An accurate digital supply chain is a business’ most valuable asset

An efficient supply chain can benefit businesses in a number of ways, such as enabling a longer-term view of business costs or increased productivity. Therefore, enhancing the efficiency of digital processes within the supply chain can result in greater profits. However, the focus may soon shift to accuracy when supply chain companies fully realise the benefits that this factor can hold. Accuracy is a hugely valuable business metric that mustn’t be overlooked, as its importance only increases within the digital supply chain.

Increasing inventory visibility

Nobody can predict the future, and this rings true for predicting the demand for goods. Inventory management and the costs associated with it can prove a huge burden for all supply chains, and especially for those of retailers. However, by championing accuracy within inventory management, businesses can work towards maintaining balance and preserving the bottom line.

Of course, balancing inventory levels in just the right manner, not too high and not too low, is easier said than done. When inventory levels exceed justifiable consumer interest, businesses risk incurring excessive carrying costs through storage or perished and unsaleable goods, such as in the case of a grocery supply chain. However, having too few goods to hand is just as problematic. A stockout can lead to lost revenue and disgruntled customers, whose orders have not been satisfied in a timely manner. Even the most loyal buyers can be forced to rethink their commitment to a retailer if they are subject to issues stemming from poor inventory management.

Accurately managing the flow of inventory is core to avoiding such issues and maintaining a good relationship with customers. This can be achieved by capitalising on IT solutions that assist in the seamless convergence of supply chain systems. Order management systems (OMS) and more futuristic digital technologies, such as blockchain, can be used to minimise the siloes that cause friction within the supply chain. Unifying the end-to-end processes of a supply chain will not only allow goods to be more accurately tracked, traced, and monitored, but will also facilitate the sharing of data between partners. Seamless data sharing is crucial for allowing the clear visibility of goods up and down the chain, which is necessary for accurately predicting demand.

Aiming for perfect order accuracy

Performance metrics, such as Perfect Order Rates, which describe the number of orders that have been completed seamlessly, are hugely swayed by accuracy and a valuable form of measurement for businesses. By striving towards accuracy in order to achieve a higher Perfect Order Rate, businesses will be able to fully assess the productivity of the systems they have in place, providing them with cost control, increased customer satisfaction and greater efficiency.

Particularly successful in increasing transparency and accuracy are Order Management Systems and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). When connected with the work of supply chain employees, these systems can greatly reduce inaccuracies and improve the quality of employees’ work by minimising the likelihood of errors. In the simplest form, digitising data entry with barcode scanners and enhancing warehouse picking with voice-enabled technology is far more accurate than using a manual, paper-based system. When combined with RFID tags, continually scanned throughout the supply chain, the risks of missed orders or incorrect delivery locations will be greatly reduced.

Investing in the future

While investing in supply chain convergence and digital transformation can seem costly upfront, the associated benefits are unquestionable. Cost savings will be granted in the long-run and immediate accuracies will be experienced through the use of new technologies and mobile solutions within the supply chain. By standardising and converging key supply chain processes, such as transportation and warehousing, costs will be driven down by the resulting increased accuracy. Mistakes come at the detriment of time and money and investing in improving accuracy and mitigating potential issues is a great way to drive down costs, better satisfy customers and enhance productivity throughout the chain.

Increased visibility is just one benefit of this investment, allowing businesses to deliver an entirely demand-driven supply network by harnessing real-time and accurate data from all partners in the supply chain is also key. As soon as businesses update their mobile device fleet using technology that enables real-time collaboration and data-sharing between all aspects of the supply chain, they will experience a positive impact on the bottom line. Attaining this sort of flexibility and communication by integrating supply chain processes is the future of the digital supply chain and the most efficient way for businesses to gain an edge over their competition.

Modernising and digitising supply chain processes is a real possibility for businesses thanks to recent technological advancements. Now, each stage of the process can be recorded and tracked, with any errors being flagged immediately and rectified. Fully utilising this level of accuracy is necessary to not only effectively manage consumer demand, but to drive down costs and improve decision-making.