While other areas of operation like marketing or manufacturing have relied on advanced analytics for years, supply chain management has been slower to adopt. However, businesses that have applied big data analytics to their supply chain functions have seen a reduction in costs, improved risk management, shorter cycle times, more accurate forecasting, and an overall improvement when it comes to making informed decisions.
Still, supply chain managers are apprehensive when it comes to replacing existing tools. Many wonder if this is just another round of software evolution. Does it require product investment? Can this really help improve the quality of the supply chain? Many feel wary of adopting new technology due to their experience in massive endeavors, such as implementing enterprise resource planning and warehouse management tools.
Implementing prescriptive analytics technology is not a major endeavor supply chain leaders should fear."