It might seem odd that EDI, data exchange technology that’s been in existence for more than two decades, is the saving grace for global commerce. But, according to James H. Davis, director of sales for Amosoft, an EDI services and solutions entity, a vast majority of all commerce utilizes EDI. “EDI is older technology that continues to be significant in today’s global supply chain,” says Davis.

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We know about visibility within the supply chain. The lack of visibility can lead to errors, missed deadlines, and other misshapes that lead to financial loss. But how far that visibility should go is still a topic for discussion. Should the supply chain be continuous from the worksheet that your buyers use to calculate quantities and discounts all the way through to your company's Facebook page? And what information should be available at each point? Read more...

We talk a lot about integration. That is, integration of your supply chain components with your enterprise operations and ERP. I don't believe that anyone thinks this is something that can simply happen because it's the best thing to do. The complexity of each of the processes and components that have already been put in place, and the amount of effort each required just to get them to the point of functionality can bring tears to the eyes of those who struggled through them - or at least cause a twitch of pain. The point is that the first steps were not simple ones. Read more...

As the supply chain becomes more intricate, more demanding, and faster moving, margin for error decreases. The complexity of omnichannel retailing in itself means predicting the next order is impossible. It may come from a web catalog, from a retailer, or from a service like Amazon that integrates multiple processes. With the speed and complexity of product demand it's critical to record and automate each transaction when it happens. Because there's no time to go back and record it later. Read more...