TECH OUTLOOKDecember - 20209technology resources in many supply chain companies often reside in on-premise tech centers, under a desk or in a server closet, making them difficult to access in a quarantined world. Look for a move to SaaS decision tools and the data cloud as a major trend post crisis· Centralized supply chain planning--too many people are making daily decisions across many locations in companies, leading to suboptimal results, especially in supply chain planning and execution processes. Look for a drive to centralize disparate decision making via supply chain control towers.· Warehouse process and vehicle automation--restricted immigration and an aging workforce coupled with low birth rates will create labor shortages post crisis. Look for a new wave of automation--robots and wearables--inside facilities and in trucking· Gig economy--drivers and local delivery companies will become major players in the delivery space. Look for the emergence of numerous, better run operations serving local markets.· Ability to pivot--static supply chains network designs evolve to dynamic networks with much more flexibility. Look for advanced planning tools to both design and manage configurable networks: Emergence of 5G technologies--will create the ability to side-step aging tech infrastructure that would be prohibitively expensive to replace by creating hyperlocal networks for plants and DCs. Look for improved ability to precisely measure consumer demand, cut waste, monitor suppliers, and react in real time as situations changePathogen-free supply chains--pathogens can and will `travel' in supply chains. Look for provenance and decontamination technologies to better track who touched/transformed product as they made their way through supply chains.What will be the path forward for supply chain technology? Emerging supply chain decision tools incorporating AI/ML and real-time data that sit on top of existing enterprise systems can yield significant improvements in costs and service. Here are a few examples of new supply chain technologies in use across the supply chain:ProductionFANUC (factor automated numerical control) in Japan, where robots produce other robots without the presence of humans, uses AI to improve process efficiencies.Customer ServiceRPA Labs automates logistics work activities that are repetitive, time-consuming, and no longer require human labor (think customer queries, rate quotes).ProcurementLevadata is using AI to identify pricing seasonality in high tech procurement processes to develop best practices in supplier contractingExecutionWise Systems seamlessly manages around `day-of' issues ­ traffic, weather, blocked loading docks--by using AI to predict intra week variations in local delivery routes PlanningAntuit uses machine learning and leverages social and contextual data to build models that improve forecast accuracy. Though it can take a long time for new technologies to create useful drugs, do not give up the quest--keep working on it
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