RC TOM Challenge 2017

November 15, 2017

Read The Full Prompt

The TOM Challenge provides an opportunity for students to learn more about supply chain management by exploring how organizations are grappling with some megatrends: climate change, digitalization, and the growing influence of isolationist political movements on international trade policies.  These 700-800 word essays should address four questions:

  1. Why is (or should) your particular aspect of one of these megatrends be of concern to the management of the organization you have selected?
  2. What is the organization’s management doing to address this concern in the short term (the next two years) and the medium term (3–10 years out)?
  3. What other steps do you recommend the organization’s management take to address this concern in the short and medium terms?
  4. What are one or two important open questions related to this concern in the context of the organization you selected that you are unsure about, which merit comments from your classmates?

When posting your essay to Open Knowledge, be sure to enter “Climate change”, “Digitalization”, or “Isolationism” in the Topics field.

More details on research, sourcing, deadlines, and other matters are provided in the RC TOM Challenge: 2017 note.  For assistance with the Open Knowledge platform during business hours (9:00 am – 5:00 pm M-F), email openknowledge@hbs.edu. A short video with instructions on how to post an essay to this platform is available at https://goo.gl/yyXK2H.

Submitted (924)

Retail’s role in eliminating Global Food Waste
Christina
Last modified on November 15, 2017 at 9:52 pm
An estimated one third of food produced for human consumption goes to waste; and you might be surprised by the amount of carbon emissions this waste emits. Tesco, a British multinational grocer, is leading the retail industry in an attempt [...]
Victoria, Don’t Keep a Sustainable Supply Chain Story a Secret
Marie Caligiuri
Last modified on November 15, 2017 at 10:51 pm
Victoria's Secret has an opportunity to double down on a more sustainable supply chain while catering to changing consumer preferences
SV Agri – Consolidating India’s Potato Supply Chain
Diti
Last modified on November 15, 2017 at 10:49 pm
Indian agriculture industry is segmented, scattered and primitive. SV Agri is a promising new start-up that is building to streamline the potato supply chain in India. But how should they incorporate climate change in the services that they offer?
Digital Transformation at LabCorp
James Arnold
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 2:40 am
Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (LabCorp) provides diagnostic solutions and drug development solutions in approximately 60 countries. Its diagnostics subsidiary, LabCorp Diagnostics, provides over 4,800 different testing options and accounts for approximately 70% of the parent company’s revenues. In the [...]
Kellogg’s Leadership in Fighting Climate Change
DGessese
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 10:44 pm
Kellogg is committed to reducing GHG emissions in its supply chain to prevent long term costs of climate change-driven disruption and cost inflation
Department store woes? Nordstrom responds with digital supply chain innovation
JC
Last modified on November 14, 2017 at 2:51 pm
To seize new opportunities and respond to industry-wide threats, Nordstrom is investing in the digitalization of its supply chain
Using Software Tools to “Remodel” Home Depot’s Supply Chain
HBS 2019
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 7:42 pm
This post explores how Home Depot is using advanced software to evolve its supply chain in order to increase efficiency and better serve its customers.
Leading by example: Firewire Surfboards & global climate change
Jack
Last modified on November 15, 2017 at 8:00 pm
Passion can be a powerful tool for change, and surfers have a strong incentive to protect their sport...
Don’t count your chickens before they hatch: The impact of US-China international trade relations on the Georgia chicken industry
MZ Hammer
Posted on November 14, 2017 at 6:06 pm
Earlier this year, Yuxi city seized 19 tons of smuggled chicken feet[1], a popular dish or snack in China. China was the largest US export market for chicken and chicken parts in the late 2000’s and the demand has since [...]
Unilever and Brexit: How isolationist political movements impact supply chain decisions
niv
Posted on November 12, 2017 at 5:39 pm
Brexit introduced much uncertainty into Unilever's supply chain, and is already impacting strategic decisions. The extent of the impact hinges on the ultimate form that Brexit will take.
Ben & Jerry’s Should Be More Cocoa for Cocoa Sustainability
John Pettifred
Last modified on November 15, 2017 at 6:31 pm
Rising temperatures may support demand for Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, but climate change poses a serious threat to the company’s cocoa supply chain.
Could Ocean Acidification Take Oysters off the Menu and Destroy a Billion Dollar Industry?
Matija Pecotic
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 5:45 pm
Ocean Acidification is killing oyster larvae and threatening the future of the shellfish industry. How will oyster farmers react?
Digital Pork: Bringing Blockchain to Wal-Mart China’s Supply Chain
Boston379
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 7:03 pm
How can Wal-Mart China improve its food supply chain with the blockchain?
Starbucks: How to Save Our Coffee from Climate Change
Coffee Lover
Posted on November 13, 2017 at 3:16 pm
Do not ever take your cup of coffee for granted
Gap: Making Supply Chain Fashionable
Steve Hopper
Last modified on November 11, 2017 at 10:38 am
Inspired by Zara, Gap Inc. has undergone a digital transformation in their supply chain to reduce product development and distribution lead times, thus enabling Gap to be more responsive to customer preferences. Early financial results seem promising, but are uneven [...]
Black Box Personalization and Fragmentation of the Facebook News Supply
mark_z
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 5:31 pm
As Facebook has improved their news content supply chain via sophisticated machine learning recommendation algorithms, they have enabled an internet where we are rarely subjected to contradictory viewpoints.
Military Technology, Conflict Minerals, and the Risks of International Segmentation
Damir Ljuboja
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 12:50 pm
How a defense technology giant is bearing the weight of political, legal, and ethical pressures to cleanse its global supply chain.
Disrupting the education supply chain – can digitalization overhaul the K-12 factory?
Azeez Gupta
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 11:00 pm
Digitalization is flipping education on its head after more than 200 years.
“Unpacking the Effects of Brexit on one of Europe’s Largest Paper & Packaging Businesses: The Smurfit Kappa Group.”
Darius
Posted on November 14, 2017 at 4:46 pm
Brexit's impact on UK manufacturing is so significant that it is even impacting one of the most basic and commoditized industries; pulp & paper. Learn more about one of the biggest paper & packaging players - the Smurfit Kappa Group [...]
Climate change, food security, and General Mills
StarP
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 5:41 pm
In the face of climate change, food manufacturers like General Mills must transform their supply chains. Our future and food security depends on it.
General Mills UK and the Potential Impact of Brexit on the Dairy Industry
Luke
Last modified on November 14, 2017 at 11:05 pm
As Brexit looms, the dairy industries of the UK and EU-27 are concerned with potentially huge WTO tariffs, but how might this also affect General Mills's French produced Haagen-Dazs and Yoplait?
The European Truck Platooning Challenge: Transforming Europe’s Road Transport on Autopilot
Johannes De Turck
Last modified on November 15, 2017 at 3:57 pm
Flanders and the European Commission are taking important steps in using digital to reduce the carbon footprint of road transport. The European Truck Platooning Challenge provides an inspiring case in point.
Bureau of Land Management Deals with Climate Change – “Regulate with Data and Care”
OpXYL
Posted on November 12, 2017 at 5:08 pm
"We will lift the restrictions on American energy, and allow this wealth to pour into our communities. It’s all upside: more jobs, more revenues, more wealth, higher wages, and lower energy prices." - President Trump
How climate change could make your favorite beer less refreshing
Lauren McNamer
Posted on November 14, 2017 at 5:17 pm
Water accounts for about 95% of the composition of beer, and it is also a crucial agricultural input for barley and hops. Given this significance, water supply risk mitigation should be a major focus for the Brewers Association and their [...]
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