Supply Chain Process & Organizational Design
Creating the foundations for reliable, scalable, and effective supply chain execution
Introduction
Processes are at the heart of every supply chain. This is why the way they are embedded into the organizational structure is critical to assess. They define how work gets done in the day-to-day, how decisions are made, and how different functions collaborate across planning, operations, and execution.
As supply chains become more complex and dynamic, many organizations realize that historical process designs and organizational structures no longer support their business ambitions. Growth, volatility, digitalization, and increasing customer expectations require supply chain processes and organizations that are clear, coherent, and fit for purpose. Well-designed processes and organizational structures form the foundation for reliable execution, effective collaboration, and sustainable performance improvement.
Capabilities
What We Offer – Two Complementary Approaches
We support our clients in strengthening their supply chain processes and organizational setup through two complementary engagement types, depending on the scope and ambition of the initiative.
1. Holistic Process & Organizational Design
In larger transformation initiatives, we support the holistic design or fundamental redesign of supply chain processes and organizational structures. This includes, for example, the introduction of new end-to-end processes or the comprehensive redesign of entire supply chain functions such as demand management, supply planning, or logistics execution. Typical triggers include
- Growth and internationalization: new regions, new complexity
- Major ERP / planning system implementation
- Post-merger integration and supply chain integration
- New operating model (e.g., central planning, shared services, COE setup)
In these engagements, we jointly define the future process landscape, clarify roles and responsibilities, establish governance and decision structures, and ensure that processes and organization are designed as one coherent system aligned with business and supply chain strategy.
2. Targeted Process & Organizational Optimization
For more focused challenges, we support targeted process and organizational improvements. Starting from a structured analysis of the current state, we identify pain points, inefficiencies, and misalignments across processes, interfaces, and organizational responsibilities.
Based on this analysis, we help realign processes, clarify interfaces and handovers, adjust roles and decision rights, and implement pragmatic improvements that deliver tangible results without disrupting the entire organization. Typical examples are:
- Clarifying decision rights and handovers between planning and execution
- Interface cleanup between Customer Service / Planning / Logistics
- Role clarity and RACI updates for key E2E processes
- Pragmatic improvements with limited disruption (brown paper + quick wins)
Relevance
Why rethink Supply Chain processes & organization
| FROM - What we observe at our clients | TO - What we help our clients achieve | |
| Processes are fragmented across functions and regions, with unclear handovers and siloed execution. | Clear, end-to-end processes with lived ownership and accountability for the end-result. | |
| Decision rights are ambiguous, resulting in slow reactiveness and stability. | Faster, more reliable decision-making through clear ownership, defined governance forums, and escalation paths, providing clear guidance for process execution. | |
| Organizational structures have evolved historically and no longer fit to business needs. | Roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are aligned with and support procedural requirements. | |
| A multitude of standardized processes exist on paper, yet they are only partially followed or not executed at all. | Clear prioritization and reliable execution of processes that drive business value. | |
| Process pain points and responsibility gaps are well-known but there is no clear mandate and insufficient capacity to improve | External support provides an objective voice toward management and additional bandwidth to realize improvement potential. | |
| SC roles lack transparency and career paths remain fragmented | Attractive, scalable career paths and capability building across SC, retaining talent while enabling standardized ways of working |
Capability Insights
The Miebach Difference
How we work – hands-on, collaborative, and method-driven
We follow a highly collaborative, hands-on consulting approach, working side-by-side with our clients to design solutions that are both conceptually sound and practically implementable.
Our Approach to Process Design
We analyze and design supply chain processes based on a structured set of methods, applying the best-fit approach depending on the individual context and required level of detail. Some examples include:
- BPMN-based process mapping across multiple levels, from high-level process landscapes to detailed workflows
- SIPOC analyses to clarify suppliers, inputs, outputs, and customers of key processes
- Process canvases to holistically define process objectives, activities, stakeholders, interfaces, and performance expectations
- Process ownership model to establish clear responsibility and governance
- Prioritized improvement roadmaps ensuring structured step-by-step development into target state
Our Approach to Organizational Design
For organizational design, we go far beyond drawing org charts. We apply a multi-dimensional organizational design framework based on established academic models to address all relevant aspects of an effective organization.
This includes:
- Target organizational structures and role definitions
- Decision mechanisms and rights
- Governance and interaction / meeting models
- Capabilities, skills, and behavioral aspects
- Performance and incentive mechanisms
- Migration roadmap and change enablement plan
Why Miebach
Our decades of experience and profound expertiese in supply chain processes and organizational design are backed by many client results across industries, regions, and supply chain setups. This includes countless complex, multi-regional environments, e.g. in designing integrated European supply chain processes and organisations with harmonised structures and functions for process excellence. We have a strong methodological foundation combined with pragmatic, hands-on delivery. We focus on strong integration with broader transformation, digitalization, and TOM initiatives.
But the most striking? We always follows a ‘One-team’ collaboration approach with our clients to ensure ownership and sustainability in the long run. For a solution made for you and made to last.
What can we help you with?