SCM Interactive Dashboard
From shared data to coordinated action
Explore how Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Supply Chain Management (SCM) software support integration, visibility and responsiveness.
MediCare Pharmacy Distribution
MediCare supplies 12 pharmacies from a central warehouse. Demand for a fast-selling medicine rises unexpectedly. Store sales, warehouse stock, purchasing and supplier updates must be coordinated to avoid shortages.
Your role: Compare three information environments under the same business conditions and explain the differences to the operations manager.
A small transaction, many connections
A store sells 10 packs. With ERP, the sale can update inventory and accounting records and inform purchasing. Connected SCM planning can use this signal to revise replenishment and coordinate with suppliers.
Fictional case. Actual ERP and SCM product capabilities overlap and depend on implementation.1. Configure the demand shock
2. Select the information environment
3. Follow the information
4. Performance dashboard
Illustrative model outputs for the selected environment
What happened?
Managerial decision
5. Compare identical conditions
| Environment | Fulfilment | Accuracy assumption | Decision delay | Pressure score |
|---|
Teaching model only: these figures are synthetic, not measured business results, validated forecasts or stockout probabilities. Better outcomes for integrated systems are built into the assumptions; they are not evidence that software alone guarantees improvement.
View assumptions and calculation rules
Let D = demand increase in percentage points, L = supplier lead time in days and S = starting stock in units. Pressure input P = 0.35D + 3L − min(25, S/40).
| Mode | Fulfilment (%) | Accuracy (%) | Delay (hours) | Pressure score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Disconnected | 82 − 0.18P | 78 | 18 + 0.7L | 42 + 0.45P |
| ERP | 94 − 0.10P | 96 | 3.5 + 0.2L | 22 + 0.28P |
| ERP + SCM | 98 − 0.055P | 98 | 1 + 0.08L | 9 + 0.16P |
Fulfilment is capped at 55–99%; pressure score at 4–90. Accuracy is a fixed assumption by environment. Displayed percentages and scores are rounded; delay uses one decimal. Recommendation thresholds use the unrounded score: above 45 = urgent escalation; above 25 = review replenishment; otherwise = planned replenishment.
This simple sensitivity exercise does not model daily inventory balances, actual demand volumes, costs, supplier capacity, expiry, implementation expense or data-quality failures. Lead time remains the selected value: information integration does not remove physical transport time.
6. Classroom challenge · 10 minutes
- In groups, select Demand surge. Predict which functions will need the sales information.
- Run the simulation and compare all three environments. Explain each difference using information sharing and coordination.
- Select Supplier disruption. Can reliable information overcome a physical supply constraint by itself?
- Recommend one internal integration action and one supplier coordination action.
Reveal teaching answer
ERP: A shared transaction base helps sales, inventory, purchasing and finance work from consistent records, reducing duplicate entry and reconciliation delays.
SCM software: Supply-chain planning and execution capabilities can connect demand signals with replenishment, supplier collaboration and logistics visibility. The distinction is functional; ERP suites may include SCM modules.
Integration: Timely, accurate data can enable earlier decisions, but performance also depends on staff, process design, supplier capacity and execution. During disruption, managers may need alternative sourcing, allocation or safety stock.
Sample actions: Link POS sales to warehouse inventory and purchasing; share replenishment forecasts and obtain supplier capacity commitments.