P&G Supply Chain Strategist Gives a Lesson in Brand IP
March 16, 2009 - How does a supply chain strategist think about brand intellectual property? We asked the top supply chain executive at one of the world's most respected brand owners about this topic: Keith Harrison, global product supply officer at Procter & Gamble (P&G), the $83 billion global consumer goods company.
What would you say is the most important job product supply has when it comes to fulfilling Procter & Gamble's brand promise to consumers?
Harrison: Well, there are several that vie for top billing, including the classic supply chain metrics of cost, quality and availability. Maybe most important, though, is our ability to support innovation. Innovation is our lifeblood, and a supply chain that can't handle the drumbeat of innovation would be a competitive disadvantage and a letdown to our consumers.
What downstream data does supply chain have access to that can influence brand development? How well do other functions (especially marketing) appreciate this demand data?
Harrison: Point-of-sale (POS) data, inventory, shelf availability data; these are all available broadly. Marketing certainly appreciates this data, but, in particular on the innovation front, real-time POS data from initially after launch allows us to validate assumptions about variants' appeal to consumers. Collaboration with marketing allows us to understand and use all this downstream data, but the variant-split POS data is key for successful innovation.
How can supply chain influence the success or failure of brand extensions, promotions, or customer-specific initiatives?
Harrison: Close collaboration with the R&D folks on design of products and processes is what allows us to bring out tangible products. Our work on agility is giving us the ability to manage a huge innovation portfolio. At a minimum, we must avoid being on the critical path; ideally, we're an enabler to innovation. The flexibility to be able to differentiate without dramatically increasing costs is important. If all you do is bolt on to the existing supply chain, you can't succeed. You need to rethink supply chain design to anticipate needs down the road and build capabilities for the future. That is the idea behind our 2015 design project.
Are there any other important lessons you have learned about building, monetizing, or protecting IP in the global supply chain?
Harrison: One thing I've learned with our work on CDSN (Consumer-Driven Supply Networks) is that monetizing supply chain capability is impossible alone. Whether upstream with R&D on process development or downstream with the customer organization, it takes a team. Also, it takes a focus on capability development bringing specific nuts and bolts tools to the party with a long-term vision of where you're headed. It's also important to recognize that if you're not moving forward, you're moving backward. The constant dissatisfaction with the status quo is essential today.
Click here to read this interview in its entirety and find out more about intellectual property at P&G and the role of supply chain.