Understand the business environment where supply chain visibility becomes essential and discover how organizations manage complex networks involving suppliers, manufacturers, and distribution channels.

Build a strong foundation by exploring the techniques and concepts used to map supply chains, including process flows, supply chain tiers, network structures, and visibility mechanisms.

In this case study, you will explore how organizations use supply chain mapping techniques to create a clear view of their end-to-end supply network. Modern supply chains often involve multiple suppliers, manufacturing facilities, transportation channels, and distribution points, making it difficult to maintain visibility across the entire process. Through this case study, you will understand how businesses map the movement of materials, information, and processes to identify inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and potential risks. You will also learn how effective supply chain mapping supports better planning, improves collaboration among stakeholders, and enables organizations to make more informed strategic decisions. This session provides practical exposure to how visibility and structured mapping contribute to building stronger and more resilient supply chains.

What will you learn?

• Understand the purpose and importance of supply chain mapping in business operations.

• Learn different techniques used to map supply chain networks and process flows.

• Identify bottlenecks, dependencies, and potential risk areas within the supply chain.

• Understand how visibility improves coordination and operational efficiency.

• Analyze how supply chain mapping supports better strategic and operational decision-making.

Step into a business scenario where forecasting demand becomes more complex than simply analyzing past sales. This lecture introduces the importance of understanding the underlying factors that influence demand and their impact on planning decisions.

Develop an understanding of important concepts involved in causal analysis, including demand drivers, external variables, market influences, promotional impact, and relationships between business factors and demand patterns.

Learn how real supply chain decisions impact business performance through a practical, data-driven coffee chain case study.

In this course, you’ll step into the role of a supply chain manager at Mug Life, a growing chain of coffee stores, and tackle two critical challenges—SKU consolidation and centralized distribution. You’ll explore how simple operational changes, like introducing a common cup lid or setting up a distribution center, can significantly reduce costs and improve efficiency.

Using real demand data, you’ll understand how to structure, analyze, and interpret demand across time, location, and product levels. The course breaks down complex concepts like demand variability, forecasting limitations, and inventory planning into easy, practical steps. You’ll also learn how companies use risk pooling to reduce uncertainty and optimize inventory.

What you’ll learn:

• How to analyze demand patterns using real datasets

• Understanding variability, standard deviation, and coefficient of variation

• Practical application of demand planning and forecasting concepts

• Risk pooling and its impact on inventory reduction

• How to calculate safety stock and cycle service levels

• Impact of SKU and location consolidation on supply chain efficiency

• How to simulate “what-if” scenarios for better decision-making

Who this is for:
MBA students, aspiring supply chain professionals, operations managers, and anyone looking to build strong, practical SCM skills.

Build a strong foundation in demand and inventory planning—enroll now and start making smarter supply chain decisions.

This session addresses learner queries related to the case study and provides additional explanations for better understanding.

Examine a business scenario where organizations face challenges in forecasting demand across multiple products, regions, or customer segments. This lecture introduces how aggregation can influence forecasting outcomes and planning effectiveness.

Understand the core concepts associated with demand aggregation, including forecast levels, variability reduction, aggregation effects, planning hierarchy, and their influence on decision-making accuracy.

In this case study, you will explore how the level at which demand data is grouped or aggregated can significantly influence forecasting accuracy and planning decisions. Organizations often manage demand across different products, regions, channels, and customer categories, making forecasting a complex process. Aggregating data can help reduce variability and reveal broader demand patterns, while also impacting the level of detail available for decision-making. Through this case study, you will understand how businesses evaluate the trade-offs between detailed and aggregated forecasting approaches to improve planning efficiency and support better supply chain performance.

What will you learn?

• Understand the concept and importance of aggregation in demand planning.

• Learn how aggregation affects forecasting accuracy and variability.

• Identify the benefits and limitations of different aggregation levels.

• Analyze the relationship between data grouping and planning effectiveness.

• Understand how aggregation supports improved decision-making and demand forecasting.

This session addresses learner queries related to the case study and provides additional explanations for better understanding.

Explore a business situation where traditional forecasting approaches are no longer sufficient to handle dynamic market conditions and changing customer demands. This lecture introduces the role of technology in improving demand planning efficiency and accuracy.

Gain an understanding of the technologies and concepts that support modern demand planning, including data analytics, forecasting systems, automation, artificial intelligence, and real-time decision-making capabilities.

Technology has transformed the way organizations plan and forecast demand by enabling faster analysis, improved visibility, and more accurate decision-making. In this case study, you will explore how businesses leverage technology to strengthen their demand planning processes and respond effectively to changing market conditions. Organizations today use advanced tools such as data analytics platforms, forecasting systems, automation, and intelligent technologies to reduce forecasting errors and improve operational efficiency. Through this case study, you will understand how technological capabilities can help organizations predict demand patterns more effectively, support strategic planning, and create more responsive supply chains.

What will you learn?

• Understand the role of technology in modern demand planning processes.

• Learn how analytics and forecasting tools improve demand accuracy.

• Identify the impact of automation and data-driven decision-making.

• Explore how technology enhances visibility and responsiveness.

• Understand how organizations use digital solutions to improve planning efficiency and business performance.

This session addresses learner queries related to the case study and provides additional explanations for better understanding.

Examine a business scenario where organizations need a deeper understanding of logistics expenses and cost drivers to improve operational performance. This lecture introduces the importance of breaking down costs to support better planning and decision-making.

Explore the key concepts related to first-principles thinking in logistics, including cost components, transportation expenses, warehousing costs, resource utilization, and cost-driver analysis.

In this case study, you will explore how organizations use a first-principles approach to analyze and understand logistics costs at a fundamental level. Instead of viewing logistics expenses as a single aggregated value, businesses often break them down into individual cost components such as transportation, warehousing, labor, packaging, inventory carrying costs, and operational activities. This approach helps organizations identify the root causes of inefficiencies and uncover opportunities for optimization. Through this case study, you will learn how a structured cost analysis framework supports better planning, cost control, and more informed business decisions within supply chain operations.

What will you learn?

• Understand the concept of first-principles thinking in logistics planning.

• Learn how logistics costs can be broken down into individual components.

• Identify key cost drivers across logistics operations.

• Analyze inefficiencies and opportunities for cost optimization.

• Understand how detailed cost analysis supports strategic decision-making and operational improvement.

This session addresses learner queries related to the case study and provides additional explanations for better understanding.

Explore a business setting where organizations need to ensure that products move efficiently across different stages of the supply chain. This lecture introduces the importance of planning product movement to support operational efficiency and customer requirements.

Gain an understanding of important concepts related to product flow optimization, including material movement, network design, transportation planning, inventory coordination, and process efficiency.

In this case study, you will examine how organizations optimize the flow of products across their supply chain networks to improve efficiency and reduce operational costs. Managing the movement of products from suppliers to manufacturing facilities, warehouses, and customers requires careful planning and coordination. Inefficient product flow can result in delays, increased costs, excess inventory, and reduced customer satisfaction. Through this case study, you will understand how businesses analyze and improve product movement strategies to streamline operations, enhance resource utilization, and achieve better supply chain performance.

What will you learn?

• Understand the importance of product flow optimization in logistics planning.

• Learn how product movement affects supply chain efficiency.

• Identify factors influencing transportation and inventory decisions.

• Analyze methods used to improve operational flow and reduce inefficiencies.

• Understand how optimized product movement supports cost reduction and service performance.

Enter a business environment where unexpected disruptions, changing market conditions, and operational challenges can impact logistics performance. This lecture introduces the importance of managing uncertainty and maintaining smooth logistics operations.

Learn the essential concepts involved in managing logistics uncertainty, including risk identification, demand fluctuations, supply disruptions, contingency planning, flexibility, and responsiveness strategies.

In this case study, you will explore how organizations manage logistics operations in environments characterized by uncertainty and constant change. Factors such as fluctuating customer demand, transportation delays, supply disruptions, economic shifts, and unexpected events can create significant challenges for logistics management. Businesses must develop strategies that improve flexibility, visibility, and responsiveness to minimize disruptions and maintain service levels. Through this case study, you will understand how organizations identify risks, adapt to changing conditions, and make informed decisions to ensure efficient movement of goods while maintaining operational performance.

What will you learn?

• Understand the impact of uncertainty on logistics operations.

• Learn how organizations identify and manage logistics-related risks.

• Explore strategies for improving flexibility and responsiveness.

• Analyze the effects of disruptions on transportation and supply networks.

• Understand approaches used to maintain efficiency and service performance under uncertain conditions.

This session addresses learner queries related to the case study and provides additional explanations for better understanding.

Explore a logistics scenario where goods move through intermediate locations before reaching their final destination. This lecture introduces the role of transshipment in improving distribution efficiency and managing complex supply networks.

Understand the important concepts associated with transshipment, including transportation networks, distribution nodes, routing decisions, inventory movement, and cost-service trade-offs.

In this case study, you will examine how organizations use transshipment strategies to optimize the movement of goods across supply chain networks. Rather than transporting products directly from the source to the final destination, businesses often route shipments through intermediate facilities or distribution points to improve efficiency and reduce costs. Effective transshipment decisions can help organizations balance inventory levels, improve service performance, and make better use of transportation resources. Through this case study, you will understand how businesses evaluate routing and distribution decisions while managing trade-offs between cost, speed, and operational efficiency.

What will you learn?

• Understand the concept and purpose of transshipment in supply chain networks.

• Learn how intermediate distribution points improve logistics efficiency.

• Identify factors influencing transshipment and routing decisions.

• Analyze trade-offs between transportation costs and service levels.

• Understand how transshipment strategies support better supply chain performance.

Discover a delivery scenario where businesses face the challenge of transporting products efficiently from distribution centers to customers. This lecture introduces the importance of last-mile delivery and the operational challenges associated with route planning.

Explore the essential concepts related to the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP), including route optimization, distance minimization, delivery sequencing, cost efficiency, and resource utilization.

In this case study, you will explore how businesses optimize last-mile delivery operations using concepts related to the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP). Last-mile delivery is one of the most critical and costly stages of the supply chain, as organizations need to ensure timely deliveries while minimizing transportation expenses. The challenge lies in determining the most efficient route that allows deliveries to multiple locations with the least possible travel distance or cost. Through this case study, you will understand how route optimization techniques help organizations improve delivery efficiency, reduce operational costs, and enhance customer service performance.

What will you learn?

• Understand the importance of last-mile delivery in supply chain operations.

• Learn the fundamentals of the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP).

• Identify factors affecting route optimization decisions.

• Analyze how optimized routes reduce time and transportation costs.

• Understand how efficient delivery planning improves customer satisfaction and operational performance.

This session addresses learner queries related to the case study and provides additional explanations for better understanding.