As Michael Koploy, ERP Analyst at Software Advice points out in his recent article titled Today’s Supply Chain Secret Sauce: More Visibility, Fewer Silos, the need for increased visibility in the supply chain is paramount to maximum automation, cost savings and increased revenues. Transparency in supply chains enables “access to accurate data in real time (which is) vital to an organization’s ability to plan, analyze and react.”
With companies hanging on to their Excel Spreadsheet addiction for procurement, it’s no surprise that organizations adopting bi-directional workflows in supply chain software increase dealer satisfaction.
Koploy recommends ditching spreadsheets and advises organizations to “adopt a centralized site of software solutions that connect various departments, supplies and distribution partners.” Such software should include a few core requirements to capitalize on visibility:
- Automatic identification and data capture
- Visible inventory data that is accurate, up to date and accessible across the supply chain.
- Programmable and pre-set notifications that alert pertinent groups and empower increased collaboration.
Imagine a dealer-distributor relationship. When the dealer is able to connect to distributor inventory in real-time, there is no need to stock various parts just in-case someone needs them. With a transparent supply-chain and bi-directional workflows, dealers can see inventory availability and pricing in real-time, saving countless hours of calling suppliers to source parts. This allows dealers to focus on servicing the customer, which in turn increases customer satisfaction and revenues.
So what exactly is bi-directional workflow?
There isn’t a Wikipedia definition yet, but I believe it is something like this:
Think about Google Docs where multiple people can edit the same document at the same time. Google automatically saves changes without prompting by the user in order to increase efficiency and provide more security and convenience.
Bi-directional workflow is possible with peer-to-peer technology, since systems can be connected to each other in real-time over the peer-to-peer network. This enables real-time access to data including any changes that are made on either system. The information is constantly up to date for both systems and workflow is said to be bi-directional as the two systems co-exist and share access to data that is relevant to both.
In a bi-directional supply chain, production flow is bi-directional, meaning the production goes not only from distributors to dealers, but from dealers to distributors. Bi-directional supply chains are mostly JIT (Just in time). That means that ditributors cannot regulate the delivery of inputs from the dealers, they come at a time of demand, which is a random occurrence. Dealers expect their inputs to be processed immediately or in a short amount of time. Bi-directional supply chains have implicit expectations for value added. Value added by distributors/suppliers can be easily monitored by the dealers/customers. Dealers see real value in seeing changes made in the supply chain in real-time.
Bi-directional workflow improves accuracy, save times and increase dealer satisfaction
Dealers can be instantly aware of inventory pricing and availability, enabling better cost estimates and work orders to the end customer. This improved inventory management enables huge cost savings due to time savings on procurement practices and this obviously increased revenue.
Success Story: Electrolux Australia Automates Its Dealer Network [PDF]
Today's buyers have high expectations for customer service, and technology plays a key role in enabling dealers and distributors to provide their customers with a positive experience.
Netfira’s business-to-business (B2B) software solution helps keep buyer and seller back-office systems synchronized with order automation. Our solution provides dealers and distributors with REAL-TIME inventory visibility and an automatic connection to sellers. Buyers can then search seller inventory at no cost. Netfira streamlines processes and automates integration of sales orders, invoices, and purchase orders into distributors' and dealers' existing systems. The REAL-TIME inventory and order automation feature of the Netfira Solution reduces product returns and increases dealer satisfaction.
Contact us to learn more about Netfira’s REAL-TIME inventory visibility solution.
How do you solve your supply chain visibility challenges? Please let us know in the comments below.