The UK’s bestselling book on logistics and supply chain management – over 100,000 copies sold.

Effective development and management of supply chain networks helps businesses cut costs and enhance customer value. This updated 5th edition is a clear guide to all the key topics in an integrated approach to supply chains.

As well as new and updated examples and case studies, there are two new chapters:

Routes to Market: Many companies now have to manage multiple distribution channels - this chapter covers strategic issues on how companies “go to market” along with the cost implications of using alternative channels.

Service Logistics: As companies begin to sell performance rather than physical product, this chapter explores the implications for logistics management as the need to provide higher levels of service and customer support becomes ever more critical.


"This book is crammed with distilled, practical wisdom for key account managers and their directors. Organizations claiming to practise key account management should equip everyone involved with a copy, so they really understand what they are supposed to be doing. Anything less is just old-fashioned selling."

Developing successful business-to-business relationships with more customers in highly competitive markets requires processes and skills that go beyond traditional selling activity. The very best state-of-the-art strategies are set out clearly in this book by intentionally known authors who have worked at the highest levels with more key and strategic account managers worldwide than probably any other leading advisors. Based on the hugely influential KEY CUSTOMERS it looks at:

  • Why has account management become so critical to commercial success?
  • What are the key challenges and how do successful companies respond?
  • What part does key account management play in strategic planning?
  • How do companies build profitable relationships with their customers?
  • How does key account management actually work?
  • What does a successful key account manager look like and what skills does he/she need?
  • How should key account managers be evaluated and rewarded?
  • How do companies achieve key account management? 

By addressing these key questions Woodburn and McDonald provide tools and processes for success honed by tough consultancy projects with the boards of some of the world's leading companies. The book stresses the elements that really matter - from developing a customer categorization system that really works and analyzing the needs of key accounts; to understanding the new skills required by key account managers and ensuring that key account plans are implemented. The 'real world' approach is backed by tested principles and the latest research from the renowned Cranfield School of Management.

Key Account Management comes from authors who have taught leading companies how to approach their most powerful and demanding customers and still make money. It is essential reading for all senior management with strategic responsibility, for key or strategic account directors, and for marketing and sales executives. The clear and authoritative approach also makes it an outstanding text for the serious MBA and executive student as well as business-to-business company directors and key account managers.


Companies are increasingly recognising the benefits of adopting a more customer-focused approach to their business. Furthermore, the availability of new technology is enabling organisations to communicate more effectively with their customers and develop a better understanding of their needs. Improving your customer knowledge and meeting their expectations can help to generate increased profits. This new Cranfield School of Management Research Report is the most comprehensive survey available on CRM and provides a guide to best practice using case study material from around the world. Senior managers can use this report to review their own CRM strategy or to implement a new one. Contents include: *The emergence of CRM *The marketing perspective and the IT perspective *Customer service, satisfaction, retention and profitability *Implementing CRM and ROI on CRM systems *Business Intelligence and data warehousing *E-Business applications *Call centres

Competitive advantage comes from service and added value. The competitive arena has shifted towards an emphasis on people: employees and customers. Now, in order to command that crucial customer preference, the company must be focused on customers, service and employee communication at all levels.

With the dotcom bubble well and truly burst, it is clear that to conduct successful business online you need an effective e-business strategy. This report shows you how to develop, design, implement and measure your e-commerce strategy. It guides you through the entire cycle from the identification of options, through prioritisation and implementation to measurement and review. Each stage contains tools and frameworks you can use to develop your own strategy or to clarify an existing strategy. By introducing the concept of value gap analysis to each stage of the sale the authors show how to identify areas where e-commerce solutions can make a real impact in both B2B and B2C transactions. The report is based on extensive research and features best practice case studies from leading companies so that you can benefit from their experience. Contents include: *Overview of strategy development process *Context and positioning *Market value analysis *Market vision *Prioritisation and selection *Measurement of electronic commerce *Case studies

There has been a fundamental change in the purchasing motivation and behavior of customers and the methods by which companies meet these new customer expectations. Companies are re-examining their fundamental assumptions about the way in which they define and deliver value to their customers. Marketing and brand strategies successfully deployed in the 1980s and 1990s are no longer sufficient to ensure continued profitable growth, customer loyalty and competitive advantage. Today, global competition offers everyone a meaningful choice of equally competent suppliers. The sharp-end of creating customer value lies with the organization's ability to: *customize products and services *direct complex supply chains on behalf of customers *provide pre-sales advice and post-sales service *maximize customer convenience *work effectively within alliances on behalf of customers. The UOVP - Unique Organisation Value PropositionTM is an important new methodology providing a practical approach which enables senior management to define and deliver customer value in a world where traditional products and brands often fail to do so.The UOVP integrates an organization's value-adding processes into a powerful combination of reputation, performance, customer and product portfolio and a network of third-party relationships.
Creating this differentiated combination, on the basis of delivering real value, enables an organization to: *create profitable long-term customer relationships *integrate and direct the organization towards customer value *lead unbeatable alliances *generate breakthrough innovation. In short, to prosper by Competing on Value. Simon Knox is a Professor of Brand Marketing at the Cranfield School of Management and a consultant to a number of multinational companies including McDonald's, Levi Strauss, DiverseyLever and the Ocean Group. Before joining Cranfield, Simon worked for Unilever in a number of senior marketing roles in both detergents and foods. He writes extensively on brand equity issues and customer purchasing styles. Stan Maklan is a Principal Consultant with CSC Computer Sciences, one of the world's largest IT and management consulting firms, and is a regular contributor to international conferences and seminars.He has been a director at operating companies for Unilever and Burson-Marsteller, international leaders in consumer goods and public relations respectively, as well as a marketing manager for Cable & Wireless (telecommunications).
Stan ran his own consultancy specializing in business-to-business marketing before joining CSC. He was awarded honors for academic excellence when he obtained a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Western Ontario (Canada) and has a Bachelor of Science (Economics) from the Universite de Montreal.