CSCP Introduction 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which technology enables automatic identification and tracking of supply chain assets using radio frequency signals without line-of-sight scanning?
- Barcode scanning (1D/2D)
- RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) (Correct answer)
- EDI (Electronic Data Interchange)
- GPS satellite tracking
Correct answer: RFID (Radio Frequency Identification)
RFID tags communicate with readers via radio waves, enabling automatic, non-line-of-sight identification of goods, pallets, and assets throughout the supply chain.
Question 2: The concept of 'supply chain resilience' primarily focuses on:
- Minimizing all supply chain costs to the absolute lowest level
- The ability to anticipate, adapt to, and recover from disruptions while maintaining service levels (Correct answer)
- Eliminating all inventory from the supply chain
- Increasing the number of suppliers for every purchased item
Correct answer: The ability to anticipate, adapt to, and recover from disruptions while maintaining service levels
Supply chain resilience is the capacity to prepare for unexpected events, respond to disruptions, and recover to normal operations with minimal impact on performance.
Question 3: What is the key difference between 'efficiency' and 'effectiveness' in supply chain management?
- Efficiency is measured in dollars; effectiveness is measured in units
- Efficiency is doing things right (minimizing resources); effectiveness is doing the right things (achieving goals) (Correct answer)
- Effectiveness applies only to manufacturing; efficiency applies only to logistics
- There is no meaningful difference — the terms are interchangeable
Correct answer: Efficiency is doing things right (minimizing resources); effectiveness is doing the right things (achieving goals)
Efficiency focuses on optimizing resource use (doing things right), while effectiveness focuses on achieving the desired customer and business outcomes (doing the right things).
Question 4: Which supply chain strategy involves designing products with common components or platforms to serve multiple market segments while customizing only the final configuration?
- Make-to-Order (MTO)
- Mass customization through modular design (Correct answer)
- Engineer-to-Order (ETO)
- Continuous replenishment
Correct answer: Mass customization through modular design
Mass customization using modular design allows companies to offer variety to customers by combining standardized components in different configurations, balancing efficiency with flexibility.
Question 5: In supply chain risk management, 'supply chain mapping' is typically followed by which next step?
- Immediately outsourcing all identified risk nodes
- Risk assessment — evaluating the likelihood and impact of disruptions at mapped nodes (Correct answer)
- Eliminating all single-source suppliers at once
- Publishing the supply chain map on the company website
Correct answer: Risk assessment — evaluating the likelihood and impact of disruptions at mapped nodes
After mapping the supply chain to identify all nodes and links, the next step is to assess each node's risk by evaluating the probability and potential impact of disruptions.
Question 6: What does 'order penetration point' (OPP) define in supply chain design?
- The geographic location where a customer places an order
- The point in the supply chain process where a product is linked to a specific customer order (Correct answer)
- The number of orders required before a supplier offers volume discounts
- The moment a sales order is entered into the ERP system
Correct answer: The point in the supply chain process where a product is linked to a specific customer order
The OPP (also called the customer order decoupling point) is where the supply chain transitions from forecast-driven (push) to demand-driven (pull) operations.
Question 7: A company uses the 'Kraljic Matrix' in its procurement strategy. What does this tool primarily help categorize?
- Warehouse storage locations by SKU velocity
- Purchased items by supply risk and profit impact to prioritize sourcing strategies (Correct answer)
- Supplier performance scores on a quality matrix
- Customer segments by order frequency and revenue
Correct answer: Purchased items by supply risk and profit impact to prioritize sourcing strategies
The Kraljic Matrix classifies purchased items into four quadrants (leverage, strategic, non-critical, bottleneck) based on supply risk and profit impact to guide sourcing strategy.
CSCP Introduction 5
Which technology enables automatic identification and tracking of supply chain assets using radio frequency signals without line-of-sight scanning?