In a world of rapidly evolving and increasingly demanding customer expectations, traditional supply chain processes solutions cannot compete. We estimate that 80 percent of the data that companies need to run their supply chains lives outside their four walls within partner systems. To win in the digital age, companies must operate as agile business networks that create ecosystems of software, process, and partners providing visibility, automation, and insights from source to customer. Companies need to approach digital supply chain transformation end to end, holistically, from planning through execution, and not just within their own enterprises. This transformation must include their external partners; otherwise it’s like putting old spark plugs in a brand new car — it will run, but you will not get the performance you’ve paid for.
A technology platform alone, however, isn’t enough to deliver the change in process or behavior necessary to achieve transformational change and breakthrough results. Success will be driven by the hands-on user community, and the winners will be those who are comfortable with transparency and collaboration and master the art of leveraging the “network effect.” In addition, the ability for the partner community to add new functionality, data, and business processes to the networked supply chain by extending and customizing the core platform will be essential in creating a network of mutual benefit. And lastly, internal and external silos must also be removed and replaced with transparency via “networked intelligence.”
Operating in a network that connects all the supply chain partners, events, and devices capable of driving actionable insights, so that companies can respond decisively to disruptions, seize opportunities, and orchestrate and fulfill demand from anywhere in the supply chain, is the future.