This site uses cookies to improve your experience. To help us insure we adhere to various privacy regulations, please select your country/region of residence. If you do not select a country, we will assume you are from the United States. Select your Cookie Settings or view our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Used for the proper function of the website
Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Strictly Necessary: Used for the proper function of the website
Performance/Analytics: Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
Sorting through this to make a decision on a new planning solution at this time is tough. ” Traditional planning models optimize functional processes to improve cost and customer service. In today’s architectures and functional metrics, value optimization does not exist. My advice? You are right. The reason?
Optimizing fulfillment requires a series of steps to get a shipment from its source to the end customer. The formula for OTIF is: Measuring a supply chain against OTIF metrics is a key strategy that helps decision makers attach a tangible value to the success of their fulfillment and allows them to determine key strategies.
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than ever—juggling cost control, compliance, supplier risk, and internal complexity, all while trying to modernize outdated systems.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.
Three months into 2025, we have seen a barrage of on-again, off-again tariffs that have supply chain and logistics teams reeling, as they must rethink everything from next weeks shipping route to their foundational network models. The Ukraine-Russia conflict is ongoing. Tensions flare in the Middle East without warning.
Enterprise procurement teams face growing pressure to deliver strategic value – managing supplier risk, ensuring compliance, and supporting sustainability – all without sacrificing speed or control. This blog explores the most common challenges in digital procurement and the capabilities that matter most.
Building a software company is hard work. The industry has had little value from digital transformation and business networks. Most of the business networks were hollowed out by venture capitalists or purchased by opportunists. The business network market is in need of innovation.) See You on December 5th?
Investment in research and partnerships is crucial for scaling these solutions industry-wide. Green Logistics: Optimizing transportation routes, consolidating shipments, and employing energy-efficient vehicles to reduce emissions. Advanced route optimizationtools further support these goals.
GEP and the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Supply Chain Resource Cooperative surveyed supply chain, procurement and IT professionals across a range of industries to gain insight into their priorities and strategies regarding supply chain resilience and optimization. Business Spend Management Solutions are Networked .
If you’re evaluating procurement technology or exploring ways to drive more value from existing systems, chances are you’re looking beyond tactical fixes – you want a smarter, scalable strategy. Misaligned priorities across finance, legal, and procurement create friction that delays decision-making and reduces impact.
Traditionally, procurement has been a process weighed down by manual tasks, fragmented systems, and endless paperwork. Today, procurement is undergoing a transformation. While procurement teams have long worked to add strategic value, Artificial Intelligence (AI) amplifies their impact.
Supply chain optimization has also improved in significant ways that can address these trade-offs better than before. Technical innovations can also impact supply chains, which is why many turn to supply chain planning solutions, which are designed to be trade-off machines. The myth of the “perfect plan”.
But between rising costs, complex logistics, and the constant struggle to optimize space and labor, staying ahead can feel like an uphill battle. That’s where warehouse optimization comes in. Here’s what you can expect: A clear definition of warehouse optimization and its core components. Ready to get started?
Supply chain efficiency is the cornerstone of success and involves the effective management of processes, resources, and technologies from procurement to production, transportation to warehousing. As companies across industries have discovered, a well-optimized supply chain can drive significant improvements throughout their operations.
Procurement and Supply Chain Management are essential functions that can help companies navigate these challenges, but they are often siloed and operate in separate departments. Their metrics are often misaligned as well – supply chain focuses on service and procurement focuses on the cost of acquiring materials and services.
However, recent disruptions have highlighted the vulnerabilities of these complex networks, resulting in significant financial losses for companies. It is crucial for organizations to understand the importance of Purchase Order collaboration to effectively manage their direct spend, optimize operations, and mitigate risks.
His comments are the same–he feels that I identify problems but do not adequately define the solutions. He feels that based on his years of experience with a software provider, he has a whizzbang technology. The approaches add waste and increase risk when companies think that they are investing in solutions to do the opposite.
Mobile ERP software is transforming warehouses just like yours. Enterprise resource planning through mobile ERP solutions provides access to real-time business data via mobile devices, enhancing operational efficiency, streamlining workflows, and enabling decision-making across various business functions. There’s a better way.
The consulting team pitches a theme–vision of supply chain best practices, big data analytics, or demand-driven value networks– to the executive team, and a new project is initiated. The first evolution of technologies were built by best-of-breed solution vendors. The first step in the journey is a kick-off meeting.
I have learned that supply chain systems are more complex than I originally thought, and that the relationships between supply chain metrics are nonlinear. In my work on the Supply Chain Index , I see that companies I recognize as doing network design well are rising faster on the list of the Supply Chain Index work.
It’s like having a magic wand that optimizes inventory levels, prevents shortages, and sharpens your demand forecasting—all from your smartphone. Mobile inventory management is a digital solution that combines a mobile inventory app with cloud-based software to track, manage, and optimize inventory in real-time.
That’s where manufacturing inventory management software comes in. The right software can streamline your production, optimize stock levels, and even help you save money. We’re talking real-time tracking, automated purchasing, and a whole lot less stress.
The increasing need for constantly analyzing these trade-offs across the supply chain networks has highlighted the need for digital twins and what-if capabilities in network design solutions. They are more likely to shop for discounts and sales and may delay purchases of some items.
Procurement operations are no exception. In fact, 43% of GPOs that took part in the 2023 Global Chief Procurement Officer Survey cited overall procurement risk had increased significantly as compared to 20% in the 2021 study. Keep reading to learn: What is an online procurement system? Let’s break them down.
Transportation Metrics That Matter Most to Track and Improve Performance : How do you measure logistics efficiency and transportation metrics performance indicators when you are already doing the best job possible? Let’s take a look at these trucking industry trends and what kind of facts they provide. Read the Full Blog Post.
Supply chain execution is required to distinguish between the high runner purchases and the slower-moving products customers are willing to wait for. They would consider more automation, contactless solutions, transparence/greater trust (e.g., Optimize supply chain execution and minimize both delivery time and costs.
There are a number of challenges when adopting and deploying a data analytics solution, and it’s important for organizations to clearly define their goals and objectives before embarking on this endeavor. The question is how to develop and deploy the right data analysis tools and techniques to mine intelligence from that data.
The attendees were sitting on the edge of their seats to hear about the next release of Llamasoft software. The market for network design tools was growing at a moderate rate, and most of the market had invested in technologies from either i2 Technologies (then termed i2 Strategist) or Logictools. The theatre was packed.
I also shared with them my view that companies will ultimately find opportunities for supply chain innovation at the intersection of Software, B2B Connectivity, and Social Networking — a trend best illustrated by the rise of Supply Chain Operating Networks (SCONs). How are companies using SCONs in the real world?
As an analyst in the battered supply chain software market for a decade, it is fun to watch you grow. Clients buy your software because you make it real. I always start the discussion of all software acquisitions with the same statement: the acquisition of software is seldom a good deal for the buyer/user of software.
But companies often have diverging incentives and interests from their supply chain partners, so when they independently strive to optimize their individual objectives, the expected result can be compromised. ”. I think about this discussion with Keith often as I work on the Supply Chain Index and edit the chapters of Metrics That Matter.
To keep customers like my dad satisfied, RGD and Quick-commerce companies need to invest in new technologies to optimize the supply chain and logistics operations. Inventory Optimization. Inventory Optimization involves decisions about the inventory level, the location, and the mix of products. Route Optimization.
With so many moving parts to running an ecommerce business, youll probably build a tech stack of several different apps, platforms, and solutions to power your operations. The software automatically pulls inventory data from your warehouse for a real-time stock count update across all your sales channels.
With so many moving parts to running an ecommerce business, youll probably build a tech stack of several different apps, platforms, and solutions to power your operations. The software automatically pulls inventory data from your warehouse for a real-time stock count update across all your sales channels.
End-to-end supply chain visibility, planning, and execution support software are critical in agile supply chain performance. Theory and practical implications are clear: optimizing each silo does not imply optimizing the end-to-end system. each with discrete plans generated typically in sequential batch runs.
Digital commerce efficiently requires the digitalization of many customer-facing operations and sourcing and procurement. It includes all of its elements: customers, sales channels, products, warehouses, logistics network, and the interactions between them. Accurate and timely reconciliation of purchase orders with receipts.
I am speaking this morning at the Terra Technology conference and doing a book signing of my new book, Supply Chain Metrics That Matter. In parallel, I have been hard at work on a report on multi-tier inventory optimization for the last two weeks. Selling licenses does not translate into implemented software. The sun is rising.
This architecture deliberately pushes beyond visibility to enable action and automation, ultimately working toward what project44 describes as “self-optimized logistics” through “adaptive, automated actions at scale.” This extensive connectivity has resulted in impressive metrics: 1.2
Let’s break down the trade-off between an on-premises and a cloud environment, what it means for your business, and how you can realize the optimal potential of a cloud investment. Your organization can easily communicate and share data across its global supplier network. What do these drivers and advantages mean for my business?
I am a big believer in procurement getting involved as early as possible in new product development based on all the market knowledge available. The worst-case scenario is product engineering developing a new product, selecting a supplier and then telling procurement to get on with negotiation. How often do your purchase orders change?
Transportation Networks and Modal Shifts A good transportation strategy is one of the best ways to reduce emissions. Through networkoptimization. This means consolidating shipments to max out load factors, using route optimization algorithms to minimize distance travelled, and shifting to lower emission transport modes.
Ultimately, what KPIs, as metrics and indicators derived from the set of plans are taken into account and prepared for each scenario. Here, planning solutions with optimization fit very well with this concept. Technology for Effective Planning. of planning and revising according to market dynamics.
And, should it be taken one step further to orchestrate bidirectionally market-to-market in market-driven value networks? The article is written and the story is spun, but the solution offered is a supply-centric solution based on yesterday’s technology. The most successful have used best-of-breed solutions. (We
The new network way of thinking that digitises and maximises enterprise performance quickly. With a network technology layer in place, the key idea is that you begin moving business functions onto the network over time in a systematic way that matches your priorities—while retaining the best of your legacy systems.
Tactical forecasting helps us to think through the questions of long-term asset strategies and sort through network design optimization alternatives. The traditional tools and approaches are not up to the task. Push for new Solutions. This also does not mean that you should abandon forecasting processes. Where to start?
We organize all of the trending information in your field so you don't have to. Join 102,000+ users and stay up to date on the latest articles your peers are reading.
You know about us, now we want to get to know you!
Let's personalize your content
Let's get even more personalized
We recognize your account from another site in our network, please click 'Send Email' below to continue with verifying your account and setting a password.
Let's personalize your content