While conversing with supply chain and operations professionals from various industries, common topics regularly arise relating to the challenges involved with analytics that inform planning and forecasting. Although most companies have ERPs in place to handle their data flow, due to the significant volume of data tracked and how information is captured and stored, it can be challenging to use these systems for daily decision-making processes. As a result, most resort to manual methods such as building spreadsheets to accomplish these planning functions.
There are numerous reported challenges due to relying on these spreadsheets to manage end to end supply chain processes and decisions. Since these reports are not automatically pulling data in real-time, one must pull data reports from the ERP and feed them into the Excel models. Manual errors tend to occur during the data transfer, leading to misleading or inaccurate information. Overall, they are generally not effective at improving reactivity, agility, and planning. Now is the right time to abandon spreadsheets and to find a way to solve these challenges through a digital platform.
In today’s challenging economic times, it is essential to have one system that provides all data needed for proper planning and smart business decisions. For example, when forecasting raw material inventory for the coming year, one may need to look at several different data points. Some example data points are historical orders, volume cost savings, available storage capacity, historical sales performance for SKUs utilizing these materials, and lead time for production. Having a configured report containing these data points will help save a significant amount of time and effort and allow for quick, informed decisions.
Other essential elements of effective planning are responsiveness and agility. Real-time visibility into any problems that arise in supply chain workflows will allow for swift reactions and adjustment to projections as required. Collaboration is also key to effective supply chain data analytics. The Suuchi GRID enables companies and suppliers to be on one platform, allowing communication to flow in real-time and eliminating common supply chain black holes that cause delays and reduce transparency. This connectedness also helps to enable swift resolution of any changes in the plan. Effective analytics will help companies become more customer-centric, improve planning accuracy, achieve a lean supply chain, and increase impact across the value chain. The Suuchi GRID contains fully configurable report views that allow all users access to aggregated insights and make data-driven decisions. This, in turn, drives higher margins, quicker lead time, and higher revenue.
