The AMR Research Supply Chain Top 25 for 2005 report was published on November 8, 2005. QAD is proud to have five customers listed among the Top 25 supply chain performers and two customers listed as honorable mentions:

• Johnson & Johnson
• Johnson Controls
• Anheuser-Busch
• PepsiCo
• Coca-Cola
• Honorable mentions: Nissan and Hewlett-Packard

The balance of the AMR Top 25 list is made up of familiar names in supply chain excellence like Dell, Toyota , Proctor & Gamble, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Motorola and Cisco. A newcomer to this year's list is Samsung Electronics. The list represents a wide range of verticals including consumer products, electronics, retail and automotive. No industrial or life sciences companies made the Top 25 this year.

To come up with the list, AMR conducted an exhaustive analysis of supply chain metrics like perfect order rate, total supply chain costs and demand forecast accuracy. Product innovation success, measured in terms of time to value, was also considered. A detailed look at financial data revealed the current profitability of a business and its prospects for future growth. Revenue growth, net income, return on assets and inventory turnover are examples of the types of financial benchmarks used to determine supply chain success.

Well-known for their leadership in espousing Demand-Driven Supply Networks (DDSN), AMR analyzed a wide range of companies and systematically verified how well these companies utilized DDSN methodologies in areas such as business process, organization, measurement, continuous improvement and technology.

Sharing joint metrics and common processes between supply, demand and product stakeholders was a key indicator of a demand-driven focus. Having timely information to shape and influence demand as well engaging the supply network was also a major success factor. Companies who embrace a DDSN strategy also have tight collaboration internally with employees and externally with suppliers and customers. By actively monitoring performance, refining response through simulations, having a common set of goals and truly understanding the customer, companies in the Top 25 are clearly embracing DDSN methods.  

With DDSN, demand and supply variation of the company and its competitors is understood, monitored and used as a competitive weapon in driving and shaping demand as well as in executing new product launch activities. By reducing time to value for new product introductions, shrinking forecast error and improving perfect order rates, the companies on AMR's Top 25 list are managing margins and improving profitability though supply chain excellence and DDSN.

For more information, please refer to the original research report The AMR Research Supply Chain Top 25 for 2005 published on November 8, 2005 by Tony Friscia, Kevin O'Marah, and Joe Souza of AMR Research.