Supply chain management (SCM) requirements have changed significantly in recent years. The buzzword nowadays when managing global supply chains is adaptation to increasing global complexity and volatility. Growing pressure from financial markets and the difficulty of increasing operating margins and working capital in this environment require efficient planning and execution of global production processes. More and more companies are relying therefore on LEAN SCM - a planning concept for harmonized production and replenishment planning across the entire supply chain with close linkages to organizational processes and IT infrastructure. It is designed expressly to simplify existing planning processes and to improve the synchronization and variability management of global supply chains. This article provides an overview of the key elements of LEAN SCM and its applications in process industries.