From WSJ." The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, 27 Mar. 2017. Web. 27 Mar. 2017.