4. Supply Chain Management

A supply chain is a network of facilities and distribution options that performs the functions of procurement of materials, transformation of these materials into intermediate and finished products, and the distribution of these finished products to customers. Supply chains exist in both service and manufacturing organisations, although the complexity of the chain may vary greatly from industry to industry and firm to firm. The introduction of ecommerce to the supply chain can greatly reduce the costs associated with procurement and also allow better management of stock levels and reordering. It can encompass any or all of the following areas:

• Contractual relationships
• Electronic data interchange (EDI)
• Vertical integration
• Efficient consumer response (ECR)
• Just in time (JIT)
• Risk management
• Logistics information technology
• Purchasing and supply

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