Region’s Supply Chain Leaders Revealed at Supply Chain Executive Conference 2012, London, U.K., September 17-18
Egham, UK, September 18, 2012 – Gartner, Inc. has revealed its annual ranking of the top 15 supply chain organizations headquartered in Europe at its Supply Chain Executive Conference, currently underway in London. The goal of Gartner’s Supply Chain Top 15 in Europe research initiative is to raise awareness of the supply chain discipline and how it impacts businesses.
Gartner identified the top 15 performers headquartered in Europe, based on a combination of financial metrics (revenue growth, return on assets [ROA] and inventory) and opinion (Gartner supply chain analyst and peer opinion). Unilever, Inditex, H&M and Nestlé were the leaders, which are also listed in the global Gartner Supply Chain Top 25. Six new companies entered the European top 15 ranking this year: H&M, AstraZeneca, Reckitt Benckiser, Syngenta, Roche and Volkswagen (see Table 1).
“The ranking comprises companies headquartered in a variety of European countries, predominantly the U.K. and Switzerland,” said Christian Titze, research director at Gartner. “Top European supply chains span the automotive, chemical, consumer goods, life sciences and retail industries. Leading companies have the right combination of organizational structure and governance to balance global reach with the ability to take local characteristics into account.”
Table 1. Gartner Supply Chain Top 15 — Europe, 2012
2012 EMEA Rank | 2012 Overall Rank | Company | ROA (1) | Inventory Turns (2) | Rev Growth (3) | Composite Score (4) |
1 | 10 | Unilever | 10.2% | 6.0 | 5.5% | 4.21 |
2 | 15 | Inditex | 17.3% | 4.0 | 10.3% | 3.37 |
3 | 17 | H & M Hennes & Mauritz | 28.6% | 3.6 | 5.7% | 3.09 |
4 | 18 | Nestlé | 15.9% | 4.9 | -9.5% | 3.06 |
5 | 28 | AstraZeneca | 16.5% | 3.1 | 1.7% | 2.01 |
6 | 29 | Tesco | 5.5% | 16.4 | 6.4% | 2.01 |
7 | 30 | BASF | 7.9% | 5.6 | 11.6% | 1.98 |
8 | 33 | Reckitt Benckiser | 13.0% | 5.1 | 12.4% | 1.93 |
9 | 35 | BMW | 2.9% | 5.7 | 11.8% | 1.92 |
10 | 41 | Novartis | 8.1% | 2.9 | 13.1% | 1.77 |
11 | 47 | Anheuser-Busch InBev | 6.1% | 6.4 | 14.7% | 1.72 |
12 | 51 | Syngenta | 8.8% | 1.7 | 7.7% | 1.67 |
13 | 53 | Roche | 14.4% | 2.5 | -4.9% | 1.64 |
14 | 58 | British American Tobacco | 11.8% | 0.9 | 6.6% | 1.54 |
15 | 59 | Volkswagen | 4.2% | 5.6 | 17.5% | 1.54 |
- ROA: ((2011 net income/2011 total assets)*50%) + ((2010 net income/2010 total assets)*30%) + ((2009 net income/2009 total assets)*20%)
- Inventory Turns: 2011 cost of goods sold/2011 quarterly average inventory
- Revenue Growth: ((change in revenue 2011-2010) *50%) + ((change in revenue 2010-2009) *30%) + ((change in revenue 2009-2008) *20%)
- Composite Score: (peer opinion*25%) + (Gartner opinion*25%) + (ROA*25%) + (inventory turns*15%) + (revenue growth*10%)
Source: Gartner (September 2012)
Unilever is ranked No. 1 in the European Supply Chain Top 15. This company has a global virtual manufacturing network that can quickly cater to fluctuations in local demand. Unilever also has the ability to design its products proactively for profitability.
At No. 2, Inditex is the highest-ranked retailer. This company keeps in tune with its customers in order to sense and shape ideas, trends and tastes around the world. To this end, Inditex has made conscious trade-offs between higher production costs and speed-to-market, with manufacturing capabilities in Spain for some products.
H&M, the No. 3, is the world’s second-largest clothing retailer. As a fast-moving retailer, it takes an innovative approach to designer events, one that pools consumer interest. It has also started experimenting with augmented-reality technology, which links the growth of social media and sales to determine how consumers will use virtual technologies in the future.
Food giant Nestlé is No. 4. Nestlé complements its successful Nespresso model with plans to manage its different types of coffee with segmentation strategies and different routes to market.
“Earlier this year we announced Gartner’s Global Supply Chain Top 25, but regional analysis identifies issues and best practices unique to each region,” said Vladimir Krasojevic, research director at Gartner. “Supply chain leaders in Europe are focusing on cost reductions, supply chain innovation and the increasing business importance of sustainability, and the need to balance global reach with local needs”.
Additional information is available in the report entitled “2012 Gartner Supply Chain Top 25: Europe ” at http://www.gartner.com/resId=2161815.
About the Gartner Supply Chain Top 25
Supply chain executives face an unprecedented challenge: to successfully balance the need for cost efficiencies with a growing demand for agility. For most, this means a fundamental shift in strategy, planning and implementation — and a new ability to provide guidance and leadership to every member of their global supply chain team. Gartner analysts will provide actionable advice for organizations to succeed: from strategy and planning to distribution and logistics.
For more information about the Gartner Supply Chain Top 25 or to register on the global panel of voters, please visit http://www.gartner.com/technology/supply-chain/top25.jsp.
About Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference 2012
Supply chain executives face an unprecedented challenge: to balance the need for cost-efficiencies with the growing demand for agility. For most, this requires a fundamental shift in strategy, planning and implementation — and a new ability to provide guidance and leadership to every member of their global supply chain team. Gartner analysts will provide advice to help organizations to succeed at everything from strategy and planning to distribution and logistics.
The Gartner EMEA Supply Chain Executive Conference 2012 is being held from September 17 to 18 at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge hotel in London. For additional information about this conference, please visit http://www.gartner.com/technology/summits/emea/supply-chain/. Join the discussion on Twitter using #GartnerSCC.
Contact: 
Rob van der Meulen
Gartner
+44 0 1784 267892
[email protected]
About Gartner:
Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) is the world’s leading information technology research and advisory company. Gartner delivers the technology-related insight necessary for its clients to make the right decisions, every day. From CIOs and senior IT leaders in corporations and government agencies, to business leaders in high-tech and telecom enterprises and professional services firms, to technology investors, Gartner is the valuable partner to clients in 12,000 distinct organizations. Through the resources of Gartner Research, Gartner Executive Programs, Gartner Consulting and Gartner Events, Gartner works with every client to research, analyze and interpret the business of IT within the context of their individual role. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.A., and has 5,000 associates, including 1,280 research analysts and consultants, and clients in 85 countries. For more information, www.gartner.com.
