Supply Chain: An update on Challenges and Opportunities
Supply chain disruptions continue to plague manufactures, distributors, and all organizations with products and inventory.
ERP & Related Technology to Manage High Complexity with High OTIF Levels
If there is one thing in common with every client (big or small) in the current business environment which is characterized by significant volatility and uncertainty, it is the increased level of complexity of supply chains. As the old saying goes, you are only as strong as your weakest [...]
Interview with Quality Digest on the Supply Chain Chaos
Who knew supply chain would become a common term throughout the world in early 2020? It certainly has gained a household name during the pandemic, and it continues to be of paramount importance as further supply chain disruptions occur.
SIOP: The Key to Scaling Successfully
According to an informal survey of manufacturers, distributors and healthcare executives, the #1 issue that is top of mind is how to scale successfully. Our clients are growing. For example, those in the building and construction products industry are experiencing significant growth fueled by the pandemic; those in e-commerce [...]
Which Technologies are Gaining Momentum in Supply Chain?
The technological transformation is occurring at an unprecedented pace. What was expected to happen by 2035 is in process now. Industry 4.0 has taken manufacturing and supply chain by storm. Executives are realizing that they must upgrade their technological infrastructure to thrive in 2021. Which technologies are gaining momentum [...]
WMS Efficiency, Resiliency & Metrics
As manufacturers and distributors emerge from the coronavirus pandemic, they are focused on how to grow revenue and become more efficient and profitable to offset the typically negative impacts of COVID. In the situations where business has grown exponentially in consumer industries such as B2C (e-commerce), home improvement and [...]
Automation or Autonomous?
While leading a panel "Building Resiliency in the Supply Chain" with gurus from Georgia Tech, the leading experts in global logistics and associated research, several intriguing concepts arose. Additionally, my Association for Supply Chain Management group led a series of webinars on "Navigating through Volatility" including discussions with several [...]
The Rise of E-commerce & WMS Systems During the Pandemic
July 24, 2020 According to Forbes, COVID-19 accelerated e-commerce growth by 4-6 years. Smart players are taking advantage of the opportunity. Only Amazon takes in more money than Shopify's websites, and analysts are predicting a 75% annual rise in the next five years. The ONLY item in common across [...]
Technologies of Disruption and E-Commerce
I participated on the Amazon Effect: Pass of Play at the Manufacturers' Council of the Inland Empire's Manufacturing Summit. B.J. Patterson, Dan Vest and I had an interesting discussion about the technologies of disruption. Certainly Amazon has led the way with several of these.... For example, e-commerce directly correlates [...]
Why Customer Service Trumps All!
Start with building a customer service culture with your employees to give your clients reason to come back and refer you to others. Although we work on many topics impacting manufacturers and distributors, we have found that the most popular - and vital - is customer service. Prior to [...]