There's no shame in having a long and complex supply chain if you can manage it correctly. It's when expansion and development are undertaken without a clear plan or system of management that mistakes can happen, and problematic gaps emerge.

Consumers understandably may be afraid to look too closely at the truth of the places where they get their clothes, electronics, and other assembled goods, but this can lead to revelations that are important and result in constructive criticism, as opposed to revulsion or fear. NPR's Planet Money has started an investigative project that follows the path of a single shirt from its creation into the marketplace.

The point of this series is to broaden the minds of modern consumers, but it can also serve as a wake-up call to the way your company runs and handles its supply chain management, which may or may not include some appropriate manufacturing business software to go with it.

The target audience for this series might be amazed to find out the amount of different facilities and machines that go into the making of just the basic materials that go into clothing items like T-shirts, but a major company needs to know these things inside and out, and look for ways to make them better. This can not only be used in making conditions better for workers but keeping efficiency as a goal.

Investigate an inventory management software system today that will open up the areas of your business that may have seem previously mysterious before, because the fewer surprises you have, the more you can focus on doing the work that your company does best.