By Zencargo
Adopting a data-driven approach to the supply chain will help teams get the right goods to the right places. But what is a data-driven supply chain and how do you build one?
A data-driven supply chain is when teams have a fully integrated view of what’s happening at every stage of a product’s journey.
Here’s how to build one:
1. Have one source of truth
From Google Sheets to emails to third-party solution providers; most businesses have shipment data scattered across multiple platforms and teams. Data-driven supply chains simplify their data by bringing it together into a single source of truth.
It’s your decision whether you integrate all or some of the shipment data. We recommend merging similar information from different sources to improve your reporting.
To manage cultural challenges when collecting data, ensure that teams understand that cooperating will lead to easily accessible information in one place.
2. Look at the wider data landscape
What data don’t you have? How can you get this data? Answering these questions can highlight what you need to work on and the limits of your model.
For example, you may not have weather data. This means that whatever insights you gather, you will need to take into account knowledge of typhoon season in Asia and how it can affect schedule reliability.
The richer your data, the better informed you are to make the best decisions to optimise your supply chain outcomes.
3. Make sure everyone is on the same page
Each team will use different terminology, which can cause alignment issues. A supply chain team may use ‘landed costs’, but a merchandising team might label this term differently.
Compiling a data glossary ensures everyone involved in the supply chain process has confidence in their understanding of data so they can better understand what it actually means to make meaningful improvements within the supply chain.
Find out how you can obtain supply chain data on a centralised platform by joining Zencargo’s next product demo webinar and see how you can begin to build a data-driven supply chain.
