Hello everyone. This is Dr. Zhao. In this video, I'd like to give you an overview of the course, learning outcomes, and a weekly schedule. A supply chain is a complex network that involves multiple facilities and products. An example of a supply chain in distribution is shown to the left where there are multiple warehouses or DCs, distribution centers, spread out over the US, each serving customers in a certain area. Similar systems are widely used in many industries and countries. A diagram of the system is shown to the right. The facilities such as vendors, factories, warehouses and DCs, and stores are linked by supply and demand relationships with multiple types of activities and the related costs such as sourcing and purchasing, production, shipping, inventory and warehousing. A supply chain is also costly. For example, in the year 2005, the logistics cost accounts for 7.5 percent of the US GDP, with transportation of 3.4 percent, inventory holding cost of 1.8 percent, and warehousing cost of 1.7 percent, and so on. In fact, during the years from 2004-2012, the logistics cost accounts for about nine percent of the US GDP on average. For China, the world's second largest economy and a country of a similar size geographically to US, its logistics cost accounts for 18.1 percent of China's GDP on average during the same years, which is much higher than the US. A supply chain is difficult to manage, not only because it's complex and costly, but also because of its conflicting objectives on customer satisfaction, and total cost. Customer satisfaction depends on the service levels such as product availability and delivery time. The total cost includes costs on inventory, shipping, and warehousing and so on. Typically, as we improve customer satisfaction by raising service levels, the total cost rises as described by this efficiency frontier on the figure. Notably, the cost typically arises more sharply as we approach the 100 percent satisfaction. Our goal is to push the efficiency frontier forward, as shown by the orange arrow, where we can either improve customer satisfaction without increasing the total cost, or reduce the total cost without sacrificing the customer satisfaction. That is, we want to achieve both goals in the same time. Supply chain management is becoming increasingly data-driven. To achieve the conflicting goals of customer satisfaction and cost efficiency simultaneously, to handle the complexity and high cost, we must use data and analytics to develop quantitative insights into strategic trade offs, to assess the net impact of various strategies and solutions and identify the globally optimal solution. Thus, analytics is essential to supply chain management. Simply put, to answer questions such as which strategy is better, by how much, under what assumptions? We have to use data and analytics. Upon completion of this course, you will be able to use data analytics for supply chain planning. For example, to assess the impact of various strategies on all aspects of a supply chain, from inventory, shipping, to warehouse order fulfillment, and store operations; to customize the strategies by product types, and to experience the power and financial impact of analytics in integrated supply chain and logistics planning. At the end of this course, you will help VASTA save $billions and maintain its leadership in a stagnant and saturated market.