Logistics and Supply Chain Management

Assessment - Develop an e-Portfolio that captures the development and implementation of a logistics and supply chain structure for a new or expanding enterprise

Assessment Description

Length: Five stages where each stage should be 300-500 words of your own written narrative plus other electronic resources that you wish to embed into the project.

Assessment brief

Each student will develop an e-Portfolio over a period of five (5) weeks that captures all of the elements of the development of a supply chain and logistics solution for a new or expanding enterprise.

Each stage will require the student to research a particular topic and then write a summary of what they have discovered through their research. In addition to the written narrative, students can embed images, diagrams or links to other electronically accessible materials such as websites or reports. Unlike normal written assessments, these summaries will be captured electronically and will be accessible to the lecturer to allow them to ask questions or provide comment. Students will then be encouraged to respond to the feedback they have received.

Background Information

Treat yourself: A shift in demand towards premium goods is favouring niche operators "Operators in the Chocolate and Confectionery Manufacturing industry have faced changing consumer preferences over the past five years. Growing consumer concerns about the amount of fat and sugar in foods have weakened demand for chocolate and confectionery over the past five years, particularly in regards to mass-produced products. Industry participants have increased product diversification and introduced healthier products in attempts to limit the number of consumers switching to substitute products, such as yoghurt. Additionally, consumer demand for premium products has increased over the past five years, which has boosted industry performance. Industry revenue is expected to grow at an annualised 2.2% over the five years through 2017-18, to reach $6.1 billion"

Case for Analysis

The Cardinale family have been making and selling premium hand-made chocolates from their home in Western Sydney for the last five years. They have established a strong group of customers comprised of members of the general public and small businesses such as restaurants and cafes. They make their chocolates from both dairy and non-dairy products and most of their chocolates are gluten-free.

Each chocolate sells individually for $2 but they also currently sell variety assortments of 10 chocolates for $15 and 20 chocolates for $25. Each year, demand has grown for their product and last year (2016-2017) they made an annual profit of $120,000. Their accountant has been advising the Cardinales to expand their business and to move production to commercial premises. Using their own funds together with a small loan from the bank they have purchased a shop in the main street of their local shopping centre where they can now manufacture their chocolates in the rear commercial kitchen area, store them in special refrigerated cabinets and sell from the shop at the front. Sales will commence in the new premises in March 2018.

The youngest Cardinale son, Tony, who has just finished his Bachelor of Business degree at Kaplan in Sydney, believes that the family are still thinking "too small". He studied Logistics and Supply Chain Management as part of his degree and he knows that Amazon, the biggest retailer in the world, has recently started operating in Australia. He believes that there is a massive untapped market for the premium chocolates that his family produces and that selling them using the Amazon online platform is a simple and effective way to attract new customers and stimulate production.

Weekly Portfolio Questions

Week 8 - What is the market size for retail chocolates sales in Australia? Which companies are the main participants in the industry? Identify and describe any Australian businesses currently exporting chocolates or confectionaries into markets outside of Australia?

Week 9 - Will the supply chain for the new expanded business need to be differentiated on the basis of multiple sales channels / customer segments? What changes to manufacturing will need to be made to accommodate online sales through Amazon? What mechanisms are available for the Cardinales to forecast future demand?

Week 10 - From a supply chain and logistics perspective what might be the benefits and disadvantages of selling their products using the Amazon online platform? What is your understanding of the term "Big Box Supply Chain"?

Week 11 - On the basis that all sales are now being made either through the shop or online through Amazon, construct a diagram that captures all phases of the Cardinale Chocolates Supply Chain.

Week 12 - How might Cardinale Chocolates better use technology to make their supply chain and logistics activities more efficient? Illustrate your answer with examples of how other organisations were able to use technology to enhance operational efficiency.

Each stage should be 400 words each.