The 2nd Consumer Goods Supply Chain Officer Summit will be held in in Shanghai, China November 20-21, 2013 for two days of intense networking, discussions and learning. It is the premier event designed for consumer goods manufacturers and retailers.

Consumer Goods companies continue to face an uncertain economy, with volatile demand, expanding product portfolios and increasing cost pressures. They need to aggressively focus on growth and revenue acceleration, increased customer responsiveness and reduced inventory for improved cash flow.

At the same time, today's customer is a multichannel shopper. From the complexities of managing multiple channels across the enterprise to the next evolution of technology drivers, the world of multichannel retailing is replete with challenges and opportunities. To meet the needs of these omnichannel shoppers, retailers and brands must reformulate their supply chains, providing faster, more agile product movement.

One key trend specifically caught our attention. Consumer goods industry continues to be challenged by consumers' price sensitivity and unpredictable demand swings. The success of the supply chain in future years is significantly dependent on the close integration and optimization of inventory management practices with the end-to-end supply chain.

From our research, key findings in today's consumer goods supply chain include:

- The most important value drivers for Retail and Consumer Goods companies are minimised costs (95%), maximum delivery performance (90%), maximum volume flexibility and responsiveness (79%) and complexity management (70%). (from PWC 2013 survey)

- 70% of CP companies are experiencing more demand variation than they did a year ago. Consumers will remain selective in their buying habits as economic uncertainty remains a factor for 2013. Rising consumer expectations and increasing promotional volume contribute to volatility. (from Gartner 2013 survey)

- The Leaders focus on collaboration with key suppliers and vendor-managed inventory and continue to place great importance on continuous improvements in production efficiency and inventory management.

- A massive increase in the number of FMCG supply chain executives placing expansion of multichannel capabilities at the top of their priority list - 28% up from 4% last year.

- New product launch importance drives supply chain leaders to seek stronger alignment between new product development and supply chain planning and execution capability for increased launch success.

Many outstanding thought leaders, top performers and innovators in consumer goods supply chain have confirmed attendance the Consumer Goods Supply Chain Officer this year. You can check them out on the website:

http://scmrd.com/gsnyps/

About SCO Summit

Since its launch in 2008, SCO Summit (Supply Chain Officer Summit, http://www.sco-summit.com ) created by GlobalSCM Group, provides top-level strategic conferences for 1,000+ global senior supply chain officers every year, from manufacturing, consumer goods, healthcare industry.

The SCO Summit has helped shape the future of retail by providing insight, direction and a platform to network and share experiences at the highest level.
The SCO summit has received unprecedented support from industry figureheads and international professional organizations, including APICS, ISM, SCC, WERC and etc.