Digitising decisions ‘ doesn ’ t mean replacing existing technology Fontes continues : “ It ’ s important to note that digitising decisions for a specific supply chain process does not always require replacing existing technology , or choosing an alternative business intelligence or planning system .” He points out that data quality , data access and other integration issues “ won ’ t delay decision intelligence projects ”. “ WHEN A COMPANY DIGITISES DECISION MAKING , THE CONTEXT FOR A DECISION IS CAPTURED , AS WELL AS ITS OUTCOME ”
TECH & AI
Hybrid working brings more complexity From Fontes ' perspective , hybrid work brings more layers of communication – such as chat apps , video conferencing , collaboration tools . These , he says , add both complexity and delay , and as such , organisations are struggling to keep up with the number of decisions they must make daily .
“ Yet , when a company digitises decision making , the context for a decision is captured , as well as its outcome ,” he says . “ Transactional systems are updated automatically , and each decision becomes part of the data model used for future recommendations .”
“ So by removing manual steps and recording the context of decisions , digitisation helps teams work more efficiently , regardless of whether they ’ re in-office or remote .”
When it comes to putting digitised decision-making solutions in place , Fontes reveals that companies ’ approaches vary . Many supply chain teams will “ start by evaluating the challenges they face and identifying where processes and actions can be streamlined or automated ”; others “ start by addressing one area of complexity in their business where decision making is requiring a lot of time ”, such as with processes , data models , and spreadsheets – all areas that lend themselves to automation .
He says a good guideline is to “ prioritise specific areas with high strategic impact and less complexity , and then build a roadmap to address the other challenges ”.
Digitising decisions ‘ doesn ’ t mean replacing existing technology Fontes continues : “ It ’ s important to note that digitising decisions for a specific supply chain process does not always require replacing existing technology , or choosing an alternative business intelligence or planning system .” He points out that data quality , data access and other integration issues “ won ’ t delay decision intelligence projects ”. “ WHEN A COMPANY DIGITISES DECISION MAKING , THE CONTEXT FOR A DECISION IS CAPTURED , AS WELL AS ITS OUTCOME ”
FRED FONTES HEAD OF GROWTH , AERA TECHNOLOGY supplychaindigital . com 115