Proof That Demand Driven Supply Chains Deliver Exceptional Financial Performance

By Louis Columbus, Cincom

Every year AMR Research’s Supply Chain Top 25 portfolio of companies outperforms the market, with 2007 delivering an average return of 17.89%, compared with returns of 6.43% for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and 3.53% for the S&P 500. Leading all companies in stock price performance was Apple (AAPL) with a 133.47% gain during 2007.

As an example of how critical demand-driven supply chains are, consider the factors that in 2007 contributed to Apple's growth. First, the company was able to support an aggressive product launch schedule of Intel-based Macs with very competitive pricing, an OS refresh, and expanding distribution globally. The second factor is the growth of the mobile phone opportunity with iPhone, the recent/ongoing European rollout followed by Asia launch in 2008, along with possible model expansion (e.g., 16GB iPhone, 3G iPhone, lower-priced models). To put iPhone’s success into perspective, it took 22 quarters for BlackBerry to ship over 1 million units in a single quarter, while Apple accomplished this in its first full quarter with only one carrier in the US. Meanwhile, PALM, another smartphone vendor, has yet to ship over 1 million units in a quarter since introducing its Treo products four and a half years ago; and Continued growth of iPod, with refreshes across all of its prior models and the launch of the iPod Touch

AMR Research has since 2004 published the top 25 performing supply chains globally, and has a website devoted to explaining the methodology used, prior years’ list and research.

Link: The AMR Research Supply Chain Top 25 Blows Away Market with 17.89% Return