Date:
Business search better ways to source products
Most businesses are complicated to manage in the best of times. The Coronavarius pandemic is exposing weaknesses and issues, that technology will cure.
This successful business operates eight production plants in the UK, Europe, Russia, Malaysia and Brazil, selling products into almost 100 countries.
The big question now, is how to balance manufacturing with demand from important markets like China and the US.
To manage, the company used to work with “homemade” IT tools mainly based on Excel spreadsheets.
Now they are using cloud-based software accessible over the internet which can model the situation every week.
It allows the firm to use the latest data to explore how demand might start returning in different markets.
Supply chain chaos could last at least another 18 months, and probably longer, putting supply chain planning under the spotlight.
Businesses trying to get back to work may find their overseas suppliers are still in lockdown, which is why information about every firm in the chain is critical.
Dialogue with a customer’s customer’s customer, means you can see ahead of time what’s coming and find alternative suppliers if necessary.
Most businesses monitor supply chains, finance, and sales with different tools.
Joining these silos into one cloud platform lets finance teams peek into supply chains and sales, and be more efficient with money.
And with margins tighter than ever, businesses will need to make better decisions.
More accurate real-time information will help them do this, and keep better track of their decisions’ effects.
Supply chains have trickling onto the cloud and coronavirus will accelerate that move, with technologies like blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI) becoming commonplace.