Foundation of Global Supply Chains

This four-module course delivers a rigorous, end-to-end mastery of modern supply chains—from foundational architecture to performance governance, network design, and coordination at scale. Beginning with first principles (value creation, surplus maximization, decision horizons, cycle and push–pull views), the course builds analytical fluency with the Supply–Demand Uncertainty Framework and strategic fit. Learners then elevate from theory to instrumentation: translating competitive priorities and order-winner/qualifier logic into channel-spanning KPIs using SCOR and the Balanced Scorecard. The journey advances to network design across manufacturing and services, quantifying cost–service trade-offs, inventory positioning, site selection, and optimization models (transportation, facility location, network flow, transshipment) with practical Solver implementations. Finally, the course treats coordination as a design problem of incentives, information, and governance—diagnosing bullwhip, deploying CPFR/VMI, and operationalizing visibility via control towers, RFID/IoT, and blockchain—under the realities of global heterogeneity and sustainability imperatives. The result is an executive-caliber capability to architect resilient, data-driven supply chains that align strategy with measurable performance and deliver superior customer promise at optimal total cost. This course is intended for management students and professionals aspiring to careers in supply chain management, logistics, operations, or procurement. To succeed in this course, you should have a basic understanding of operations management, quantitative methods, and analytical problem-solving. Upon completing this course, you will: 1. Conceptualize supply chains as integrated systems of value creation, flow, and surplus. 2. Apply strategic frameworks (cycle view, push–pull, uncertainty alignment, strategic fit) to design and evaluate supply chains. 3. Translate competitive priorities into channel-spanning performance metrics using SCOR and Balanced Scorecard frameworks. 4. Architect network structures that balance cost, responsiveness, risk, and sustainability through analytical modeling and scenario evaluation. 5. Diagnose and mitigate coordination failures (e.g., bullwhip effect) using collaborative mechanisms (CPFR, VMI) and governance levers. 6. Leverage emerging technologies (IoT, blockchain, control towers) to enhance supply chain visibility, integration, and resilience. 7. Critically assess global supply chain challenges across cultural, regulatory, and geopolitical contexts

• A system-level perspective of supply chains as strategic infrastructures, not just operational pipelines
• Tools to measure what matters: linking competitive advantage to quantifiable supply chain performance
• Frameworks and models to design resilient and cost-effective networks across manufacturing and services
• Approaches to coordinate and align global, fragmented supply chains, reducing distortion and inefficiency

• No deep prior experience is required, but basic computer and internet skills are helpful
• Ability to read course instructions in English and complete short practice activities