International supply chains

Due to the development of information and communication technologies and the globalisation of markets in the last two decades, managers of business firms have realised that in order to improve the organisation's competitive edge in the global marketplaces, it is no longer enough to achieve high efficiency only within their own organisation. They must also be involved in the management of a global network of the upstream firms that provide inputs, and downstream firms responsible for the delivery and after-sales services of their products to end customers. Logistics and supply chain management is about managing the hand-offs in a supply chain – hand-offs of either information or product. The design of a logistics system is critically linked to the objectives of the supply chain. Our goal in this course is to understand how logistical decisions impact the performance of the firm as well as the entire supply chain. The key will be to understand the link between supply chain structures and logistical capabilities in a firm or the entire supply chain. In this course we will focus on the key concepts, best practices, innovative ideas, practical and critical thinking of global supply chain management. Students will impart analytical and problem solving skills necessary to develop solutions for a variety of supply chain management and design problems and develop an understanding for use of information technology in global supply chain optimisation. Students will be challenged to think, discuss, share, and debate on the issues brought up. Extensive examples from industries as diverse as fashion, grocery, automobile, computers and consumer products are used to illustrate the concepts and practices.

This course contributes to the Sustainable Business Operations pedagogical pathway of the Sustainable Development initiative that seek to provide an integrated training in sustainability.

At the end of the course, the student should be able to : -Demonstrate knowledge of fundamental concepts in supply chain management related to everyday business operations -Evaluate the key drivers of supply chain management and their impact on strategy and on other functions of the company -Identify improvement opportunities that exist within supply chains in different industries -Understand what kind of information is exchanged in a supply chain and how it is used to benefit all supply chain partners -Apply analytical and problem solving skills necessary to develop solutions for supply chain problems and develop an understanding for use of information technology in supply chain optimisation -Address sustainability issues within a supply chain of the manufacturing or services sector.

This course contributes to the development of the following program learning objectives:
LO 1.1 - Integrate sustainable development into problem analysis
LO 1.2 - Master and apply key economic and management concepts, frameworks and theories in a professional context to identify a business opportunity and build a relevant innovative solution to it
LO 1.3 - Approach a managerial or business problem within different disciplinary frameworks (law, communication, psychology, etc.) and taking external factors into consideration
LO 2.1 - Adopt a scientific approach to data collection, research and analysis and communicate results with clear, structured and sophisticated arguments
LO 2.2 - Display critical thinking and develop autonomous learning strategies and techniques
LO 3.1 - Apply quantitative and qualitative techniques to support data analysis using standard office and statistical software
LO 4.1. Work and communicate effectively as part of a team in an international and multicultural environment
LO 4.2. Demonstrate work ethics to foster corporate socially responsible conduct in workplace

Connaissances et compétences pré-requises ou co-requises

The pre-requisites for this course are:
MATH-S-201 Mathematics: multivariate function - 5 ECTS and STAT-S-202 Probability, statistical inferences and operations research - 10 ECTS or any
equivalents for students who have pursed their bachelor degree in another university.

Lectures, Exercises, Guest speakers, Group and individual assignments, Case studies, project. 

Références, bibliographie et lectures recommandées

Slides and readings provided on UV. 

Contacts

evelyne.vanpoucke@ulb.be

Campus

Solbosch

Méthode(s) d'évaluation

• Autre

Autre

Continuous assessment (includes participation and homeworks), group work, individual project, assessment

Construction de la note (en ce compris, la pondération des notes partielles)

The course evaluation will be based on the following components: 1. Final group project (40%), 2. Assignments (40%), 3. Individual assessment (20%). 

The grade for the group assignment will only be taken into account if a grade of > 7/20 is obtained for the individual assessment. 

If the grade for the individual assessment is =< 7/20, the individual assessment will account for 50% (instead of 20%).

Langue(s) d'évaluation

• anglais