The status quo of sourcing is changing, and this adaptation has recently been accelerated due to the on-going impact felt around the world from the fragility of our supply chain networks.  

Technologies such as machine learning and automation are being pushed even further to digitally transform the way we do business, with software companies focussing efforts on solutions to improve efficiency and increase visibility in business processes.

By minimising operating costs and managing inventory efficiently you can transform your business to operate at its very best but is your supply chain fully optimised to ensure your targets are met? Optimising your supply chain delivers products at lower cost with higher profit levels, ensuring you’re bringing in maximum revenue, whilst maintaining customer satisfaction.

Here’s five ways to optimise your supply chain:

  1. Inventory management
    • Having an accurate view of your stock levels is important to cut costs in your business and ensure you meet demand. The key is to maintain stock levels without overstocking, as this can result in additional buying, shipping, and storage costs. Implementing stock management software will help achieve lean inventory by managing stock in real time, eliminating time-consuming manual processes, and allowing your team to focus on other value add tasks. Implementing fully integrated software, such as our procurement solution, Freshmarkets, ensures your stock management is tip top, leaving your team productive with time to focus on delivering customer satisfaction.
  2. Forecasting 
    • Predicting demand, supply and pricing is key to inventory management and allows accurate profit forecasting for the year ahead. Combining data from past supply with insights on demand and reacting to economic events can help you build a good picture of your business goals and targets. Business Intelligence gives you a granular view of your business operations. Clients that use our Freshmarkets purchasing system have access to a customised BI dashboard, developed with our in-house BI team and their dedicated account manager. Through Power BI, clients can access the data they need easily on any device, enabling them to view live reports at any time. These reports give valuable insight for example, you can compare spend across multiple sites and use the data to highlight where potential savings can be made.
  3. Risk mitigation
    • Reducing the number of sole-source suppliers to your organisation is one way to mitigate risk. With the recent supply chain disruption, it has shown that relying on one supplier can be risky and could disrupt your business, leaving you unable to fulfil  customer deliveries which affects both your reputation and revenue. Ensuring you use reputable accredited suppliers to reduce the number of complaints and to maximise customer trust in your product is key. At EF-group our network of local, regional, and national suppliers protect our supply chain so if one supplier has issues with a delivery another is ready to step in.
  4. Customer experience
    • According to recent marketing studies, 50% of purchasing decisions are made based on word-of-mouth recommendations. Streamlining processes, giving a fast and seamless service protects the customer experience which means they’re more likely to recommend your services. Customers now expect short lead times and a more responsive service, which puts pressure on supply chains. This is where humans and tech go hand in hand, the greater use of technology to combat the complex manual process leaves the humans to focus on what matters…. providing the most efficient service for your customers.
  5. Minimising operation costs
    • This can be a minefield, which part of your business do you start with? By reviewing each area individually, you will find opportunities to drive efficiencies and manage costs. Key focus areas could be space optimisation, packaging reductions and improving transportation costs, perhaps by reducing mileage or implementing electric vehicles. Another key way to ensure you keep costs in check is by regularly benchmarking, this ensures you are continually sourcing goods at the best possible price, which we do for our clients when we source goods for them.
To find out more about EF-group and how we can revolutionise your procurement please give our Group Sales Director Steve Walker a call on 07837 212719 or drop him an email stevewalker@ef-group.co.uk.

gg