Encyclopaedia of Supply Chain Management Strategy, Planning and Operations (Retail Supply Chain Management‪)‬

Supply chain management is the oversight of materials, information and finances as they move in a process from supplier to manufacturer to wholesaler to retailer to consumer. Supply chain management involves coordinating and integrating these flows both within and among companies. it is said that the ultimate goal of any effective supply chain management system is to reduce inventory. Supply chain management is a cross-function approach including managing the movement of raw materials into an organization, certain aspects of the internal processing of materials into finished goods, and the movement of finished goods out of the organization towards the end-consumer. As organizations strive to focus on core competencies and becoming more flexible, they reduce their ownership of raw material sources and distribution channels. These functions are increasingly being outsourced to other entities that can perform the activities better or more cost effectively. The effect is to increase the number of organizations involved in satisfying customer demand, while reducing management control of daily logistics operations. Less control and more supply chain partners led to the creation of supply chain management concepts. The purpose of supply chain management is to improve trust and collaboration among supply chain partners, thus improving inventory visibility and the velocity of inventory movement. The encyclopaedia is designed to contribute to the existing body of literature available on supply chain management.