Effective supply chain management is critical for organizations, but even more so for the U.S. military.
With U.S. military forces stationed around the globe, strong military supply chain management is essential for providing the equipment, resources and supplies DOD troops need to fulfill their missions.
Consequently, skillful leaders are required to manage the complexities of the global military supply chain.
Poorly executed military campaigns due to ineffective military supply chain management fill history books. The Army likes to use the example of Napoleon Bonaparte in his Russian invasion of June 1812.
By the end of that year, Napoleon abandoned his campaign in a classic case study in the failed planning and execution of supply chain management.
After a summer and fall of campaigning through Russia, Napoleon’s army, starving and freezing, retreated during the harsh Russian winter because there was no supply chain capable of supporting them.
Essentially, the French planned a long-distance campaign focused on operational goals without considering the inherent challenges of establishing supply chains over vast geographical distances.
Today, the DoD’s supply chain is made up of over 365,000 suppliers who are mainly commercial entities. Military supply chain management is a cross-functional approach to procuring, producing and delivering products and services for military materiel applications. Military supply chain management includes sub-suppliers, suppliers, internal information and funds flow.
With so many third-part entities involved with military supply chain management, cybersecurity protections have had to be especially strong. In fact, DoD suppliers are required to have a cybersecurity program because military supply chain companies are persistently under attack in an attempt to extract defense information.
Want to learn more? Tonex offers Military Supply Chain Management Training Boot Camp, a 2-day course that covers techniques and challenges of military supply chain management.
Participants learn about the similarities and differences between civil and military supply chain management. Attendees also learn what it takes to hone the specific skills required to have success in military supply chain management.
Military Supply Chain Management Training Boot Camp helps participants better understand the military supply chain arena as well as learn current military supply chain management techniques.
For more information, questions, comments, contact us.