Strategic management
1. Critically assess the advantages Zara gain against the competition by having a very responsive supply chain?
· Define Supply chain management
· Provide examples from the case study of Zara’s supply chain
· Define a responsive supply chain and its importance to Zara.
· Define competitive advantage using Porters’ five forces model
· Identify some of Zara’s competitors in the retail industry
· Analyses the importance of competitive strategy
· Explain how a responsive supply chain supports Zara’s competitive advantage
· Identify Zara’s advantages over its competitors from the case study.
2. Provide a critically analysis of why Inditex has chosen to have both in-house manufacturing and outsourced manufacturing and why it has maintained manufacturing capacity in Europe even though manufacturing in Asia is much cheaper.
· Based on the case study provide a very brief introduction to Inditex
· Define and explain in-house manufacturing
· Analyse the importance of in-house manufacturing
· Define and explain outsource manufacturing
· Analyse the importance of outsource manufacturing
· Provide evidence from the case study explaining why the company chose to use both in-house and outsource manufacturing and whether this is a good idea.
· Provide evidence from the case explaining why the company maintained manufacturing capacity in Europe even though manufacturing in Asia is much cheaper. How does this decision affect the organisation?
3 Analyse why Zara source products with uncertain demand from local manufacturers and products with predictable demand from Asian manufacturers.
· Define and analyse uncertain demand addressing its impact on the supply chain
· Identify from the case study reasons why Zara sourced products with uncertain demand from local manufactures. Discuss if this is a good idea.
· Define and analyse predictable demand and its impact on the supply chain
· Identify from the case study reasons why Zara sourced products with predictable demand from its Asian manufacturers and discuss the reasoning behind this idea.
4 Critically analyse the advantage Zara gain from replenishing its stores multiple times a weeks compared with a less frequent schedule.
· Define and explain supply Chain strategy and flexible supply chain
· Provide examples of supply chain strategy used in organisations.
· Analyse why it is important for Zara to replenish its stores multiple times a week compared with less frequent schedule. Explain the difference between the two and link your answers to the company’s business strategy.
· Explain how technology supports Zara’s ability to use the multiple times replenishment strategy.
· Define and analyse supply chain management systems and their importance to the management of supply chains.
· Analyse the advantages Zara gained from the multiple times replenishment strategy.
5 Provide a critical analysis of whether or not you think Zara’s responsive replenishment infrastructure is better suited for online sales or retail sales.
· From the case study identify Zara’s responsive replenishment infrastructure
· Analyse the benefits of online sales to the retail industry and Zara.
· Link the responsive replenishment infrastructure to online sales
· Link the responsive replenishment infrastructure to retail sales
· Analyse whether or not you feel the responsive replenishment infrastructure is best suited for online sales, retails sales or both.