The 7 Cs of Supply Chain Management: Practices for Profitable Growth

Abstract

Companies increasingly realise that the strength of supply chain management not only lies in cost reductions and efficiency improvements, but also in driving profitable growth. We identify, based on the literature, the ‘7 Cs of supply chain management': Connect, Create, Customise, Coordinate, Consolidate, Collaborate and Contribute. These ‘7 Cs' are essential categories of supply chain practices that help companies grow by offering new, different, more and better products and services to (potentially new) markets. Case research in 16 European companies provided evidence of all except one practice (Contribute), thus illustrating the strategic importance of supply chain management.