How to start the supply chain digitalization

Digital is no longer an option, it is the default setting for your supply chain.

Every single day the economy is becoming more digital. Every manufactured product, every born baby, every person moving is registered, analysed and their activities communicated via the web with specific digital technology.

Digital technology offers us 3 steps to make better decisions, get faster feedback and stay ahead of the game.

1.   Track & Trace

Imagine an infinite pair of eyes scrutinizing the globe and casting its gaze out over your supply chain seeing everything ahead of time. Such a capability is not a far stretch as the internet of everything is bringing every human and every object, consumer and activity into the digital realm.

Track & trace is the first step to demonstrate the incredible potential of digital technology.

2. Digitalization

Digitalization is the ability to build new business models to react to events at the speed of light.

All that matters on a chess board is good moves. ('Bobby Fisher')

Just like during a game of chess, digital technology can help you track your supply chain and define the best options on an ongoing basis, through simulation, crafting better moves in order to stay one step ahead of the game.

Because even when you can see everything, through enhanced visibility, some things will always be a surprise. You will need to continuously evolve your business models to anticipate and to prepare for the moves from suppliers, customers and competitors, and tackle new market dynamics and regulatory changes, but also react after events.

Whether it is about designing a new customer experience, sensing and shaping the future demand, or selecting the best supply path, digitalization can help you continuously make the best choices at an incredible speed not available in the analog world.

This capability gives your supply chain the opportunity to see, sense and respond in real-time, helping your company to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

3. Decision-testing Lab

As the world moves faster, more uncertain and subject to new and unknown risks from unpredictable customers, unstable markets and continuous innovation, the opportunity to test and pilot ideas virtually, without deploying and wasting physical resources is increasingly important.

A digital twin is a great testing ground, far away from the real day-to-day operations, where we are protected from risks, the third step in achieving the potential of digital technology.

By creating a copy of the real world , the new digitalized business models provides an unbeatable advantage compared to more traditional analog companies. Thinking big and testing fast becomes accessible for all types of decisions, and trial and error supported by What-if, a way of life promoting innovation.

Digital companies can continuously test, experiment and simulate to try out new concepts and ideas in a protected environment, at a fraction of the cost and with a minimum of risks.

A virtual digital environment opens up various futures, significantly reducing the risks from poor decisions and resulting errors. Mistakes, wrong decisions and experiments in the real world which could be fatal to your company can now be avoided at scale.

Digital technology provides our supply chains with 3 steps to success: track&trace, digitalization and a decision-testing lab, so we can accelerate our response, prevent poor decisions and the resulting lack of competitiveness against our digital competitors.

 Let's therefore use these capabilities wisely!