APICS metamorphoses into the Assn for Supply Chain Management

Long known as APICS (originally, the Am. Production and Inventory Control Society, but until now known by its acronym), the leading supply-chain professional group will become the Assn. for Supply Chain Management (ASCM). As announced at its annual meeting (Chicago, Sept. 30-Oct. 2), the organization is rebranding itself and establishing a global alliance network of other organizations that “are customized relationships that involve a jointly managed product and may also include any combination of corporate membership, sponsorship, research and events.” Initial alliance partners include the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (which will collaborate on global public health issues), the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (for a jointly developed procurement professional certification), and the global consulting firms Accenture, Deloitte and PwC, which handle various benchmarking or educational activities with APICS.

The conversion from APICS to ASCM will be set up over the remainder of this year. Currently, ASCM has 45,000 members in 100 countries, and has provided professional certification (through its training programs) for some 125,000 professionals, according to the group.

Another announcement at the annual meeting was awarding Novartis the 2018 APICS Award of Excellence in Transformation. Novartis engaged in an extensive process redesign of its supply chains, and documented significant improvements in services levels, on-target supply chain activities and lead-time reductions.