Assignment: six supplier strategiesThis week we are going to examine the six supplier strategies. It is important to know and be able to apply these strategies correctly to a business. For this week write a paper that examines the six supplier strategies and applies each strategy to a specific type of business.Assignment format: Separate the paper into sections by strategy. Each section should contain a brief description of the strategy, its pros and cons, and how to properly apply it to the type of business you choose.

Supply Chain Strategy Case Study (Ford Motor)In this assignment, you will apply strategy concepts to a real-world supply chain relationship management case study.Review Case 2-3, "Ford Motor Company: Align Business Framework," on pages 41–43 of your Purchasing and Supply Management text.Complete the following:Write a 4-page paper addressing Tony's challenges identified under "Finalizing the Plan."Describe Ford's competitive strategy. Provide examples of its competitive strategy.Compare and contrast the old and new contract and negotiation approaches.Analyze the impact of Ford's new supplier relationship approach on its competitive strategy.Evaluate Ford's new supplier relationship approach and how this new approach will improve relationships with suppliers.As you complete your assignment, be sure your paper meets the following guidelines:Written communication: Written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message.APA formatting: All resources and citations should be formatted according to current APA style and formatting guidelines.Length: 4 typed, double-spaced pages.Font size and type: 10-point Arial.ResourcesSupply Chain Strategy Case Study (Ford Motor) Scoring Guide.Due Date: End of Unit 1Percentage of Course Grade: 15%.CRITERIANON-PERFORMANCEBASICPROFICIENTDISTINGUISHEDDescribe Ford's competitive strategy.10%Does not outline Ford's competitive strategy.Outlines Ford's competitive strategy.Describe Ford's competitive strategy.Describes Ford's competitive strategy, and includes examples on supply chain management strategies.Compare and contrast the old and new contract and negotiation approaches.40%Does not describe the old and new contract and negotiation approaches.Describes the old and new contract and negotiation approaches.Compare and contrast the old and new contract and negotiation approaches.Analyzes the old and new contract and negotiation approaches, and compares them to real-world examples.Evaluate Ford’s new supplier relationship approach and its ability to improve relationships with suppliers.40%Does not summarize Ford's new supplier relationship approach and its ability to improve relationships with suppliers.Summarizes Ford's new supplier relationship approach and its ability to improve relationships with suppliers.Evaluate Ford’s new supplier relationship approach and its ability to improve relationships with suppliers.Evaluates Ford's new supplier relationship approach and its ability to improve relationships with suppliers, and provides examples to support the evaluation.Write in a scholarly manner by providing validation and scholarly evidence that is free from grammatical and mechanical errors and adheres to APA style.10%Does not write in a scholarly manner.Writes in a scholarly manner and provides validation and scholarly evidence, but the writing, grammar, mechanics, APA style, and overall output need improvement.Write in a scholarly manner by providing validation and scholarly evidence that is free from grammatical and mechanical errors and adheres to APA style.Writes in a scholarly manner by providing validation and scholarly evidence that is free from grammatical and mechanical errors, adheres to APA style, and is concise. The ideas are cohesive and logical.DISCUSSIONSDB8325Week 1Evaluating Supply Chain StrategyReview Xu, Xu, and Liu's 2014 article, "Wal-Mart and Carrefour's Supply Chain Management Strategies in China." Evaluate Wal-Mart and Carrefour's use of supply management as an offensive strategy in their move into the Chinese market. In your post, consider the importance of supply chain strategy to overall firm strategy.Response GuidelinesRespond to the posts of at least two other learners. Your responses are expected to be substantive in nature and reference the assigned readings, as well as other theoretical, empirical, or professional literature to support your views and writings.Use the following suggestions to create your response post:How well does your peer consider the facts and information?Are there additional pieces of information he or she should consider?What were the similarities and differences in your post?Response to classmates (Joey Stansell)The culture, behavior, and transportation systems are some of the key areas analyzed when companies expand into different countries. What works in one country may not work in another. The key for most companies is to match these areas while still holding on to their beliefs and culture.Wal-Mart According to Xu, L., Xu, Q., and Liu (2014), Wal-Mart and Carrefour took different approaches when joining the Chinese market. As in America, Wal-Mart chose the “customer is first” approach to win over the people of China (p. 156) . The supply strategy of Wal-Mart was to cut out the middleman, offer a “one-stop shopping” method, and establish key relationships with its suppliers (Xu et al. 2014). Wal-Mart also set up its own logistic system and allows its suppliers to be part of the team and even helps pay for product research and quality control to ensure only the highest quality goods are placed on its shelves. Wal-Mart recognized the diminished transportation networking systems in China and established two distribution centers to offer more reliable deliveries to its stores. Lastly, they opened most of their stores in suburban areas to meet the needs of lower-income customers and making those with higher incomes drive to purchase from its stores.Carrefour Carrefour took a slightly different approach. The company offers lower prices for its consumers. It sets up payment plans with its suppliers allowing Carrefour to utilize the capital turnover of its suppliers in order to save money (Xu et al. 2014). The company also chooses local products to place in their stores. The local store managers handle the procurement for Carrefour stores. Offering management the ability to select the products, pricing, and promotions strengthen the performance of the staff. Carrefour established four regional procurements centers and left the responsibility of the distribution to its suppliers (Xu et al. 2014). Lastly, the Carrefours approach to keeping its consumers happy is to increase the varieties of items on its shelves.Conclusion Wal-Mart and Carrefour both offer low prices, but take different supply chain approaches. Wal-Mart established two large distribution centers; wherein, they have direct control over the distribution of products. Carrefour utilizes four smaller procurement centers and leaves most of the responsibility on the suppliers.ReferenceXu, L., Xu, Q., & Liu, X. (2014). Wal-Mart and Carrefour's supply chain management strategies in China. International Journal of Business and Management, 9(7), 155–161. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/53fd/28043c089118...Response to classmate (Elmer Manalo)UNIT ONE DISCUSSION ONEINTRODUCTIONThis post evaluates the different Supply Chain Management Strategies (SCMS) of Walmart versus Carrefour and its importance in the overall business strategy of both companies in their penetration of the Chinese market and their successful dominance.These two multinational companies have been in China for only 25 years and yet they have succeeded in dominating the retail industry.Theory: SCM Strategies: Walmart versus CarrefourThe authors discussed 4 different factors in their respective SCMS:Customer PrioritiesSupplier RelationshipLogistics and DistributionMarketing StrategyWALMARTThey stressed that the customer is the number one priority in both price (lowest) and service (8 teeth smile always).They collaborate with their suppliers (manufacturers, no middlemen) ,and help them in research and improving product quality.They established their own two large centralized procurement and distribution centers and own their own distribution networks that lowers their costs and increase efficiency. Finally, they built stores in suburban areas so the poorer farmers are close by and the richer customers can drive in their cars. They market heavily to meet the preferences of their wealthy buyers for higher profits (Xu et. Al., 2014).CARREFOURThey stressed lower prices all the time.They attain lower prices by buying locally grown and produced products.They pay their suppliers every 60 days to save costs and roll over capital quickly.They built two large procurement centers but relied on their supplier for distribution to save money.They built their stores in big cities and urban areas to be closer to city dwellers who do not have cars.They packaged in lighter, cheaper, and smaller quantities to make it easier for customers (Xu et. Al., 2014).THE IMPORTANCE OF SCMS IN OVERALL BUSINESS STRATEGY:The authors stated that both strategies have propelled both companies to business dominance in the retail industry in China, beating all local enterprises in just a short 25 years.They suggested that their best practices should be emulated by local businesses so that they will also attain success in the retail industry.The fact that both strategies are different and yet equally successful argues that these SCMS are extremely important in their overall business strategy in their quest for overall success and maximum profitability.ConclusionsThis article is interesting but outdated because of two recent events.First is the growth of online shopping.We are all aware that Amazon beats Walmart hands down in online retailing and more importantly, in profitability here in the USA.The story is the same with Alibaba in China.Secondly, the Corona Virus Pandemic has totally shifted all the advantages to online shopping.Therefore, going forward, these SCM strategies will have to change and adapt to current market necessities.It is imperative for most if not all businesses to develop newer and innovative strategies in order to survive!Xu, L., Xu, Q., & Liu, X.,(2014). Walmart and Carrefour’s supply chain management strategies in China.International Journal of Business and Management, 9(7), 155-161.DB8327Week 1ApplicationPrepare a post that responds to question 5 on page 22 of your Supply Chain Network Design text. Which solution did you select? Using the text and the assigned article, identify and discuss reasons for your selection.Response GuidelinesRespond to at least two other learners. Your responses to other learners are expected to be substantive in nature and reference the assigned readings, as well as other theoretical, empirical, or professional literature to support your views and writings.Use these suggestions to create your response post:How well does your peer consider the facts and information?Are there additional pieces of information he or she should consider?What were the similarities and differences in your posts?Response to classmates (Mariealise Breaux)A small medical supply company in Australia has just developed a never before seen product with major pre-release orders from around the globe already. This company will need more production capacity to support their forecasted sales for this new blockbuster product. If they simply expand their plant in Australia, they estimate that their production, transportation, and warehousing costs will be approximately $450 million (AUD). After a careful network design study, they have found two solutions that people in the company generally like. a. Solution #1: Estimated cost of $375 million with a new large plant in China to supplement their existing plant in Australia. b. Solution #2: Estimated cost of $385 million with three new smaller plants in China, Brazil, and Italy to supplement their plant in Australia. These plants would service their local regions.(Assume the costs listed here include all the costs that are relevant.) What would be the best reasons for picking solution #1? For picking solution #2? Why is it important for this firm to consider other nonquantifiable factors when determining their best course of action for expansion? In this scenario solution 2 was selected. This was based on the concept of building relationships with trucking companies, warehousing companies, and other supply chain partners. Although re-configurtion of the organization may be neeed to further partner with multiple countries it may assist with funding the business' success. In solution 2 there should be other things considered such as Demand Data—There will be uncertainty in future demand dependent on overall economic conditions, moves by competitors, success of your marketing programs, and so on.■ Transportation Costs—There can be a lot of variance in future prices of transportation dependent on the ever-fluctuating world market price of oil.The non-quantifiable factors that the organization should consider are listed below along with reasoning: Sales Team—Place product as close to customers as possible (create many warehouses). Have small frequent shipments to customers (many small shipments or more frequent production runs at the plants).The sales group must produce the appropriate historical demand data as well as dependable forecasts of sales in the future.-Operations Team (Production)—Produce large quantities of one product during each run in order to reduce machine downtime and changeover costs (creates a need for a lot of warehouse storage). Produce product in one location to maximize economies of scale.- Operations Team (Warehousing)—Quickly move inventory through the warehouses (minimize storage costs). Minimize warehousing locations to reduce fixed and management costs.The operations group will be needed to explain the costs, capabilities, and capacities of all the production and storage assets, as well as any related overhead and labor costs.- Logistics Team (Transportation)—Have large shipments on less costly modes of transportation (ocean, rail, or truckload).- Finance Team—Have the least amount of money tied up in capital (low levels of inventory and operations requiring the least investment in warehousing and production locations). Incur the lowest costs tied to logistics (transportation, warehousing). The finance department is depended on for comparing the output costs from the model to the costs within their financial statements for the same span of time. Doing this provides a validated starting point for the model and a baseline to which we can compare all future model scenarios and output.Watson, M., Lewis, S., Cacioppi, P., Jayaraman, J. Supply Chain Network Design: Applying Optimization and Alanlytics to the Global Supply Chain. [Capella]. Retrieved from https://capella.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781323251...Response to classmate (Ding Hardin)Introduction Supply chains are defined as a systematic network with several parts cooperating with each other to meet customers’ needs and requirements (Nobari, & Kherikhaha, 2018). A small medical company in Australia is in the process of creating a systematic supply chain after developing a never before seen product that already has a high number of pre-release orders waiting to be filled. This discussion will identify the four elements related to the company’s project and compare solutions one and two.Four Elements There are four elements related to the company’s project Objective – The objective of the two solutions is to minimize cost for the company. By looking at both of the solutions, the company can judge if having one large power plant in China is better than having smaller multiple plants in different areas around the world is a better and cheaper alternative (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013). Constraints – The small medical company wants to meet all of the demands of their pre-release orders. The products are new, meaning the company may not be familiar with the product cycles, process and challenges. Decisions – Need to be based on how the products are being moved from one location to another, where and how many sites there are, and what product is made in what location (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013).Data - The company needs to ask if they have all the data to make an educated decision. It is important that they run some scenarios to ensure they are assessing all amounts of risk they can think of to choose the right scenario (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013).The Comparison of Two SolutionsSolution 1Solution 2Service LevelsSupplementing another plant closer to Australia is important because it impacts the amount of time it takes to get products to the customers (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013). Creating one major plant in China sounds like a good plan, but the cost it would take to get products to local regions could outweigh the costs of saving a little money to build more plants in other local areas around the world.This solution makes a little more sense when it comes to service levels. There are three other plants in China, Brazil and Italy to supplement the plant in Australia. This makes it easier and faster to get products to customers within those regions.Transportation CostsThe comparison is based on heavy or bulk the items that the company is manufacturing is. The more of these that are made, the more truckloads are filled. This is why they want to be closer to their markets and warehouse (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013). We are not aware of how big the product is. However, only having one plant to distribute their products can hike up their transportation costs.This is where the argument is sound. Having more plants does mean having more warehouses. But it does keep transportation costs down because the trucks are closer to the warehouses and markets where the product needs to be moved too.Economies of ScaleIn this case, option 1 would be the better scenario. The more the company produces of a product, the lesser the production cost per unit. This creates a more focused manufacturing process (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013).With multiple production plants, each plant is making less of the product and therefore their production cost per unit is more. This needs to be weighed with other costs to make sure if having more plants is a risk that the company could take.TaxesWith only having one plant to supplement the plant in Australia, the company has to think about the taxes they are going to accrue in order to ship their products and distribute them overseas. The cost of taxes from shipping can be more than local transportation costs (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013).Having multiple plants might be beneficial when it comes to exporting taxes because the company is only sending products to their local areas, and they can save a lot of money in these cases.Steps in the Production ProcessHaving one plant can increase the cost of production because everything is completed in one plant, and there are no alternatives to sending partial production to closer plants within the market.Creating more than one plant within local areas can help reduce production costs because it might be cheaper to produce part of the product in bulk in one area, then ship it in bulk to another plant that is closer to the market where the can complete the conversion to a finished good all while saving the company money (Watson, Lewis, Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, 2013).Local Labor, Skills, Materials, and UtilitiesHaving one facility makes it easier when it comes to labor costs, especially in areas like China. The company also make to make sure that the utility costs in the country are low as well.Having more than one plant globally can add up when it comes to labor, utility and material cok2sts. Not every area is going to have the same costs, and some might be more than others. It is important to weigh these costs out before deciding on having multiple plants.Carbon EmissionsThe amount of carbon emissions we put out is based on a lot of factors. Having one production plant close to a low emission power plant can be beneficial, but then the company needs to think about the emissions that it would produce on transportation.The same question needs to be asked here. Having more plants means producing more carbon emissions, even if located near a low emission power plant. Being closer to markets makes it easier through transportation emissions, but all needs to be weighed out to see what the impact on the environment is.Conclusions Based on the above analysis, Solution 2 is the better choice for the medical company when it comes to creating a systematic supply chain because having smaller production plants in different areas helps keep down on transportation costs, allow the company to serve their clients more efficiently, and even allows for outsourcing in regards to production that could also save costs. Outsourcing will allow the medical company to send some of their processes or production to a subcontractor closer to one of their markets (Haoues, Dahane, & Mouss, 2016).ReferencesHaoues, M., Dahane, M., & Mouss, N.K. (2018). Outsourcing in two-echelonsupply chain network integrated production-maintenance constraints. J Intell Manuf 30(1), 701-725.Nobari, A., & Kheirkhah, A. (2018). Integrated and dynamic design of sustainableclosed-loop supply chain network considering pricing. Scientia Iranica, 25(1), 410–430.Watson, M., Lewis, S., Cacioppi, & Jayaraman, J. (2013). Supply chain networkdesign: Applying optimization and analytics to the global supply chain. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.