Every company has a different system, and different processes for getting things done. For a company with thousands of trading partners, imagine how much in resources it gobbles up just to manage and keep every partnership aligned.
It wasn’t long ago that supply chain strategies were considered a relatively stable business environment. Where management teams could count on predictable business cycles, and focus their efforts on supply chains and reducing costs. Today however, we live in a different environment, where the evolution of digital business has forced supply chain managers to reconfigure their supply chains into the digital network. By making the leap, managers are now able to unite areas that were previously considered impractical or in some cases impossible.
As businesses begin to navigate the new world of supply chain management, there may not be another medium that is doing more, faster, than the emergence of cloud computing. With the cloud, supply chains will be better suited to deal with volatility and increasing data volumes. The cloud will also increase the opportunities for B2B transactions and improve the maintenance of trading partner relationships.
A recent report by Accenture further corroborated the influence of the cloud by identifying eight ways the cloud is improving supply chains. Through cloud computing and digital platforms, businesses will be able to improve areas such as:
- Business Analysis
- Collaboration
- Intelligence
- Visibility
- Speed and Agility
- Scalability
- Lower Costs
- Data Sharing
Improving efficiencies in these areas will certainly enable businesses to explore opportunities in new and exciting ways.
However, in order to capitalize on the cloud evolution, businesses must continue to invest in their supply chains, systems & processes; as it may soon become essential for companies striving to remake themselves into smarter and faster-paced organizations that can move in lockstep with customers’ rapidly shifting requirements.