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Innovative Courses: Managing the Global Supply Chain
In this installment of our newsletter series, we take a page from some of the innovative courses and hot topics UNC Kenan-Flagler faculty are teaching.
Operations professor Jayashankar M. Swaminathan's uniquely customized MBA for Executives course "Global Supply Chain Management" deals with the latest theories, trends and developments in global supply chains. In addition to analyzing cases at current firms, this intensive three-day course also features executives and supply chain experts, who join the class from around the world, via video and teleconference:
- Sean Ansett, Director, Global Partnerships, The Gap
- Hunter Howard, CEO, MediGain Inc.
- Jeff Jones, Procurement, GlaxoSmithKline
- Henrique Correa, Professor, Fundação Getulio Vargas, Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo (FGV-EAESP), Brazil
- Fernando Mata, Professor, Tec de Monterrey's Graduate School of Business Administration and Leadership (EGADE-ITESM), Mexico
Swaminathan's course focuses on giving students hands-on experience. Students divided into teams to develop supply chains and plan production in a simulation.
"Today's EMBA students not only need theory but how that theory is applied in practice," Swaminathan said. "Successful operations in a global economy depend greatly on the ability to execute. The challenge with managing global supply chains is that theories need to be uniquely customized to the local settings."
The course was so successful that it will be offered again next summer for executive participants and for the first time in the spring for MBAs.
The next iteration of the class will include the presentation of a "live" case. Students will analyze and prepare a strategy based on a real case study of an international company. A representative from that company will come speak to students about the case and its outcome. Courses typically change every year they are offered, as continuing innovation molds the student experience.
"I thought it was an exceptionally relevant and timely course," said Ben Barras (EMBA '05), senior manager of collaborative business planning at Sara Lee Corporation. "[Swaminathan] was able to lift the global movement of product off the pages and into the 'real world,' integrating it with the latest innovative IT, logistical and philosophical developments in the field of global supply chain. I am only now starting to hear industry buzz on some of the key topics introduced in this class."
To learn more, contact Swaminathan at (919) 962-8341, msj@unc.edu.
Swaminathan's takeaways:
- Supply chain strategies must be tailored for different regions in the world.
- Understanding the context and preferences in countries of operation is crucial in order to excel in the new global environment.
- Pragmatic use of information technology can significantly reduce the complexities of global supply chains.
Recommended reading:
"Operations Management for Competitive Advantage" by Richard B Chase, F. Robert Jacobs, Nicholas J Aquilano
"The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century" by Thomas L. Friedman
"Introduction to Supply Chain Management" by Robert B. Handfield and Ernest L. Nichols
"Supply Chain Management" by Sunil Chopra and Peter Meindl
"Designing and Managing the Supply Chain" by David Simchi-Levi, Philip Kaminsky, Edith Simchi-Levi
Bayus Receives Kauffman Grant
Marketing professor Barry Bayus recently learned he is part of a three-year $655,500 Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation grant to study the creation of new industries.
Implications for business
Together with Rajshree Agwaral of the University of Illinois, Bayus will continue his provocative research on emerging markets with this grant, answering questions with important implications for companies:
- Is the conventional wisdom that small startups "invent" new products and services while large firms reap the benefits really correct? Or, are entrepreneurs and new firms important vehicles of technological progress, both in the creation and the growth of new industries?
- What are the long-run performance dynamics of entrepreneurial startups vis-à-vis diversifying entrants? Regarding earnings expectations, does firm performance vary over the industry life cycle?
- Does order of entry (i.e., market pioneers) and prior experience (e.g. market, technical) drive performance and long run success? Is having the "right product at the right time" more important than "being first?"
"This research is all about blending perspectives across disciplines," said Bayus.
Methodology
This type of research is not uncharted territory for Bayus. His recent research focused on the evolution and creation of new industries. He, along with Agarwal and his former PhD student Wooseong Kang, studied a large set of new industries that began in the United States over the past 150 years. They statistically benchmarked the time it took to get innovations to market and the waiting time before there was a dramatic upswing in industry sales.
Surprising findings
Bayus and his colleagues found that the average time until takeoff was around 18 years. Other key findings:
- The number of firms competing in a new industry increased slowly at first and then systematically surged before sales sharply increased.
- They argue that the timing of a sales upswing is driven by the inevitable product improvements that are introduced by firms.
- Their results suggest that firms should not reduce prices too quickly in new markets.
- They explain that lower prices lead to less firm entry, which in turn, leads to longer sales takeoff times.
"I am excited that this grant will give me the motivation to write at least one book that summarizes my work on emerging markets and makes it accessible to the business mainstream," Bayus said.
The research project is titled "Entrepreneurship and Technological Change: Implications for Firm and Industry Evolution." For more information on the evolution and creation of new industries, visit Bayus' Web site or e-mail him at barry_bayus@unc.edu.
MBA Graduate Finds her Passion in the Real Estate Market
No two days in the work life of Tiffany Elder (MBA '03) are ever the same. And that's exactly how she likes it.
Elder, owner and general manager of Coral Home Solutions LLC — a Durham, N.C.-based real estate investment firm — was a software engineer with a Fortune 500 financial services company in Minnesota right out of college. When she considered her future in that industry, however, it inspired no passion in her.
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| Tiffany Elder |
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Elder left her job in 2001 to enroll in UNC Kenan-Flagler's MBA Program and quickly discovered the sustainable enterprise curriculum. She completed her degree requirements early and considered a few job offers, but nothing felt right to her.
"I have a chronic health condition that precluded my re-entry into corporate America," she said. "I'm allergic to routine."
Elder was always interested in real estate investment, but she thought it would be an avocation rather than a vocation. She also thought about getting her PhD, since both of her parents are educators, and she considers education to be part of her DNA. As she discussed her future with her family and UNC Kenan-Flagler professor Jim Johnson, a common theme emerged: entrepreneurship. She decided to take the risk and start her own real estate business, which would also have the potential of leveraging her passion for sustainable enterprise.
"I definitely made the right decision," Elder said. "Although at the time, the prospect of it was quite intimidating! I'm a bit of a free spirit, though, so I appreciate that I have more control over my days. That is one side of being an entrepreneur that is often overlooked. You may work twice as long and hard, but it's on your own schedule."
Beyond merely indulging her independent streak, Elder has found purpose in the work that she does. A licensed realtor and general contractor, Elder has two personal housing renovation projects currently under way, with more in the works. Through Coral Home Solutions, she is working with several dozen clients to help them find and purchase investment property. Elder also serves on the executive board of the Triangle Real Estate Investors Association. All that, and she still makes time to aid incoming UNC Kenan-Flagler MBA students who are relocating to the area and are looking for a home.
When Elder considers her future now, her passion for what she does is evident. She looks forward to pulling her education in sustainable enterprise into her work to a larger degree. She has started talking with area nonprofit organizations to see how she might become involved in supporting local community development efforts. And she hopes to incorporate her interest in "green" building technologies, as well.
"Given that my goal is to help supply homes that can be purchased affordably," Elder reasoned, "Why not take this next step and make it such that they can be maintained affordably, with lower utility bills, decreased maintenance costs, and the like."
Elder attributes her career satisfaction to the time she spent at UNC Kenan-Flagler, and she emphasizes the impact the sustainable enterprise program had on her.
"Attending Kenan-Flagler was one of the best decisions I've made," she added.
But for Elder, the learning process is never complete, and she is dedicated to maintaining her education and training.
"To be successful in this business, you have to commit to continuous learning," she said. "So I set time aside for this on a regular basis. Things change quickly, and you might miss an opportunity if you're not open to new learning."
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