The problem of visibility of business processes and the handling of unexpected events, portrays the current challenges involved in supply chain management. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the sap event management software and its ability to mitigate risks and issues involved in supply chain management. More so, the contribution of SAP EM to the effective functioning of a company in its supply chain network environment will be described. This Thesis is a literature research work, being done as a partial prerequisite for obtaining a Master of Art in Supply Chain Management at the Fulda University of Applied Sciences.
This thesis will strive to answer the following questions: How sap event management tool helps in managing risk in supply chain management? How does SAP event management help companies to handle the challenges of today´s business environment? Whether SAP event management is a type of track and trace instrument or not?
Table of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 PROBLEM
1.2 RELEVANCE OF THE SUBJECT
1.3 PURPOSE AND GOALS OF THESIS
1.4 METHOD OF THESIS
1.5 THE STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS
2 WHAT IS SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT?
2.1 DEFINITION OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
2.2 GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
2.3 FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE THE EFFICIENCY OF MODERN SUPPLY CHAINS
2.4 CURRENT TRENDS AND OPPORTUNITIES IN LOGISTICS AND SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT.
2.4.1 Exogenous trends
2.4.2 Endogenous trends
2.5 SUPPLY CHAIN VISIBILITY
2.5.1 Process visibility
2.5.2 Product and asset visibility
2.5.3 Performance visibility
2.6 IMPORTANCE OF VISIBILITY IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
3 RISK CONCEPT AND SUPPLY CHAIN RISK MANAGEMENT
3.1 RISK
3.2 TYPES OF SUPPLY CHAIN RISKS
3.3 REASONS FOR VULNERABILITY IN MODERN SUPPLY CHAINS
3.4 BUSINESS PROCESSES AS DRIVERS OF SUPPLY CHAIN RISK
3.5 SUPPLY CHAIN RISK MANAGEMENT
3.6 FUNCTIONS AND TASKS OF SCRM
3.7 OBJECTIVES OF SUPPLY CHAIN RISK MANAGEMENT
3.8 THE IMPORTANCE OF SUPPLY CHAIN RISK MANAGEMENT
3.9 THE SUPPLY CHAIN RISK MANAGEMENT PROCESS AND THE PHASES OF THE INTER-ORGANIZATION SUPPLY CHAIN RISK MANAGEMENT
3.10 INTER-RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCRM, SCEM AND SAP EM
4 SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.1 EXPLANATION OF SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.2 GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.3 FUNCTIONS OF SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.4 BENEFITS OF SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.5 NECESSARY COMPONENTS FOR SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.6 PROPERTIES OF SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.7 CONSTITUENTS OF SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.8 TYPES OF EVENTS IN SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT
4.9 APPLICATION SPECTRUM OF SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT IN COMPANIES
5 SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
5.1 SAP
5.2 SAP BUSINESS SUITE
5.3 SAP SCM
5.4 THE STRUCTURE OF SAP SCM
5.5 IMPORTANT COMPONENTS WITH WHICH SAP SCM COMPLEMENTS SAP ERP
5.6 FUNCTIONS OF SAP SCM
5.7 OVERVIEW OF MY SAP SCM
6 SAP EM
6.1 DEFINITIVE EXPLANATION OF SAP EVENT MANAGEMENT
6.2 HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF SAP EVENT MANAGEMENT
6.3 BASIC TERMS USED RELATED TO SAP EVENT MANAGEMENT
6.4 MODES OF USAGE FOR SAP EVENT MANAGEMENT
6.5 SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE OF SAP EVENT MANAGEMENT
6.6 OVERVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS OF SAP EM
6.7 VISUAL BUSINESS
6.8 SYSTEM LANDSCAPE
6.9 BUSINESS PROCESSES OF SAP EVENT MANAGEMENT
7 CASE STUDY OF IMPLEMENTATION OF SAP EM AT BASF COMPANY
7.1 BRIEF COMPANY OVERVIEW
7.2 INITIAL SITUATION: HOW BASF USED SAP EM TO HANDLE RISK IN ITS SUPPLY CHAIN
7.3 SCENARIO DESCRIPTION
7.4 CHALLENGE FOR THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY
7.5 CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SAP EVENT MANAGEMENT AT BASF
8 CASE STUDY IMPLEMENTATION OF SAP EM AT DELAVAL
8.1 BRIEF COMPANY OVERVIEW
8.2 INITIAL SITUATION
8.3 OBJECTIVE FOR THE SAP EM IMPLEMENTATION
8.4 RESULTS OF SAP EM IMPLEMENTATION AT DELAVAL
8.5 BENEFITS DELAVAL ACHIEVED AFTER THE SAP EM IMPLEMENTATION
8.6 CHALLENGES FACED BY DAIRY FARMER MANUFACTURERS AND THE CUSTOMER-ORIENTED GOALS THAT DELAVAL STRIVES TO ACHIEVE WITH THEIR SERVICES
8.7 CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE SAP EM IMPLEMENTATION AT DELAVAL
9 HOW SAP EM HANDLES THE SC CHALLENGES IN TODAY’S BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
10. POTENTIAL BENEFIT OF SAP EM IN MITIGATING RISK IN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT.
10.1. A CONTRAST OF THE CHARACTERISTICS FEATURES AND FUNCTIONS OF SAP EM AND TRACK AND TRACE SYSTEM
10.2. S.W.O.T ANALYSIS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SAP EM AT A COMPANY
11. CONCLUSION AND OUTLOOK
Thesis Objective and Research Topics
This thesis investigates the efficacy of SAP Event Management software in mitigating supply chain risks. It focuses on the software's ability to provide end-to-end process visibility, enable proactive reactions to unexpected events, and bridge the gap between supply chain planning and execution. The research questions center on how the tool manages risk, handles contemporary business environment challenges, and differentiates itself from traditional track-and-trace systems.
- The impact of global business networks and supply chain interdependency on risk profiles.
- The role of SAP Event Management in enhancing transparency and process visibility.
- Comparative analysis of SAP Event Management against standard track-and-trace solutions.
- Practical implementation case studies at BASF and Delaval to demonstrate real-world utility.
- Strategic integration of SAP software to maintain compliance and reduce resource waste.
Extract from the Book
1.1 Problem
The last few decades have been marked by the breaking off, of trade barriers around the world, thereby leading to increase trade among nations globally. The increase global trade has opened the avenue for companies to source globally to suppliers offering better and cheaper goods and services. Thus, globally oriented companies face the challenge of coordinating and effectively managing all facilities alongside their ever-growing supply chain network.
More so, the ability to develop supply chains and the technics for managing supply chains have been triggered by increased advancement in communication and transport technology. Companies strive to plan, manage and control their inter-organizational processes in the supply chain in order to reach their objectives, because companies have come to the realization, that they no longer compete with each other but rather supply chain compete with one another. Therefore, when optimization efforts spread along a company´s entire value chain, leading to a change in the competitive relationship. A company will operate successfully in a section when it effectively and efficiently cooperates with its value-added partners than with its competitors.
Although, the global sourcing of components and merchandises has significantly gained importance, nevertheless global procurement involves risk that should not be ignored. This supply chain risk is drastically increasing, because goods must overcome different geographical locations to get to their expected locations. It is thus, reasonable that supply chain management aims at creating transparency among all the supply chain participants, which occurs because of the changing the actions of the individual partners and scheduling parameters. In order for companies to have better visibility along their supply chain network, they have to close the gap between planning, execution and evaluation. They must introduce the possibility to adapt plans in real time based on feedback and information received. To achieve this aim, companies must implement integrated software that assist business processes by monitoring supply chain events and informing the right person in case of delay and a critical event. Companies should be able to simulate activities, control processes, measure supply chain activities to adapt business operations for them to be more efficient and effective.
Summary of Chapters
1 INTRODUCTION: Outlines the problem statement regarding supply chain complexity and the role of integrated software solutions like SAP Event Management in modern business.
2 WHAT IS SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT?: Defines the core concepts of supply chain management, emphasizing transparency, global trends, and the necessity of process visibility.
3 RISK CONCEPT AND SUPPLY CHAIN RISK MANAGEMENT: Explores diverse risk types and the theoretical framework of managing inter-organizational risks using specialized management strategies.
4 SUPPLY CHAIN EVENT MANAGEMENT: Details the functionality of SCEM as an early warning system to monitor, notify, and control process exceptions.
5 SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE: Provides an overview of the SAP ecosystem, its structure, and key components used to support supply chain functions.
6 SAP EM: Examines the architecture, historical evolution, and operational definitions of SAP Event Management.
7 CASE STUDY OF IMPLEMENTATION OF SAP EM AT BASF COMPANY: Analyzes the successful mitigation of hurricane-related risks at BASF through real-time process re-configuration.
8 CASE STUDY IMPLEMENTATION OF SAP EM AT DELAVAL: Focuses on the improvement of OTIF (On-Time-In-Full) delivery performance and supply chain transparency at a milking solutions provider.
9 HOW SAP EM HANDLES THE SC CHALLENGES IN TODAY’S BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT: Discusses how SAP EM addresses specific challenges such as inflexible business models, demand-driven networks, and globalization.
10. POTENTIAL BENEFIT OF SAP EM IN MITIGATING RISK IN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT.: Compares SAP EM against traditional track-and-trace systems and provides a SWOT analysis.
11. CONCLUSION AND OUTLOOK: Summarizes research findings and provides a final perspective on the future of SAP Event Management in a dynamic global environment.
Keywords
Supply Chain Management, SAP Event Management, Risk Mitigation, Business Process Visibility, Logistics, SCEM, Transparency, Operational Risk, Supply Chain Interdependency, Real-Time Monitoring, OTIF, Globalization, Digitalization, Compliance, Order Fulfillment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this work?
This thesis examines the role of SAP Event Management (SAP EM) as a technological solution for managing supply chain risks and improving end-to-end process visibility in complex global networks.
What are the central themes of the research?
Key themes include supply chain risk management (SCRM), the importance of transparency, the distinction between track-and-trace systems and SAP EM, and how digital tools address modern business challenges like globalization and demand-driven production.
What is the core research objective?
The primary goal is to analyze whether SAP Event Management acts as an effective instrument for risk mitigation and how it helps organizations handle disruptions compared to traditional systems.
Which scientific methods are applied?
The work utilizes a literature-based research approach combined with practical case studies from BASF and Delaval to validate the software's capabilities and implementation results.
What does the main part of the thesis cover?
The main section covers the theoretical foundations of supply chain management and risk, technical details of SAP EM, case studies demonstrating real-world applications, and a SWOT analysis of implementing SAP EM.
What characterize the thesis?
The thesis is characterized by its focus on practical, cross-industry applications of SAP solutions and the necessity for "Management by Exception" in highly volatile supply chain environments.
How did BASF benefit from the SAP EM implementation?
BASF successfully used SAP EM to reroute shipments in real-time during hurricanes Katrina and Rita, significantly reducing potential financial losses and maintaining customer service levels.
In what way does Delaval's use of SAP EM differ from BASF?
Unlike BASF’s reactive risk mitigation against natural disasters, Delaval implemented SAP EM primarily to improve its OTIF (On-Time-In-Full) performance and standardize delivery processes across global distribution sites.
Is SAP Event Management considered the same as a Track and Trace system?
The author argues that they are distinct; while track-and-trace systems monitor objects, SAP EM provides active management capabilities, including real-time alerts and the ability to trigger corrective workflows for process exceptions.
- Quote paper
- Anonym (Author), 2018, An Approach to supply chain Risk management based on SAP Event Management, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/437496