Insights - Dabbawala

1. HR assignment<br />1] What are the various perspectives to the case of Dabbawallas? Can we approach it only from SCM angle? If not, what are the other nuances?<br /> SCM which refers to Supply Chain Management , is defined as a set of 3 or more companies directly linked by 1 or more of the upstream and downstream flow of products, services, finances and information from a source to the customer. The Dabbawallas of Mumbai implement this process very efficiently in their system. The process, which starts from the collection of the Dabba from the customer’s home, and ends with the return of the Dabba back to them, is properly planned and executed with minimum loss of time. Apart from SCM following are some of the other perspectives to this case:<br />A] Customer relationship management: They maintain a close repo with the customer on the basis of trust and dedication to offer them timely deliveries of their tiffin boxes.<br />B] Just In Time: Just a question of couple of hours and the hot home cooked food is at your office door step.<br />C] Lean Management: It is one of the important aspects in the process as its help in reducing error in the delivery of tiffins. <br />D] 5S Theory : 5S is a Japanese methodology used in organising work place . They largely practice this in the supply chain process.<br />1S: Sorting: the dabbas<br />2S: Straightening: Setting the dabbas in order, according to the destination.<br />3S:Sweeping : Maintaining the hygiene .<br />4S: Standardisation : Everyone is aware of their responsibilities. Transparency in working.<br />5S: Sustaining in discipline : High end discipline is maintained in the process. <br />E] PERT: Program evaluation and research technique, this has been used indirectly for evaluating redundant practices and finding optimum path for delivering the tiffins at very low cost.<br />F] Michael Porter’s 5 force theory<br />i. Threat of new entrants:<br /> The Dabbawalla service serves as a huge entry barrier for potential competitors. Besides, it would be difficult to replicate this supply chain network that uses Mumbai's jam-packed local trains as its backbone.<br />ii. Current competition<br />The Dabbawallas do face competition from fast food joints as well as office canteens. However, since neither of these serve home food, the Dabbawallas' core offering remains unchallenged.<br />iii. Bargaining power of buyers<br />The delivery rates of the Dabbawallas are so nominal (about Rs 300 per month) that one simply wouldn't bargain any further. Also, their current monopoly negates any scope of bargaining on the part of their customers. <br />iv. Bargaining power of sellers<br />The Dabbawallas use minimum infrastructure and practically no technology, hence they are not dependent on suppliers. Since they are a service-oriented organisation, they are not dependent on sellers to buy their product.<br />v. Threat of a new substitute product or service<br />As substitutes to home cooked food are not seen as a viable alternative in the Indian scenario, the threat to the Dabbawalla service is not an issue at least in the foreseeable future.<br />2] If the Dabbawallas were to replicate elsewhere, what would be the challenges involved?<br />->The Dabbawallas operate very efficiently in Mumbai because there are many factors in to operate Mumbai which are conducive to their functioning. But if they were to operate in Mumbai they would to operate elsewhere:<br />A] Transportation-The Dabbawallas in Mumbai rely on the suburban railway system. The train route runs from north-south while the pedestrian traffic moves form east –west. So this facilitates easy movement of train traffic which works to their advantage. But this might not be the case with other cities which do not have a strong suburban railway network. So they would have to depend on road transportation which might get congested at times which might not allow the timely delivery of dabbas.<br />B] Dabbawallas face competition from other catering sources. In metros, other than Mumbai, this behaviour is very dominant. So this might affect their business heavily.<br />C] Dabbawallas in Mumbai are a 125 year old Institute. There is no written book of records in which the accounts can be maintained. Everything is based on trust. But this might not be the case elsewhere. Building trust takes time. So the level of efficiency might not be the same.<br /> E] Mumbai’s life is fast paced. So, people don’t have time to carry the dabbas. But this might not be the case elsewhere as the life in other cities is comparatively slow-paced. <br />