Supply Chain Analytics

Globalization has drastically altered the business and supply chain landscape in the last two decades. There are more than thrice the number of transnational companies today as compared to the mid-nineties. Supply chains are getting increasingly distributed with low cost sourcing, cheaper manufacturing locations and a larger global customer base.

Functions like R&D and engineering product design are getting outsourced to low cost locations. Product life cycles are getting shorter with larger number of product introductions year on year. Customers increasingly need more choices leading to a proliferation of SKUs. All these factors induce unique supply chain challenges.

Supply chain executives, across the globe, list the following as the biggest challenges facing them:

Supply Chain Visibility: Supply chain visibility is inhibited by a lack of capabilities and an unwillingness to collaborate

Cost Containment: Fighting integral costs as such might be futile, but being flexible can identify cost savings elsewhere

Risk Management: Process, data, & technology are identified as the roadblocks to good risk management, yet they are the key enablers

Increasing Customer Demand: Customers are getting increasingly demanding and have stringent quality and delivery requirements. This calls for more precise synchronization of supply and demand

Globalization: Lead times, delivery, and quality are top challenges, but overall globalization has been a positive boon for all

These challenges need to be mitigated through meticulous supply chain planning and execution. Thus, supply chains need to have –

• Data driven decision making capability
• The ability to alter course pro-actively by sensing shifts in customer requirements in advance
• Clear visibility of key supply chain parameters like order status, cost, inventory, etc.