The Role of Big Data and Advanced Analytics within your Supply Chain

The convergence of big data and advanced data analytics has become more important than ever for creating and maintaining an agile supply chain. These tools can be used as part of supplier management and manage supply chain risk. Effective and timely KPI reporting, and business scenario planning is necessary for any business operating supply chains in the current challenging economic environment. An efficient and agile supply chain will always be one of the building blocks for unlocking growth in your business.

How to start using data in your supply chain

Initiate the process with a well-defined business goal, whether it's monitoring sales performance, reducing handling errors, enhancing KPI visibility or streamlining report generation. The first step involves measuring key aspects of your business’s supply chain using tools such as Power BI or Qlik to seamlessly integrate, manage, and analyse large volumes of real-time data.

The outcome will be user-friendly interactive dashboards accessible 24/7 on your mobile devices. Stakeholders can proactively address issues on the go, with automated weekly board reports featuring AI-generated commentary awaiting your review in your inbox on a Monday morning.

This strategic approach ensures that the organisation is better equipped to respond swiftly to challenges, make informed decisions and drive growth. Effective data analytics enable all the following business activities:

Data-Driven decision making in your supply chain

Business leaders are served with a single, undisputed version of the truth when it comes to their supply chain data as opposed to a group of manually collated reports and spreadsheets that might contain different versions of source data or different calculation methodologies.

Your organisation is empowered to base decisions on concrete insights and evidence, leading to more informed, accurate and strategic choices.

Operational Efficiency

Data analytics can streamline processes by identifying bottlenecks and inefficiencies and highlighting areas for improvement.

Customer-centric approach

Understanding your customers' needs, preferences and behaviours is key to business performance. Effective reporting on customer demand can help planning and forecasting, ensuring that the correct product is in stock when required. This in turn improves customer satisfaction, drives growth, and allows the supply chain to manage stock more efficiently.

Innovation and product development

Reporting can guide new product development by analysing customer feedback, market trends, and performance metrics. From this, the planning team can ensure that raw materials are ordered as per the anticipated demand and information can be shared with the wider supply chain which enables an agile, quick response to market demands.

Real-time supply chain data

With advanced data analytics tools, organisations can monitor their operations in real time. This visibility empowers leaders to react swiftly to emerging challenges and capitalize on immediate opportunities.

Adaptability and Agility

The ability to adapt to changing circumstances is crucial for survival and growth. Data analytics equips organisations with the agility to respond quickly to market shifts, technological advancements, and emerging trends within the supply chain.

In conclusion, the benefits of data analytics extend beyond basic reporting and have become a cornerstone of modern business strategic thinking. From enhancing decision-making to fostering innovation and customer relationships, data analytics empowers organisations to navigate the complexities of today's dynamic landscape. As industries continue to face economic headwinds and rebuild post-pandemic, embracing data analytics is not just an option, but a necessity for organisations aspiring to thrive in the competitive global market.

Also, as dashboard data is automated the workload and effort previously taken to simply build reports can be re-focussed to take real-time insights from the data to drive actions that can improve service, reduce costs, and drive profitability for the business.

Simplifying imports and exports

In today's rapidly changing global trade landscape, importers and exporters face increasing challenges in complying with international customs legislation and border controls. Whenever goods cross a country's border, a customs declaration similar to a tax return is required. This involves submitting a complex set of data to the national customs authority. It is becoming harder for businesses to guarantee accurate data in their customs declarations. This challenge arises because more than 90% of importers and exporters rely on third-party customs brokers to submit their declarations to national customs authorities on their behalf.

To address this, our Customs Data Analytics Tool simplifies the compliance review process. By analysing your business's data, it identifies potential risks and opportunities to improve compliance. Additionally, it can help your business check for import licensing requirements and provide data for plastic packaging tax and Carbon Border Adjustment Model (CBAM) data to submit returns.

How we can help

We apply the practical experience and knowledge gained from working with clients and our extensive experience working in industry. Using our methodology in delivering operational excellence, our team of experts have designed, configured, integrated, and implemented analytics tools within their clients’ supply chains to deliver value-adding reporting in every market sector.

Reach out to adam.gaunt@bdo.co.uk for further information.