The pandemic has initiated a new age of strategy and implementation in the digital supply chain industry.

One year has gone by since the pandemic became global and severely impacted many industries and businesses. The world is still recovering from the implicit losses financially and emotionally. However, this has been an excellent opportunity for several companies to reflect on the shortcomings of their methods and processes that could not combat the unexpected scenarios brought about by the global pandemic and make their supply chain mechanism more agile and resilient for the future.

Let’s take a look at the technological factors that have proved to play an essential role in providing a competitive advantage in the digital supply chain industry, as witnessed during this crisis.

1. Autonomous Supply Chains: It implies formulating a digital simulation of the existing supply chain mechanism that includes every relevant data point in its architecture, including all suppliers, customers, and service providers. Companies can test the supply chain procedure in various scenarios using advanced algorithms and robust artificial intelligence platforms to comprehend its reactions and gain actionable insights. Based on those results, management can take crucial steps to increase their profit margins and optimize their supply chain mechanisms.
2. Robotic Process Automation: The pandemic has demonstrated that if your operations are heavily reliant on human labor, then it can prove to be a massive disadvantage to you. Robots or Robotic Process Automation (RPA), if configured and programmed accurately, can perform critical supply chain functions smoothly without tiring or falling sick, unlike humans. This factor will immensely improve the procurement and inventory processes and give companies incorporating the technology a significant edge.

3. Data-driven decision-making: In an era where businesses are heavily reliant on data analytics, and machine learning for efficiency, inefficient data management methods can be costly to any organization. A quality decision intelligence system can leverage data to optimize inventory levels, enhance demand forecasting, and strategize cost reduction with extreme precision.

The pandemic has taught us a precious lesson. Unless any company starts integrating relevant technologies to their supply chain solutions to the existing problems, they will continue to struggle in maintaining and expanding their market share in this dynamic industry.