The centralization of the replenishment process for direct suppliers on behalf of dm drogerie Markt GmbH

  • Veronika Kalkgruber

Student thesis: Master's Thesis

Abstract

Many companies raise nowadays concerns about centralization and decentralization. On the one hand, the business units are able to respond to challenges directly on-site and are not dependent on any central unit. On the other hand, many disadvantages come along with decentralization as the control mechanism is reduced, and the bullwhip effect permeates the entire supply chain. Many research papers suggest subsequently centralization of replenishment and procurement processes; however, the advantages and disadvantages have not been explored in comparison. Moreover, switching from a decentralized to a centralized replenishment process has not been identified so far and existing literature reports have not yet outlined the most important key actors and activities. The thesis aims, therefore, at exploring the advantages and disadvantages of a centralized and decentralized replenishment process. In addition to that, the key players and activities are identified by modeling a potential replenishment process according to BMPN 2.0. Secondary findings are withdrawn from high qualitative data as journals and articles. Primary findings rely on the process interviews and workshops that were conducted with employees of dm drogerie Markt GmbH. Five interviews have been held to analyze the current replenishment process and establish a potential process to answer the identified research gap. It has been discovered that the advantages of centralization outweigh the advantages of decentralization. Key factors such as eliminating the bullwhip effect and increasing supply chain control to become more resilient are significant reasons for a switchover. Moreover, the marketing and purchasing, transportation, and warehouse departments are the main internal stakeholders. The supplier's position is raised and requires closer cooperation in the future, from an external point of view. Key tasks as from listing new articles up to recording article deliveries are among the main tasks of all key players in the future. This research paper is, however, limited to the retail sector. Therefore, it is recommended that other business sectors are investigated further, and the potential replenishment process is tested to incorporate the feedback and the learnings accordingly.
Date of Award2024
Original languageEnglish
SupervisorWerner König (Supervisor)

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