What do you do if you can't find user-friendly warehouse management software for your team?

Involve various stakeholders in the decision-making process, including warehouse staff, IT personnel, and management. Gather their input on what they need from a WMS to perform their tasks more efficiently.

This happened to us when data had to flow from SAP to Middleware to Exceed 1000 WMS/TMS wherein system crawled during December peak season. We stopped using the WMS, used SAP to print the invoice, reachtruck operators used the invoice as picklists to do manual picking by lot number (good thing stocks on storage racks were putaway acc to product category), move stock to loading bay where checkers used the same invoice to recheck then load to truck. Updating of WMS inventory came days after. We got all the orders out but this could not be sustained.

Happening in the industry, unavailability of user-friendly warehouse management software offered by the supplier. It involves describing unavailability of user-friendly warehouse management, identifying possible causes, evaluating possible causes of the lack of the application system, confirming the most probable cause, and acquiring ways in finding user-friendly warehouse management software and mitigating the problem in operation affected by unavailability of the WMS. Practiced in a company lacking support from a user-friendly WMS, optimizing manually space and operating cost, walking around the warehouse primarily, counting inventory, receiving stocks, storing supply, picking order, documenting delivery receipts, and dispatching orders.

Always include various stakeholders, and prioritise the end user. Your storepersons. They are the ones utilising the system day in day out. It needs to be tailored to them.

Always include various stakeholders, and prioritise the end user. Your storepersons. They are the ones utilising the system day in day out. It needs to be tailored to them.

Investir em solu??es personalizadas pode ser a melhor op??o quando n?o se encontra um software pronto que atenda às necessidades da organiza??o. Especialmente considerando a importancia de um sistema de gerenciamento de armazéns para a produtividade atual das empresas, trabalhar em colabora??o com desenvolvedores de software para criar uma solu??o adaptada às opera??es específicas e requisitos únicos pode ser crucial. Isso n?o só garante que o sistema atenda precisamente às necessidades da equipe, mas também promove eficiência e satisfa??o no trabalho.

Primero evalúa las necesidades específicas de tu equipo. Organiza reuniones con tu equipo para identificar las funcionalidades clave que requieren. Luego, contacta a varios proveedores de software para discutir estas necesidades y explorar opciones de personalización. Considera solicitar demostraciones o pruebas del software para evaluar su usabilidad y adecuación. Además, investiga programas de capacitación y soporte técnico que los proveedores puedan ofrecer, asegurando una transición fluida y efectiva para tu equipo.

Evaluate the level of customer support and training vendors offer. A user-friendly WMS is not just about the software’s interface but also about how well the vendor supports you post-implementation.

In my experience, if warehouse activities are not complex, you should use tools available to everyone (databases, spreadsheets, Excel reports). Additionally, if the required software cannot be obtained, the focus will be on continuous and permanent training, in order to improve the processes with the tools available.

Data can be useful, only if you know what you're looking for. One thing I've found helpful when user-friendly warehouse management software seems elusive is to focus on customizing interface elements within a chosen platform. So, at a small furniture manufacturing company, we initially struggled with a new WMS because the dashboard overwhelmed our team with information. We worked with the vendor to customize the interface, prioritizing frequently used functions with clear icons and labels. We also hid less-used features to declutter the screen. This customization significantly improved user experience and boosted our team's adoption of the new WMS.

In my professional experience, customization plays a pivotal role in optimizing ERP systems for warehouse management. Effective planning prior to implementation is essential for maximizing the system's benefits. Rushed implementations often lead to complications, and it's common to encounter post-implementation issues. Therefore, it is strongly advised to customize the system according to specific operational needs before deployment. Additional value can always be incorporated later to align with evolving business requirements.