1. Literature Review (600 words)

• Role and activities of Procurement (~150 words)
• Role and activities of Warehousing (~150 words)

Literature review characterising the roles of Procurement and Warehousing in supply chains and main processes or activities that take place in the Procurement and Warehousing areas.

Describe the Procurement cycle. Explain how it is different than Purchasing. How does Procurement fit into the overall strategy of the organization?

When you describe the Procurement cycle, do not just spit out facts and think that you have done a good job. To get a better grade, you need to offer some analysis or commentary on how each part of the cycle can contribute to profitability.

• Specific LEAN management principles and tools (~300 words)

Literature review on the specific lean management principles, tools, concepts or frameworks that you intend to apply to discuss supply chain improvements in those two areas.

Make sure that the principles, tools or concepts you describe in this part are the same ones you will talk about in the Practical Application section.

When you are describing the principle, tool or concept, it is appropriate to briefly cover its history and most effective use cases. If you still need word count, you can give a brief situational example of how the concept or tool is applied.

Do research on consultancy websites, business magazines, industry associations, and other general sources. Your research needs to illustrate the roles of Procurement and Warehousing in an organization. Also, you need to find research that illustrates the main processes and activities that take place in the Procurement and Warehousing areas. Try to find 5-10 references.

2. Practical Application (500 words)

Improvements through Lean: Identify problematic issues in Procurement(*1-2 issues) and Warehousing processes(*1-2 issues) and explain how they can be improved through the application of one or more of the lean management principles, tolls, concepts or frameworks you have presented in your literature review. Provide examples.

"Problematic issues" should always relate to some way in which the company is wasting resources (time, money, manpower), or otherwise failing to make more money. Whatever issue you choose to describe, make sure to clearly show how that issue is costing the company money or reducing profit. Do research on consultancy websites, business magazines, industry associations, and other general
sources. Try to find 5-10 references.

3. Conclusion (400 words)

Conclude your work by pointing out potential difficulties or challenges that organisations in general might face when implementing the improvements discussed above.

How or why would it be difficult for any company to use the LEAN tools you described, or implement the changes you described? You can choose a particular type of company and use that as an example to show why it would be difficult.