How to Leverage Technology and Data to Strengthen Your Supply Chain Business

When the pandemic hit, every business — large or small — had to adapt and learn to be agile. Technology played a big role in making sure that businesses continue to operate and serve customers.

In our podcast episode with Dave Sayers, Travel, Transport and Hospitality Director for Microsoft, we discussed how technology and data can strengthen a business’ supply chain and provide solutions that not only impact the bottomline but the customers’ lives as well.

Three things to keep in mind when rolling out  a technology solution

Whether it’s for using data, optimizing operations, or saving costs, it’s important to have a clear understanding of why there’s a need for a certain technology for your business because sometimes, you can get really carried away with the value.

Sayers advised to keep these three things in mind when deciding what to adapt and rollout:

• Make sure you’re not implementing something just because the technology exists to do so. According to Sayers, you must keep your big vision in mind, think about your impact, and ask yourself these questions:

1. 1. • What are we truly trying to fix for here? Does anyone in the business truly care about it?
      • Do you have a sponsor, so somebody that really cares about what you’re trying to drive here?
      • If you got into the lift with the CEO, and you’ve got 40 seconds and they say, “Tell me about what you’re working on.” Would they go, “That is amazing! We need that, can you go any faster?” Or would it be, “That’s interesting.” type of response?

• Think about reusability. When building or implementing new things, always be mindful that there’s a big cost involved. For example, if you’re gathering insights from your customers, what could other parts of your business actually use other than for marketing purposes?
• Data’s a new currency. Data, when used strategically, can unlock meaningful opportunities for your business. “Everyone needs a strategy for what they’re going to do about data,” Sayers said. Gone are the days when decisions had to be made based on gut-feel. “If you’re not harnessing the power of data to help you make your decisions, you’re probably not in it for the long haul. There’s just so much that data can do for your business that will just optimize it and ultimately end up with a better end customer experience.

Microsoft’s cutting edge technology has enabled it to be one of the most valued companies in the world. But more than their expertise in tech, it’s their people-focused and outcome-focused solutions that truly made a difference.

Harnessing the power of technology allows your business to not only weather unpredictable events, such as the pandemic, but also helps you optimize operations and impact the lives of your customers.

Tune in to Down to Freight podcast, where we sit down with transportation, logistics, supply chain, and warehousing subject matter experts to discuss the Digital Transformation Project.