Supply chain managers are accustomed to dealing with a wide range of challenges. These can be as simple as weather disruptions affecting container deliveries across the globe, or as complex as geopolitical disturbances, natural disasters, or other unpredictable events that impact the customer experience.
During the pandemic, supply chains faced unprecedented pressure. Shipments were delayed, raw materials ran out, and consumer buying behaviors changed significantly. For many organizations lacking the necessary visibility and predictability, this resulted in crisis: spiraling costs, inventory outages, and a loss of confidence.
Vendors (Local & Foreign) → Logistics → Stores / Distribution Centers (Owned & 3PL) → Last Mile Delivery → Customers
[Not detailed in the original text]
When faced with challenges, supply chain managers should ask: What actionable insights can I leverage to address these challenges? How did we deal with similar challenges in the past? Who did we speak to? What did we do? Can we repeat the same actions? Which suppliers provide similar stock, and how quickly can we switch?
But what if an organization cannot convene across their entire supply chain ecosystem? Visibility into the supply chain—across vendors, transport providers, manufacturers, distribution, stores, and dealers—is the first key to unlocking actionable insights. The second key is predictability: Do I know exactly when each shipment will arrive? If there is a delay, what is the likely knock-on effect? How can I mitigate the impact? Can another supplier step in? Visibility and predictability are essential. So how do you ensure you have both?
If we accept that the objective for both B2B and B2C is to improve the smooth running of the overall supply chain—so organizations can meet consumer expectations and increase customer satisfaction—then there are several steps to take on the journey toward a gold standard. The Publicis Sapient Algorithmic Supply Chain Framework was designed to support this journey.
At the top of the framework, three focus areas are highlighted: Customer Centricity, Operational Excellence, and Digital Productivity.
The framework is structured as a pyramid with the following layers (from bottom to top):
Leveraging data provided by existing systems. Preemptive insights and alerting require data solutions.
On the left side of the pyramid: Data-driven decision-making and optimization
On the right side of the pyramid: Feedback for measurement and insights
If organizations are starting from scratch—which is unlikely, as most have already begun some form of digital transformation—the first step is to strive for operational excellence. This means having complete oversight of the entire ecosystem and removing organizational silos. Businesses need digital technologies and advanced analytics to visualize a product at every stage of its lifecycle in real time, from raw materials through delivery to end customers. This involves replacing spreadsheets with a unified, cloud-based planning system, architected to be highly configurable, enabling all ecosystem members to input data and work to a common set of KPIs. With this visibility, organizations can respond with agility to challenges and disruptions, as they can see what is happening and calculate the likely impact.
Next, attention must turn to the vertical alignment of decisions, ensuring all decisions support the execution of the overall business strategy. This could mean having both short-term and long-term plans. This planning leads to step two: the implementation of Algorithmic Optimization.
Intelligence in the supply chain is about decision making, and all good decisions require good data. To optimize their supply chain, organizations need up-to-date data. Whether examining demand-side data (customer propensity to purchase, return rates, complaints) or supply-side data (fulfillment rates, inventory data), data is essential. Many supply chain planning leaders rely on outdated data to predict the future, which degrades planning quality. By employing the right digital technologies, data latency can be reduced significantly, giving planners a better understanding of real-time events. For example, technology can provide access to data the moment an order is placed, while IoT sensor data enables the supply side to respond to changes in real time.
The supply chain control tower can further integrate these data sets through a data architecture, enabling seamless information flow. This allows planners to bridge the entire continuum from vendors and suppliers, logistics providers, manufacturing, distribution, stores and dealers, eCommerce, last mile logistics, and ultimately, customers.
The Algorithmic Supply Chain enables data-driven decision-making toward customer-centric operational excellence. It replaces rules-based interventions with data-driven algorithms to continually optimize supply chain performance.
At this stage, technology not only enhances processes or enables decision making—it starts to make the decisions. This is achieved through machine learning and interventions that enable the supply chain to become intelligent and self-learning, with minimal human intervention. A true data-driven supply chain will ultimately become self-correcting, able to course correct, make decisions, and implement actions without human intervention. Self-correcting supply chains can predict resolutions to problems rather than just highlighting them. For example, if the supply chain monitors supply levels and stock drops to a certain threshold, the system can automatically raise a purchase order and place an order. Ultimately, the system evolves cognitive capabilities and intelligence for decision-making and problem prevention, entirely free of human intervention.
Control Tower solutions must provide end-to-end visibility of the entire supply chain, along with the capabilities to become a self-correcting supply chain, coupled with decision-making and machine learning. Achieving this requires a logical data architecture, the right experience, and a proven approach—which Publicis Sapient and IBM provide.
Publicis Sapient and IBM have partnered for almost 20 years to deliver solutions that strengthen the world’s supply chains. Our solutions start with early beta participation and include pre-packaged implementation accelerators that shorten time to value.
We are committed to delivering digital supply chain solutions to companies worldwide, leveraging Publicis Sapient’s expertise in digital business strategy, consulting, customer experience, marketing modernization, IT, Data and AI, and deep industry skills, coupled with IBM’s industry-leading supply chain solutions. Our supply chain control tower solution leverages established IBM solutions, Publicis Sapient accelerators, and integrates with existing ecosystem transaction systems to provide end-to-end supply chain visibility and intelligence.
Our Supply Chain Control Tower solution helps unlock significant business value. The Publicis Sapient team has developed a benefit framework to assess benefits up front. Our work with global clients has realized benefits in increased revenue and reduced costs across the fulfillment network, returns, and the demand side.
With supply chains stretched to their limits, there needs to be a paradigm shift in how Operations and IT view performance. While KPIs provide results based on actual events, teams need tools and information to quickly review data, understand how issues were resolved in the past, and collaborate efficiently with all ecosystem partners. Publicis Sapient Control Tower solutions enable users to build dashboards with KPIs used in open "resolution rooms" to resolve and document cases for future reference. The control tower provides a 360-degree view of the supply chain, as well as a granular view for operations teams to focus and act upon targeted areas.
Take a self-assessment of where you are on the continuum. Do you have complete visibility across your supply chain? Have you achieved operational excellence? Are you working with an intelligent supply chain that self-corrects using AI? Have you been able to remove humans from any parts of your supply chain? Wherever you are on your journey, Publicis Sapient and IBM can help you take the next step to future-proof your supply chain.
Discover how to evolve and optimize your supply chain and the ways we can help your business.
Contact us for a review of how our capabilities and IBM Sterling Supply Chain solutions can establish, augment, and extend your digital transformation.
Publicis Sapient is a digital transformation partner helping established organizations get to their future, digitally-enabled state, both in the way they work and the way they serve their customers. We help unlock value through a start-up mindset and modern methods, fusing strategy, consulting, and customer experience with agile engineering and problem-solving creativity. As digital pioneers with 16,000 people and 53 offices around the globe, our experience spanning technology, data sciences, consulting, and customer obsession—combined with our culture of curiosity and relentlessness—enables us to accelerate our clients’ businesses through designing the products and services their customers truly value. Publicis Sapient is the digital business transformation hub of Publicis Groupe. For more information, visit publicissapient.com.
© 2020 Publicis Sapient Corporation.