How To Be A Green Supply Chain And Meet Customer Fulfillment

By Christopher P. Sciacca
Expert Author
Article Date: 2009-12-18

As many of you know I am now living in Zurich and as one should do in a new country, I am trying to learn the local language. To help, everyone tells me that I should get a TV with cable to watch programs in German to support the classes and DVDs I am using. Easier said then done.

Swisscom, the local provider of everything related to communications, including mobile phones, cable TV, internet and home telephone, send me a nice welcome package and in it offered me a discount on a TV subscription along with nifty WiFi box that sends the TV signal to my TV without any cables for free (originally $169). A very cool idea since my Internet router and TV are in two separate rooms.

Looking to get the box faster and to eliminate the carbon emissions in having it shipped, I took the train to one of the many Swisscom retail locations in Zurich along with the promotion. After filling out all of the paperwork 20 minutes later the sales rep tells me that I only can get the WiFi box for free in the mail, meaning I need to fill out the promotion card and mail it. At this point I was steaming and basically had to cancel everything.

So here is what I don't get. First, they have the WiFi boxes in the store, so why don't they have their inventory systems linked so they can give me a free one from the retail store, instead of having to make me wait to ship one? Not to mention the carbon footprint they are leaving to ship the box to me and on top of it, the additional shipping costs that they are absorbing?

Technically, this should be a no brainer. Think Green Swisscom. You are better than this.

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About the Author:
Christopher P. Sciacca is located in Brno, Czech Republic where he is the manager of strategic communications for Europe and Africa for IBM's global delivery business. His responsibilities include helping global delivery employees across Europe and Africa understand IBM's strategy and how they contribute to it. He is also introducing the latest in Web 2.0 technologies including virtual worlds and social networks to employees to help them make connections that count globally. He is also responsible for external communications, where he works with members of the press, academia, government officials and analysts to help them understand IBM's strategy of becoming a globally integrated company. He currently keeps an acclaimed and widely read blog called "Why supply chains rock?", which takes a simple, yet entertaining look at the impact of supply chains on daily life.