Technological Innovations in Managing Challenges of Supply Chain Management

Abstract

The primary objective of supply chain management is to fulfill customer demands through the most efficient use of resources, including distribution capacity, inventory and labor. In theory, a supply chain seeks to match demand with supply and do so with the minimal inventory. Efficient management of supply chain/value chain remains a challenge for most firms, organizations in order to be competitive need to cut down on the transaction cost related with supply chain and there by increase efficiency or bring about differentiation in product or service line. In the context of an economic slowdown, Business Intelligence solutions become a desirable implementation that can help enterprise top managements get deeper insights into business dynamics and add value to the supply chain in order to synergise business process and gain competitive advantage. Although in a nascent stage for most firms in India the technological breakthrough by way of Radio-frequency identification (RFID) better management of all activities of supply chain is becoming a reality. Technology has immensely brought about sweeping changes in the way businesses function. The present paper aims at understanding supply chain function and the use of RFID technology in reshaping it and the usage of RFID technology in industry with special reference to the retail sector. Future challenges of RFID are also discussed and the way it is able to substitute human function in managing all aspects and thereby reducing inefficiency.