The 21st century is witnessing ever increasing global competition and a continuously shifting consumer demand. As a result of these uncertainties, organizations are facing numerous challenges in the supply chain that include demand variability, service improvement, cost optimisation, and reduction of customer lead time.
To survive, the companies need to respond to ever-increasing levels of volatility in the demands and focus on achieving greater and result-oriented decisions using data and analytics.
The 30th Inflection FMCG Supply Chain Innovation Web-Conference and Awards started with a panel discussion moderated by
Ronit Verma, from Redbull.
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Rakesh Agarwal from ACG India discussed the importance of data and how it has helped Supply chain professionals working from home at the time of pandemic where the only source available was data. Having the right set of data can also help in the right decision making, he added. Data can also help in achieving key objectives such as service level.
Sanjay Singhal from ITC who represents the FMCG business shared his views on the importance of data analysis. Data analysis helps in:
- Reducing variability in the forecasting
- Getting the latest information
- Ordering and keeping a track of raw materials
Sunanda Sharma from Allcargo Logistics emphasised that data analysis has helped them with their supply chain & logistics. She said, “Decision-making through data has become a very integral part of day-to-day operations and life now.” Sunanda also stressed enhancing digitization to a large extent.
Sahil Verma from Dabur India added on to the advantages of data analysis and why it is important in the current scenario. The challenge comes from were:
- Sheer complexity of data
- Sheer volume of data
In the current scenario, companies have come up with a lot of contextual products, and the inherent nature of the product stands on a high variability. A close monitoring of data is a must for a new product. Therefore, like other FMCG companies, Dabur has also transpired to weekly sales and operations planning.
Shonik Goyal from Bajaj Consumer Care discussed how the localization of manufacturers and products have helped them in the tough situation. He talked about those uncertain hindrances that arose all of a sudden when a nationwide lockdown was announced and the trucks were stuck mid-way. However, the company launched its own sanitizer, which helped during the pandemic. By May 2020, this led them to utilise upto 80% of their capacity.
The web conference ended with India’s most prestigious awards ceremony where the top Supply Chain Industry leaders & solution providers got awarded.