Brian Telford has worked for Sony Electronics Inc. for 16 years, currently as Vice President, Sales Operations of Sony’s Consumer Sales Company. He joined the company as a customer service representative, answering calls to the company’s toll-free number. From customer service he went on to several operations positions, as well as being an account manager for three years for Best Buy.

The background would serve as excellent training for his current position which exclusively focuses on Sony Electronics supply chain matters, which is why Telford will be joining the manufacturers’ panel at the Consumer Electronics Supply Chain Academy (CESCA) on Jan. 10.

“Supply chain performance is very important to our sales effort. We have to deliver in a way that meets our customers’ needs,” Telford said.  “Retailers have different priorities in how they measure supply chain performance, whether it’s on-time delivery, in-stock rates, or PO cycle time.  We spend a lot of time understanding these priorities so we can do a better job meeting retailer expectations, he noted.

Collaboration and planning between Sony and its retail customers brings better results for both parties.  Sharing information is important in all situations, but the level and frequency of collaboration can depend on the size and volatility of the business.

Sony’s consumer electronics business breaks down into four primary product areas: Home Products Division (TVs, DVD players, home theater systems); Personal Mobile Imaging Division (portable audio, car stereo, digital imaging); Information Technology Products Division (VAIO PCs, Sony Readers); and Media Applications Solutions (blank media). This breadth of product lines results in a variety of supply chains.  “We try to leverage the best aspects of each business to improve the others.”

While Sony Electronics employs a relatively small number of people with ‘supply chain’ in their title, Telford noted “they’re in key positions that drive communication and process improvements throughout all functional areas of the company – both upstream to manufacturing and design and downstream to customer delivery and retail sell through.”

“We rely heavily on point-of-sale data for our customer collaboration and demand planning,” Telford said. Analysis of store level POS data promises to deliver even more value going forward.  Sony is currently testing RFID technology with a few retail partners, which he declined to reveal. “The tests are going well, and we all continue to learn as we go” he said.

Summing up, Telford said consumer electronics's relatively short life cycles “definitely present a challenge. We have to execute at a very high level in order to respond to the demands of the market.”