Supply Chain Shaman

NOVEMBER 21, 2024

(Most of the business networks were hollowed out by venture capitalists or purchased by opportunists. ” My problem is that we move through these hype cycles with little accountability for spending and with a major opportunity cost to not redefine work. Or that a focus on cost reduction can actually undermine value creation?)

Supply Chain Planning Software 396

Supply Chain Planning Software Modeling Software Modeling Supply Chain Network Software 396

Kinaxis

DECEMBER 3, 2014

Over the years, working for and with numerous manufacturing companies, I’ve seen many supply chain practices that cost companies money. Reason #6 Not effectively managing inventory. Reason #9 Relentless pursuit of one supply chain metric at the expense of other metrics. by John Westerveld. There can be multiple reasons.

Expense Reduction 250

Expense Reduction Procurement Analytics Cost Reduction Strategies Metrics 250

Logistics Viewpoints

MARCH 27, 2025

A disruption at any point in the global logistics network including the average of 12 touch points from shipment packaging to final delivery can prove disastrous for profits, service levels, customer loyalty, and other key metrics. With the global e-commerce market predicted to reach $8.1

Supply Chain Planning Software 330

Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Network Software Logistics Network Optimization Software Predictive Analytics Software 330

ToolsGroup

MARCH 25, 2025

Beyond simply improving forecast accuracy, todays ML-powered demand forecasting software uncovers hidden supply trends, anticipates pricing fluctuations, and enables proactive supply chain planning decisions. Even more impressive, lost sales due to stockouts can decrease by up to 65%, while inventory reductions of 20% to 50% are possible.

Supply and Demand 156

Supply and Demand Forecasting Forecasting Software Modeling 156

Precoro

DECEMBER 24, 2024

Unlike traditional tools that often operate in isolation or rely on rigid workflows, AI connects the dots between disparate data sources, providing a more comprehensive view of procurement activities. This gives them advance warning so they can adjust their purchasing strategies.

Price Reduction 105

Price Reduction Sourcing Strategies Cost Reduction Strategies Expense Reduction 105

Logistics Viewpoints

JUNE 29, 2023

It is crucial for organizations to understand the importance of Purchase Order collaboration to effectively manage their direct spend, optimize operations, and mitigate risks. Direct spend can be a significant part of the Cost of Goods Sold for an organization.

Manufacturing Procurement 270

Manufacturing Procurement Procurement Analytics Material Savings Inventory Reduction 270

RFgen

NOVEMBER 13, 2024

Picture this: You’re a warehouse manager, and with a few taps on your smartphone, you instantly know the exact location and quantity of every item in your inventory. That’s not science fiction—it’s the power of mobile inventory management. Ready to turn your inventory from a headache into a strategic asset?

Inventory Management Software 96

Inventory Management Software Real-time Visibility Inventory Reduction Inventory Management 96

RFgen

DECEMBER 4, 2024

In the automotive sector, manufacturers are simultaneously reducing inventory costs and delivery times. We’ll examine the key components of efficient supply chains, explore essential performance metrics, and uncover the fundamental drivers that influence efficiency.

Sourcing Strategies 96

Sourcing Strategies Inventory Reduction Waste Reduction Expense Reduction 96

ToolsGroup

JANUARY 21, 2025

Returns Management and Integration With 35% of online purchases being returned, predominantly to physical stores, retailers are grappling with the ripple effects on inventory management. Early adopters of these integrated platforms report significant improvements in inventory turnover and reduction in stockouts.

Supply Chain Planning Software 156

Supply Chain Planning Software Forecasting Software Inventory Reduction Price Reduction 156

Supply Chain Shaman

APRIL 27, 2022

At each company, there is a relationship between the metrics of growth, margin, inventory, customer service, and asset strategy. For the purpose of this article, I will use Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) as the proxy metric to discuss asset utilization.) Understanding this relationship requires modeling. (A A Case Study.

Procurement Analytics 369

Procurement Analytics Manufacturing Procurement Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software 369

SCMDOJO

APRIL 11, 2025

Is inventory bloating your costs? Running procurement and supply chain without metrics is like driving blindfolded. A scorecard acts as your dashboard, providing crucial visibility that helps you: Make Data-Driven Decisions: Replace guesswork with facts when evaluating suppliers, processes, and inventory levels.

Pricing Training 72

Pricing Training Negotiating Skills Purchasing Skills Optimal Sourcing 72

Logistics Viewpoints

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

Supply shortages resulting in empty shelves or parking lots of WIP inventory represent a spectre causing supply chain leaders to reconsider supply chain inventory practices. Opinion of just-in-time (JIT) as a practice has taken a battering and inventory is rising. Is supply chain inventory the problem?

Inventory Reduction 329

Inventory Reduction Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software Supply Chain Planning 329

Logistics Viewpoints

DECEMBER 15, 2022

ABC Analysis for Inventory Planning : Clustering products that behave similarly highlights issues, challenges, and opportunities for serving customers better. ABC analysis creates product segments by grouping products with similar sales volume or purchase frequency to enable category managers to focus on what matters most.

Optimal Sourcing 261

Optimal Sourcing Analysis Procurement Analytics Purchasing Skills 261

My Office Apps

OCTOBER 21, 2024

What is Vendor Relationship Management (VRM) and Why It’s Essential for Your ERP and Inventory Software? Strong vendor relationships are critical for business success, especially when it comes to managing inventory and procurement. This allows businesses to track expenses, costs, and payments against the appropriate financial accounts.

Vendor Strategies 98

Vendor Strategies Procurement Solutions Supply Chain Planning Software Optimization Software 98

Silvon Software

APRIL 16, 2025

Inventory is the lifeblood of any manufacturing business. Get it right, and youve got happy customers and streamlined costs. Striking the perfect balance between available stock and cost efficiency is key. Tracking inventory flow and performance across your supply chain is a must. But what exactly should you measure?

Optimal Sourcing 65

Optimal Sourcing Inventory Reduction Supply Chain Optimization Price Mitigation Strategies 65

ivalua

MAY 10, 2025

Enterprise procurement leaders are under more pressure than ever—juggling cost control, compliance, supplier risk, and internal complexity, all while trying to modernize outdated systems. AI, automation, and generative tools are redefining efficiency, allowing procurement teams to move from reactive to proactive decision-making.

Procurement Solutions 130

Procurement Solutions Sourcing Strategies Optimal Sourcing Analytics Software 130

Logistics Viewpoints

AUGUST 15, 2022

Of the professionals surveyed, 59% saw the gap between procurement/sourcing and supply chain to be a major disconnect, and the most pressing pain point. Procurement solutions are often updated with purchased information. Similarly, for spend management solutions the purchase order can be stopped if information is not up to date.

Supply Chain Network Software 310

Supply Chain Network Software Manufacturing Procurement Procurement Analytics Optimal Sourcing 310

Supply Chain Shaman

JANUARY 9, 2024

An average margin of 21% with inventory turns of 1.58 As shown in Figure B, the company improved cash-to-cash through the extension of payables, but never improved inventory levels after the spin-off from Kraft. The group’s response is, “Are these supply chain metrics?” show a clear gap in performance.

Supply Chain Planning Software 386

Supply Chain Planning Software Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Planning Gartner 386

Precoro

NOVEMBER 13, 2023

Financial efficiency, cost savings, and profitability undoubtedly fall under the main priorities of upper management, regardless of a company’s industry. However, only 30% of CPOs claim they have achieved their cost-saving targets in 2023. Why Is Purchase Price Variance Important?

Purchasing Skills 98

Purchasing Skills Procurement Analytics Negotiating Skills Negotiate Pricing 98

Logistics Viewpoints

JUNE 1, 2023

That’s why staying on top of the latest supply chain planning trends is so important – they can make all the difference when it comes to staying competitive, reducing costs, and meeting your customers’ needs. They are more likely to shop for discounts and sales and may delay purchases of some items.

Supply Chain Planning Software 272

Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software Supply Chain Planning Supply Chain Software 272

Supply Chain Shaman

MAY 25, 2024

The use of orbit charts allowed me to see the patterns of performance at the intersection of metrics over time. We purchase data from Y charts. (A This data source synchronizes corporate reporting across global markets while tracking restatements, name changes, and currency shifts.) but declining.

Eliminating Excel in Purchasing 384

Eliminating Excel in Purchasing Gartner Supply Chain Design Supply Chain Strategy 384

Precoro

JULY 16, 2023

The purchasing department plays a critical role in the success of an organization. Thought-out practices and well-managed workflows within the purchasing department are crucial for making sure that the company has the necessary resources available at the right time and at a reasonable cost.

Pricing Training 98

Pricing Training Purchasing Skills Procurement Analytics Purchasing Training 98

Supply Chain Shaman

MAY 13, 2024

How aligned do you believe your organization is to drive these metrics? P&G did not appreciate the work Gilette accomplished on form and function of inventory and using market signals. As a result, the company’s performance at the intersection of margin and inventory turns was circular for the past decade.

S&OP 393

S&OP Supply and Demand Inventory Reduction Expense Reduction 393

Logistics Viewpoints

MARCH 9, 2023

This is because most classical planning solutions lack the modeling capability and computing power to accommodate different data sources, large SKU count, and detailed constraints and contingencies to build an immediately executable plan. each with discrete plans generated typically in sequential batch runs.

Supply Chain Planning Software 283

Supply Chain Planning Software Modeling Forecasting Software Optimization Software 283

Logistics Viewpoints

OCTOBER 12, 2023

Lower-income consumers and those using food assistance programs care the most about food waste as a purchase driver—again, suggesting it is a response to higher prices.” The same “If” statement was repeated for a host of financial and operational metrics.

Supply Chain Design Software 312

Supply Chain Design Software Supply Chain Design Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Planning 312

Precoro

MARCH 27, 2025

Rising costs, supply chain chaos, and economic swings put businesses under enormous pressure to protect their margins. According to McKinsey & Company, procurement accounts for 50% to 80% of a company’s cost base. That’s why organizations zero in on strategies to achieve procurement cost reduction. 

Cost Reduction Strategies 45

Cost Reduction Strategies Price Reduction Expense Reduction Vendor Strategies 45

Precoro

DECEMBER 11, 2023

The dynamic landscape of modern business comes with increasing product variety and volatile prices, making it more important than ever to stay competitive on the market. To enhance their competitive edge, companies across industries are adopting a key tactic: strategic sourcing.

Negotiating Skills 105

Negotiating Skills Purchasing Skills Optimal Sourcing Sourcing Strategies 105

Supply Chain Shaman

JANUARY 8, 2014

Interview for Metrics That Matter. My kitchen table is piled high with interviews for the upcoming book, Metrics That Matter. I recently interviewed him for my upcoming book, Metrics that Matter, that publishes in August 2014. Which metrics do you think matter to supply chain excellence? ” Supply Chain Leader.

Procurement Analytics 279

Procurement Analytics Manufacturing Procurement Metrics Procurement Solutions 279

Supply Chain Shaman

OCTOBER 29, 2014

These solutions were usually implemented by the technology provider by consultants with specialized skill sets. The promise was the delivery of a decision support system that would allow the organization to optimize the relationships between cash, cost and customer service against the strategy. But, did it add more value?

Supply Chain Planning Software 379

Supply Chain Planning Software Modeling Demand Planning Software Optimization Software 379

Supply Chain Shaman

FEBRUARY 1, 2024

Each concept is flawed adding to, not reducing, cost and waste. Optimization engines to improve functional metric performance resulted in an exploding number of planners. Rolling up a perpetual inventory signal takes eleven hours. days to get a perpetual inventory signal and 2.2 The average purchased order changes 3.5

Supply Chain Planning Software 392

Supply Chain Planning Software Optimal Sourcing Manufacturing Procurement Waste Reduction 392

QAD

MAY 22, 2025

Rising costs, geopolitical tensions, and tariffs demand a strategic and holistic approach to maintain profitability and competitive advantage. There are many ways an organization can cut supply chain costs. While there are no short-term fixes, enterprises should prioritize areas where they can make the quickest gains to reduce costs.

Cost Reduction Strategies 52

Cost Reduction Strategies Expense Reduction Price Reduction Waste Reduction 52

Supply Chain Shaman

OCTOBER 5, 2018

The award, based on beating the industry peer group on rate of improvement on the key metrics of growth, operating margin, inventory turns, and Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) while outperforming their peer group, is tough to achieve. The orbit chart below illustrates L’Oréal’s performance at the intersection of two metrics.

Case Study 329

Case Study Inventory Reduction Study Agile and Lean Supply Chain 329

Logistics Viewpoints

SEPTEMBER 20, 2022

Our lives became more interesting with the onset pandemic, followed by labor shortages, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, rising oil prices, and the oncoming recession. Well, we also know that many legacy systems will not be able to support all these changes quickly and cost-effectively.

Supply Chain Planning Software 287

Supply Chain Planning Software Agile and Lean Supply Chain Supply Chain Planning Supply Chain Software 287

RFgen

JANUARY 16, 2025

That’s where manufacturing inventory management software comes in. We’re talking real-time tracking, automated purchasing, and a whole lot less stress. In this ultimate guide, we’ll break down everything you need to know about manufacturing inventory management software.

Inventory Management Software 52

Inventory Management Software Manufacturing Procurement Supply Chain Planning Software Optimization Software 52

Supply Chain Shaman

JUNE 29, 2014

With the purchase of i2 by JDA, and Logictools by IBM, manufacturing companies serious about network design started looking for a company, with a well-established community, that was more serious about network design. It could no longer be just about inventory levels. Cost-to-Serve and Top-to-Top Meetings.

Supply Chain Design Software 268

Supply Chain Design Software Supply Chain Design Network Design Software Supply Chain Planning Software 268

Logistics Viewpoints

JUNE 28, 2024

The company said that it used 85,916 metric tons of single-use plastic that year, an 11.6 Walmart announced that it will pilot agriculture technology with crop supply intelligence company Agritaskto get real-time information on crops and improve sourcing decisions around produce. And now on to this week’s logistics news.

Logistics Network Optimization Software 284

Logistics Network Optimization Software Waste Reduction Logistics Price Reduction 284

Supply Chain Shaman

OCTOBER 29, 2020

Inventory, in this time of uncertainty, is the organization’s most important buffer to protect against variability. However, organizations are not good at managing inventory. Cash-to-Cash Metrics. Cash-to-cash is a compound metric: (Days of Receivables+Days of Inventory)-Days of Payables=Cash Conversion Cycle.

Optimal Sourcing 299

Optimal Sourcing Supply Chain Design Software Waste Reduction Inventory Reduction 299