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Meanwhile, replenishment analysts were assigned the responsibility to manage supplier collaboration process, purchasing, and store replenishment. The formation of cross-functional teams between the two departments resulted in improved information sharing between the departments.
Furthermore, company also fostered close collaboration between planning and replenishment team with logistics team to improve the delivery of goods and services to the customer. The collaboration between various team resulted in more usage of standardized packs which resulted in cost saving.

Survival Strategy in the Liberalized, Privatized, Global Market Place

The cross-functional team approach fostered the enterprise wide thinking approach. Then, West Marine decided to implement buyer driven forecast. The buyer driven forecast to be effective requires close collaboration with its channel partners namely supplier and retailers. For example, if the suppliers order cycle is six weeks and the demand changes occur within two weeks, demand will be satisfied only if there's sufficient excess stock in the supply chain to cover the new demand. West Marine understood that key to effective demand forecast is to establish trust and bonding with the suppliers. The company in order to foster close cooperation with its suppliers guaranteed the forecast purchase of materials and services.

West Marine also incorporated promotional events well in advance in the forecasting process to enable the suppliers to fulfill them. This coupled with other activities such as quarterly supplier meeting, sharing of best practice of West Marine in terms of Forecasting and Supply Chain Summit led to closer cooperation with it suppliers. In addition, West Marine laid stress on collaborating with cross functional team from the vendor side also to remove the silo mindset in the supplier firm.

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* Contributed by: -
Uppili. R,
Alumnus of Great Lakes Institute of Management & M.A. (Economics) from Madras University,
Currently working as Research Analyst at Vistasoft India Private Limited.