Operations & Supply Chain Management Assignment Brief | University of Liverpool (UOL)

Assignment Brief: E-Commerce Supply Chain Efficiency

Word Limit:

3,000 words (+/–10%), excluding diagrams, references, and appendices.

Submission Requirements:

• Format: Word or PDF
• Length: Approximately 3,000 words
• Mandatory diagrams:
  o Gantt Chart (implementation roadmap)
  o Fishbone (Ishikawa) Diagram (root cause analysis)
  o Pareto Chart (impact prioritization)

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Case Context:

This assignment is based on the case study “E-Commerce Supply Chain Efficiency”, which examines operational inefficiencies within a rapidly growing online retail supply chain. The organization faces challenges in forecasting, inventory control, warehouse operations, and last-mile delivery, resulting in rising costs and customer dissatisfaction. Students are expected to analyze these issues and propose a structured improvement plan using recognized operations management tools.

Assignment Tasks:

1. Introduction (Approx. 300–400 words)
   a. Summarize the case context and the core efficiency challenges faced by the e-commerce company.
   b. State the purpose of your analysis and the frameworks you will use (Gantt, Fishbone, Pareto).
2. Current State and Problem Diagnosis (Approx. 800 words)
   a. Map the existing supply chain flow from order placement to customer delivery.
   b. Identify performance bottlenecks (e.g., demand forecasting, warehouse throughput, delivery performance, sustainability).
   c. Support the diagnosis with data from the case or relevant benchmarks.
   d. Develop a Fishbone Diagram highlighting the root causes of low efficiency across key dimensions: Inventory, Warehouse, Transportation, Technology, Process, People, and Sustainability.
3. Quantitative Prioritization (Approx. 500 words)
   a. Use a Pareto Chart to rank the most significant contributors to inefficiency (e.g., forecasting errors, delivery delays, warehouse design issues).
   b. Explain your assumptions and justify how the Pareto distribution reflects operational impact.
   c. Discuss which issues account for the “vital few” causes (top ~20%) that generate the majority of performance loss.
4. Improvement Plan and Implementation Roadmap (Approx. 900 words)
   a. Propose short-term and long-term interventions to improve efficiency.
   b. Design a Gantt Chart showing the sequence, duration, and interdependencies of improvement activities (e.g., data cleanup, warehouse re-slotting, forecasting model upgrade, pilot rollout).
   c. Explain the reasoning behind the sequencing, resource allocation, and pilot selection.
   d. Discuss change management and stakeholder engagement approaches.
5. Expected Impact and Evaluation (Approx. 300–400 words)
   a. Outline expected outcomes (lead time reduction, cost savings, improved OTIF).
   b. Define KPIs to monitor post-implementation performance.
   c. Mention any risks or limitations of your plan.
6. Conclusion (Approx. 100–200 words)
   a. Summarize the key insights and how your proposed interventions improve e-commerce supply chain efficiency sustainably.

Deliverables:

Your submission must include:

• A 3,000-word analytical report.
• Three embedded diagrams:
  o Fishbone Diagram – Root cause analysis.
  o Pareto Chart – Quantitative prioritization of issues.
  o Gantt Chart – Implementation timeline.
• Appropriate references (APA or Harvard style).

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