Gartner Announces Ranking of Top Asia Pacific Supply Chain Organizations for 2012
Global research and advisory firm Gartner, Inc. has revealed its annual ranking of the top supply chain organizations headquartered in Asia Pacific at its Supply Chain Executive Conference currently underway in Sydney, Australia.
The goal of the annual Gartner Supply Chain Top 25 research initiative is to raise awareness of the supply chain discipline and how it impacts business results. From the overall list of qualifying organizations, Gartner identified the top 15 performers headquartered in Asia Pacific, based on revenue growth, return on assets (ROA), inventory and peer opinion.
Of the top 15 supply chain companies from the Asia Pacific region, five are headquartered in Japan (Canon, Honda, Komatsu, Seven & I Holdings, Toyota), four in Korea (Hyundai, Hyundai Heavy Industries, LG, Samsung), two in China (Huawei and Lenovo), one in Australia (Woolworths), one in India (Tata Motors), one in Singapore (Flextronics) and one in Taiwan (ASUSTeK).
“While demand in Asia Pacific is growing, inflation, rising costs and a tightening labor market pose challenges for companies in the region,” said Vikas Sarangdhar, research director at Gartner. “Economic challenges in the rest of the world also amplify the risks, as a further sharp fall in exports to advanced economies and capital outflows would impact Asia both directly and through knock-on effects on domestic demand.”
Samsung still leads the Top 15 in Asia Pacific which is dominated by high tech, consumer electronics, automotive, retail and industrial products companies. Four companies entered the Asia Pacific listing for the first time in 2012. Most Japanese companies are still recovering from the natural and economic crises of 2011. These companies are now regaining their stability.
According to Gartner research director Debashis Tarafdar, Asia Pacific supply chain leaders have maintained momentum in the difficult economic environment by re-configuring their supply chains while staying focused on a demand-driven strategy.
“Companies leading the top supply chains in Asia Pacific have demonstrated capabilities in demand management, operational excellence and innovation,” said Mr. Tarafdar. “They are using best practices including demand sensing and shaping, segmentation and collaboration, to help manage demand volatility and deliver predictable results. To measure supply chain performance, they select the right metrics that are aligned to the company’s overall business objectives. They also build resiliency into supply network design, and implement risk management strategies across trading partner networks.”
Table 1: The 2012 Gartner Supply Chain Top 25: Asia Pacific
|
2012 APAC Rank |
2012 Overall Rank |
Company |
|
1 |
13 |
Samsung Electronics |
|
2 |
31 |
Hyundai Motor |
|
3 |
42 |
Tata Motors |
|
4 |
43 |
Lenovo Group |
|
5 |
45 |
Huawei Technologies |
|
6 |
57 |
Woolworths |
|
7 |
69 |
Toyota Motor |
|
8 |
76 |
ASUSTeK Computer |
|
9 |
81 |
Hyundai Heavy Industries |
|
10 |
94 |
Seven & I Holdings |
|
11 |
104 |
Honda Motor |
|
12 |
111 |
Canon |
|
13 |
116 |
LG Electronics |
|
14 |
118 |
Komatsu |
|
15 |
121 |
Flextronics International |
“Earlier this year we announced Gartner’s Global Supply Chain Top 25 but regional rankings help to capture issues and best practices that are unique to each region,” said Debra Hofman, managing vice president at Gartner.
Ms Hofman said there were a number of notable trends in Asia Pacific affecting supply chain leaders that included:
· A focus on growth and low-cost innovation.
· Growing but unpredictable demand with associated demand management challenges.
· Shifting supply bases that require supply chain redesign.
· Growth in intra region trade that helps to buffer global volatility.
· Rapid inflation, rising and volatile costs and tightening labor market that combine to pose increased risks.
Several supply chain leaders from this region did not make it into the Top 15 list this year because they did not receive enough votes. Notable mentions are Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Wilmar International and Wesfarmers. Some of these and other companies in Asia Pacific could enter the Global Supply Chain Top 25 in the future. Their success will depend on how well and how quickly they adopt and adapt global and local best practices to their context.