Relying on the traditional system set up and design for supply chain management systems is becoming increasingly difficult. The old-school ways of doing things are proving ineffective and costly in the modern age. With increasing pressure to offer customers faster, more accessible, more affordable, and customized shipping options, many supply chain managers are looking for new and innovative ways, including systems with a SaaS-based architecture, to help them get the upper hand over their competitors. That’s where supply chain data analytics comes into play.
What Are Supply Chain Data Analytics and Why Are Supply Chain Leaders Looking to Them
Advanced data recordings and analytics help many leading companies improve their supply chain management teams’ smooth and effective operations. Leveraging analytics is always beneficial for businesses. It gives powerful insight into many of the company’s inner workings and highlights potential problems, areas, and weaknesses within the chain. Supply chain data analytics can interconnect many different focus points and minimize risks by giving managers tools and insight into past trends, so they do not try to make choices for the future blindly. It provides the trends and data that can help them make informed choices about preparing for the coming quarter and the season.
Supply Chain Data Analytics Enable Actionable Insights
According to McKinsey & Company, “Logistics has traditionally been very cost-focused, and companies have happily invested in technologies that provide a competitive advantage. Warehousing, in particular, has seen many advances using available ERP data.” The so-called “chaotic” storage approaches are an example of this changing approach where the use of warehouse space is better managed to improve worker efficiency. Another example is high-rack bay warehouses, where the inventory can be automatically reshuffled overnight night to optimize schedules and loading speeds for the following day’s orders. These are just two simple but powerful ways supply chain data analytics is changing the supply chain industry for the better.
Ways Analytics Create a Stronger Competitive Advantage
Supply chain data analytics can uncover many unknown and known risks associated with the supply chain industry. It can also provide a clearer picture of short and long-term goals and serve as a guide in forecasting future risks. Data collection and analysis can accomplish this by identifying patterns and trends across the supply chain while highlighting positive and negative results and turnouts. Risk management across the supply chain is critical to realize net business growth. Here are a few other things supply chain data analytics can do:
- Manage by exception and recognize problems before they occur. When you can see trends as they unfold, it is easier to spot patterns and warning signs that can make it easier to know something is coming. Analysis of data can be a valuable tool to show indications that things are going south and that preventative action needs to be taken right away.
- Increase accountability and improve performance among freight management parties. Supply chain data analytics can help identify problems within teams, groups, and individual employees. The supply chain industry is interconnected, so an issue in one department or one phase of the process can set off a chain reaction.
- Eliminate supply chain inefficiencies to improve overall performance and profitability. Preventing those problems from happening or addressing them as soon as they arise is key to preserving productivity. The analysis makes it all possible and easy, is a vital part of supply chain management, and is something every manager must be willing to do.
Access a Stronger Competitive Advantage With a Unified Tech Stack That Combines Analytics With Visibility
The right supply chain strategy depends on the ability to measure your business’s health, recognize when things are going wrong, and intervene before they do. That’s the power of advanced analytics. And by combining analytics within a unified, SaaS-based resource, companies can finally maximize the systems’ value, eliminate the inefficiencies that continue to plague the industry, and execute more lucrative loads. Contact Turvo online to learn more about your company’s need to increase visibility and put analytics’s power to work now.
