Supply Chain free essay sample

Forecasts a. become more accurate with longer time horizons b. are rarely perfect c. are more accurate for individual items than for groups of items d. all of the above e. none of the above One purpose of short-range forecasts is to determine a. production planning b. inventory budgets c. research and development plans d. facility location e. job assignments Forecasts are usually classified by time horizon into three categories a. short-range, medium-range, and long-range b. finance/accounting, marketing, and operations c. trategic, tactical, and operational d. exponential smoothing, regression, and time series e. departmental, organizational, and industrial A forecast with a time horizon of about 3 months to 3 years is typically called a a. long-range forecast b. medium-range forecast c. short-range forecast d. weather forecast e. strategic forecast Forecasts used for new product planning, capital expenditures, facility location or expansion, and RD typically utilize a a. short-rang e time horizon b. I improved the Mercedes class computer to meet the needs of the consumers by adding updates to the design in quarters three and four. Because I was striving to meet the needs of the consumer, I was able to sell out of my products every quarter and lead the market in sales. Target Markets The response identifies how the Workhorse, Mercedes, and Travelers markets were selected and their results during the simulation. Please discuss whether to change the selected target markets if given the opportunity to repeat the simulation. To consider whether target markets would be changed, please revisit the section entitled Supply Chain Management Simulation in the JCT2 Course of Study by following this link (or copy and paste the link into a new browser address bar): https://wsdi1. wgu. edu/cos/courses/25381/activity/64712 and then click on Marketplace Business Fundamentals simulation. I originally decided on which markets to target based on market research. The research showed that the workhorse and Mercedes classes had the most consumers. To start, I decided to work exclusively with these two groups. I am happy with the results in choosing to work within these to groups to start. Eventually, I expanded my product offerings to include the Travel class. My decisions proved effective in that I was the top seller in Mercedes class throughout the year. Once I had a strong hold on good product design, I held the most sales in this class all year long. I choose to work with the Workhorse class from the beginning because it is the largest target market. If I was able to claim a stake in sales with these consumers, it would create a nice foundation for business and I could build from there. In the Workhorse class, my product launch was not as successful as my competitors. I actually had products left over at the end of the quarter. But, since the Workhorse market was large, enough people bought my products, along with my sales to the Mercedes class, so I still came out with earnings. I sold off whatever products I was still holding and started with a new product. Once I studied my competitors, and market research I was able to design a better product to offer to the Workhorse market at a competitive price. A better product design along with an aggressive marketing campaign that targeted the Workhorse class, proved successful because I quickly jumped to the top of the ratings in sales and customer satisfaction. Lastly, I introduced a computer product to the Travel class. I was willing to take the risk to expand because my other products were successful and I had a comfortable financial cushion to work with. This was the smallest group of consumers, so I felt that the risk was small. As far as I could tell none of my competitors were offering this class of consumers a satisfactory product, at that point in time,. One company offered a product exclusively for this class, yet my Workhorse computers were outselling them. So with market research, I designed a product for the Travel class based on their needs and at a competitive price. It was also successful, in that no other competitor came close to my number of sales. I had 99% of market shares. I dominated this market, because I was the first to introduce a decent computer to them. In consideration of whether to change the selected target markets if given the opportunity to repeat the simulation, I would have to say no. I base this decision on the companys successful results both financially and through customer satisfaction. There was consistent growth throughout the companys start-up year, both in production and sales offices. The value of our stocks grew- shares went from -27 (first quarter) to 94 (fourth quarter). We repeatedly sold out of our products, creating more demand for our offerings. Sales Office Locations The first quarter I opened 2 sales offices in the largest markets- Paris and New York, costing me $430,000. The second quarter I opened a sales office in Tokyo. The total amount spent on sales offices during second quarter was $470,000, which included the leases in Paris and New York, as well as opening the office in Tokyo. Third quarter and fourth quarter I maintained Paris, New York, and Tokyo sales office leases and spent $370,000 each quarter. I chose not to open a sales office in Sao Paulo, because after looking at the size of the market and my projected cash flow, I determined that it would not be worth the investment. I would not have changed my strategy if given the opportunity to repeat the simulation, because I found success in my decisions. My gauge for success, is based on my profits and market shares. Marketing Research The question is whether or not I would spend differently on market research? Absolutely not! I spent top dollar every single quarter, and I am glad that I did. It is because of market research that my company was successful. Without market research, my decisions would have been a gamble, based on pure luck. There is always the gamble factor in running a business, but with valid consumer, product, and competitor information, at least I can make informed, valid decisions. I always designed my products based on the consumers needs. I based my marketing decisions based on what the competitors spent and how effective their campaigns were. I wanted a leading edge over my competitors, so I always spent more than them in advertising. My sales numbers and market shares proved that my marketing was successful. International Markets Some of the factors that I considered when deciding whether to establish a presence in international markets was size of market, consumer needs in a particular market, and distance from manufacturing facility. During the start-up of Everclear Logistics, I opened two sales offices- one in Paris and one in New York. I chose to start in these cities because they contained the largest numbers of consumers in my chosen target markets- Workhorse and Mercedes classes. My main focus was to get a decent percentage of the market share, so having sales offices in these cities would help me achieve that goal. In the third quarter, Everclear Logistics had the second most market shares at 28%. Quarter four, we had the most market shares at 45%. And in quarter five we continued to be the leader with 43% of the market shares. International Expansion If Everclear Logistics was ever going to expand beyond the markets within the simulation, they would have to consider a few important factors. Would the company spend a large sum of money to expand instantly, or strategically plan for expansion, using smaller amounts of cash in the process of international growth ? Growing an international team of producers and sales force can take time and resources. An international business plan stating goals and objectives is in order and can help measure the results of the expansion. The marketing efforts of the company need to be culturally appropriate for the new markets as well.