GUEST COLUMN

BY THOMAS L. TANEL

Supply Chain Management: an Art,

Craft, or Both?
ith all the
hullabaloo
about the
Supply Chain
profession, I
think that we need
to make a solid distinction between art
and craft. Art is a result
of a persons innate, creative
talents whereas skill in craft can
be acquired with experience. Craft can be
called skill sets. In craft, more practical
thought is needed whereas in art, it is being innovative or pioneering beyond basic
supply chain concepts or techniques.
Art, in the supply chain, revolutionizes
to the point where the rules of the game
change to accommodate it. By way of example, how supply chains can leverage
digital capabilities to support new business models and improve performance
is truly revolutionary because value can
be a profit multiplier. The art of supply
chain management (SCM) is not easy to
implement because it runs counter to the
ingrained logistics functionally-oriented
thinking about how supply chains organize, operate, and add value.
Yet art is needed in managing flexible and uncertain supply chain environments. For example, when customers value distinctive or unique output (in other
words, all customers dont want the product or service to perform or be performed
the same way), this is art. Craft involves
technique and implies the application of
human intelligence. As an example, acting quickly and decisively to capitalize
on given supply-chain opportunities is
craft at work.
A craft may be defined as a skill at
making the logistical functions useful

within the supply chain, whereas art is

a representational expression of ideas,
passions and experiences that seeks to
add value. Unlike craft, art is known to
come out of the heart and soul creativity. In Gartners 11th annual global Supply Chain Top 25 in 2015, they indicated
that some of the leading companies are
tracking customer satisfaction measures,
and their supply chains are not just collecting data concerning the details of
the sale, but also the patterns of usage
and resulting sentiment of the end user,
which is artful.
Craft comes out as experience and
needs considerable supply chain event
exercise to deliver consistent and sustainable world-class practices. It is
based on a persons skill sets developed
over time. More to the point, craft work
is skilled work. One of the 2015 Gartner
Supply Chain Top 25s Key Trends was
that the more mature supply chain organizations have dedicated teams and
established playbooks for assessing the
current and required capabilities of new
businesses and determining the best
transition roadmap strategies tailored
to different business units, while others
differentiate by major geography or individual markets which involves the application of technique or craft.
Supply chain managers must have the
tools (craft) to accomplish their task.
Managing supply chains like any other
discipline is an art because it is the ability to do things in light of the reality that
pertains to the given situation. SCM is a
craft with a systematized body of knowledge and universal application as well
as an art that requires specific skill to
be applied as the situation demands. It
implies putting knowledge into practice

(wisdom) by a person who possesses a

highly specialized set of expertise and
skill sets.
In summary, art is a result of a persons
innate, creative talents whereas skill in
craft can be acquired with experience.
In craft, more practical thought (pragmatics) is needed; whereas art is more
related to supply chain aesthetics (perspective or aggregate of fine qualities).
And what we term art can be described
as perspicacity-based work while craft
applies to credentialed and/or certified
supply chain professionals doing their
thing. The need to know how to effectively manage the end-to-end, forward
and backward flow of materials and information through your supply chain is
both art and craft. Therefore, as a person
engages in the supply chain over a period
of time, we allow them to go from being
technically competent to a point where
they have mastered their craft by practicing it for many years.
From the above discussion, it is clear
that SCM is a mixture. The artistic element and the craft component in SCM
are intricately linked. Since they complement each other, its not an either art or
craft situation. It is both art and craft!
Today, supply chain management is the
place where art and craft must be able to
employ a plethora of ever-changing technology. How do you measure up?

THOMAS L. TANEL, CTL, C.P.M., CCA, CISCM, is

the President and CEO of CATTAN Services Group,
Inc. specializing in Logistics and Supply Chain issues. He can be reached at tanel@cattan.com or
979.212.8200.

MARCH-APRIL 2016 | www.PARCELindustry.com

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