Introduce yourself by sharing something interesting about yourself, as well as your career or academic experiences in supply management. How does this course fit into that experience, or your plans to go into supply chain management?

Consider Dell which is famous for its low inventory of parts $($from Dell's suppliers$)$ and finished products $($assembled at Dell's manufacturing facilities$).$ If Dell maintains low inventory of parts, and if Dell wants the suppliers to ship the parts soon after it places an order for them, does it mean that the suppliers shall maintain a high inventory of parts? And if the suppliers shall maintain a high inventory of parts, do the suppliers incur high holding costs? And if the suppliers incur high holding costs, who will eventually pay for those costs? Dell? Or its suppliers? Or ultimately the customer? If you were Dell, discuss how you would ensure that the holding costs are actually reduced, not just transferred.

In your responses to at least two of your peers, discuss one of the following:

If you were a supplier negotiating with Dell, what approach would you take to negotiating holding inventory with Dell?

Discuss the inherent risks of holding inventory at a supplier from the supplier's perspective.