How to Improve Your Business’s Supply Chain Process

Amazon Prime has changed the way everyone views selling products. Nowadays, customers expect you to deliver items within hours and in perfect condition, otherwise, they feel like they aren’t getting the raw end of the deal.

To ensure you meet their expectations, you will want to improve your supply chain process. There are many tweaks you can make to your warehouse management and other aspects of your supply chain to make this happen. Keep reading for some tips to help you upgrade your supply chain.

1. Build Good Relationships With Your Supply Chain

Communicate, communicate, communicate. Don’t leave anything up to chance and assume that your suppliers would already know what your business is going through.

The more you can stay in touch with your suppliers throughout the process, the more in the loop they will be in case something goes wrong. If a shipment is delayed or if there is a shortage of an item, everyone needs to be aware of this asap. This will reduce the chance of mistakes down the line.

You also need to realize that certain suppliers might be great at the beginning of your relationship, but they might turn out low-quality products or shoddy workmanship after a while. It’s okay for you to deem them as a no-go at this point and search for someone else, after having a conversation with them about it.

Finding dependable suppliers will take time, but once you have them, your supply chain process will improve immensely.

2. Move Towards Using Technology in Your Warehouse and Beyond

This is a given nowadays, but a lot of warehouses balk at using technology because they are worried about errors being committed by robots or other AI tech.

Well, take a number from how Amazon, Costco, and Walmart run their warehouses. Yes, some humans are going to be necessary for running a successful warehouse, but you will also want to add technology into the mix to level up your supply chain.

One example is doing a commercial labeling system upgrade in your warehouse, so the labels are clearer and aren’t causing any confusion or errors. This is just one of many ideas for you to implement in your warehouse.

3. Supply Chain Software Will Also Help

There’s just so much going on throughout your supply chain process that no human or team can take care of it on their own. Why do that to your employees in any case?

Use the power of AI and software to upgrade your supply chain process. There are dozens of software out there right now since supply chains have become so important in ensuring the global economy functions at its peak.

The great thing about putting these supply chain software in place is that you also get the help of supply chain experts since a lot of these supply chain software reps have immense experience in setting up powerful and flexible supply chains. Use their knowledge to improve your supply chain process, even if they are coming up with ideas that seem beyond your current worldview.

4. Don’t Forget to Assess Your Supply Chain Process Constantly

At no point will you be able to sit on your laurels and think that you’ve done everything you can for your supply chain process and you don’t have to make any other improvements anymore.

Supply chain management is all about constant improvement until the end of time. That’s why you should build this assessment and reassessment into your team’s schedule at least every quarter.

Use this time to figure out what’s working in your supply chain and what you need to discard and reconfigure.

5. Think About Adding Green Initiatives Throughout

You should try and go green in your supply chain, not only because it’s better for the environment, but also because it can be lucrative for your business in many other ways.

There’s the possibility of using your green initiatives in sales and marketing materials to entice new customers, and also to attract new employees who are interested in joining a green company like yours.

Also, despite common belief, green initiatives don’t suck cash from your business but save your business money. There are many ways to implement these green initiatives into your supply chain, all the way from the equipment you use, the fuels you partake in, and the eco-friendly packaging you utilize.

6. Focus on Warehouse Management Techniques

The first thing you can do for this is to use a warehouse management system (WMS). This will integrate with your inventory management software (IMS).

And also will allow you to track your inventory from concept to the point when it reaches your customers. This kind of supply chain management is a lot more visible and prevents stockouts and backorders. You will also notice that your carrying costs will be reduced.

Another advantage of using a WMS and IMS together is that you will have detailed analytics and reports on your supply chain business which you can use to assess your business and improve it. You can use it to forecast your inventory better and make better business decisions in general.

Invest in Your Supply Chain Process

Are you ready to spend some time improving and upgrading your supply chain process? It’s not going to be an easy task, of course.

Follow the tips above and also use the knowledge of supply chain experts in your field to make constant improvements to your supply chain.

If you are interested in reading other related articles on business and supply chain management, please browse through our website.