D365

How Microsoft's ERP System works with the Retail Industry

How Microsoft’s ERP System works with the Retail Industry

How Microsoft’s ERP System works with the Retail Industry 700 500 Xcelpros Team

The Changing Retail Industry

With the rapid pace of changes in the retail industry, especially some of the more dramatic changes that have emerged over the past few years, it’s become increasingly important to have full control over your business. Now more than ever this means investing in software that supports the changes seen across the retail industry in recent times, and into the future.

Today’s retail consumers are much more informed, and looking for a safer, more streamlined experience regardless of purchases made online or in-person at brick and mortar locations, which are still very much in demand. The omnichannel shopping experience is quickly becoming a key point to longevity in the retail industry. This means offering a safe and consistent shopping experience, integrating your CRM, ERP and eCommerce systems for a more unified view of your customers, and being able to quickly scale and adapt to support new applications and services as they develop.

96%

of emerging businesses that excel in their respective industry rely on some form of ERP solution.

Source: Aberdeen Group

15%

of executives believe AI could fundamentally change which companies win and lose.

Source: UST SmartOps, 2020

36%

Small businesses with ERP systems can make decisions with 36% less time than they did without the solution.

Source: Aberdeen Group

This has become a great opportunity for retailers to modernize and streamline their operations which can lead to greater long-term profitability as the industry continues to evolve. For this, businesses need a complete solution like Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 Commerce, the evolution of their Dynamics 365 Retail product line, able to offer a complete and unified solution across different channels with maximum scalability.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce

One of the first words when it comes to enterprise planning, Microsoft has been developing their Dynamics 365 products for many years, and the latest version of Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 Commerce offers unparalleled access to a lot of cutting-edge technology for businesses in the retail industry.

Microsoft’s newest retail ERP solution helps streamline many different areas like merchandising, inventory and order management, warehousing, financials and more. In fact, the exact same technology powering Dynamics 365 Commerce has been driving Microsoft’s storefronts around the world for years to deliver a secure, scalable, compliant solution that offers a world-class shopping experience.

Book a Consultation to get started with no-obligation trial of Microsoft 365 Commerce.

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These are just a few more ways Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce supports businesses in the retail industry.

Figure: 1Microsoft Dynamics 365 Retail ERP Solutions

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Retail ERP Solutions

Omni-channel shopping experience

With today’s consumers focused on quality, the right software helps ensure the experience is the same across different devices online and in-store with the ability to offer more increasingly popular options like Buy Online Pickup In-Store (BOPIS), curbside pickup and next or same-day shipping. These trends are becoming staples for many looking to avoid long lines and queues.

Powerful customer insights

Even now, customer data has become extremely valuable for driving AI and ML solutions to create personalized experiences designed to boost sales and increase customer retention. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce is built with AI and ML in mind to further enhance customer engagement along with the ability to integrate to other Microsoft products like Dynamics 365 Customer Insights and Dynamics 365 Fraud Protection.

Warehouse and inventory management

Growing to be equally important is the ability to more accurately predict and manage product stock levels along with up-to-date pricing. Today’s customers don’t want to chase phantom stock counts from store to store when they can easily give their business to another retailer, right from the comfort of their home.

Powerful Integrations

Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 products have always been highly adaptable and configurable, able to integrate with numerous existing applications and services offering a unified experience across different platforms. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce is no different, able to directly connect to a multitude of modern and legacy systems for reporting, compliance, and more to help protect your investment in previous systems.

What’s Next

As emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) and Augmented Reality (AR) continue to advance, the retail industry will continue to be fraught with the challenge of trying to keep up – including providing modern, personalized shopping experiences to today’s savvy consumers to help retain loyalty across different channels. More and more businesses in the industry are looking for technology partners that understand their challenges and can offer support for modern solutions.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce is a scalable solution that can be made to work for anything from SMBs to larger multi-brand or multi-company organizations helping Increase your revenue and brand loyalty with better engagement. Better focus your operations to reduce costs and boost efficiency over your entire supply chain.

Overview of Chemical Distribution in Microsoft Dynamics 365

An Overview of Chemical Distribution in Microsoft Dynamics 365

An Overview of Chemical Distribution in Microsoft Dynamics 365 700 500 Xcelpros Team

At a Glance

Chemical distribution companies have several requirements when facing challenges in today’s business world. They include:

  • Needing an overview of end-to-end supply chain processes including solutions to increase operational efficiencies
  • Getting an overview of planning and inventory management for bulk chemicals and packaged chemicals
  • Understanding best practice depictions of typical chemical distribution processes

By the Numbers

Chemical distribution companies today are focusing their efforts on optimizing supply chains, warehouse and floor operations. They function as a supply chain partner, anticipating customer needs and helping them stay ahead of their competition.

  • The chemical distribution industry is on a massive growth curve. Grand View Research states the industry’s value was $247.1 billion in 2020.
  • The expected compound annual growth rate from 2020 -2028 is 4.0 percent.
  • There’s a growing need to set your processes straight and streamline your supply chain with sufficient controls in place to keep up with the pace of the market.

4 Key Processes

There are 4 key processes that matter to a chemical distribution company:

  1. 1.Order-to-Cash: The ability to take a customer order efficiently and deliver it by the customer’s deadline.
  2. 2.Procure-to-Pay: The ability to manage purchase orders and receiving departments efficiently, optimizing spending on procurement to avoid high capital inventory spending.
  3. 3.Inventory Management: Inventory Management: Maintaining optimal inventory levels without excessive capital spending.
  4. 4.Break Bulk Operations: Break Bulk Operations: Breaking down bulk shipments such as tankers and large shipments of individual products into smaller pack sizes.

User Story: Warehouse Chaos

Survival in a highly competitive world requires chemical distribution companies to efficiently organize and design their warehouses. Internal routes must be optimized to let manned and robotic pickers grab inventory for break bulking, repacking or outbound shipments. Inventory storage needs to be precisely planned, especially while handling hazardous chemicals.

Too familiar is the chemical customer with multiple warehouses. They store bulk and packaged chemicals stocked in rows, racks and bins spread across multiple aisles. Some of these chemicals require temperature controls. Many have hazardous condition restrictions.

It’s common for companies to focus on meeting the basics and storing things wherever they fit. No warehouses are organized, making it difficult to track where incoming product was stored and gathering items to fill customer orders.

Making matters worse are poor operational practices. For example a high volume order involved taking some contents from a 55 gallon bulk chemical drum. Operators move the drum to Staging, remove what order the order required and then leave the drum at staging. No effort is made to record the location or remaining quantity. At best, inventory numbers are manually written on a tag attached to the drum, not entered into the computer system.

This method creates many inefficiencies later in the production process. They include:

  1. 1. Inefficient use of space. The Staging area was already small. It was made worse by leaving drums and totes for break-bulk orders, causing Staging to grow continually.
  2. 2. Inefficient use of time. The system showed the drums were at their primary inventory location. Operators unable to find items there had to manually check each tag. Some operators eventually knew to look for inventory in the primary or staging locations. Other workers wasted time looking for the items.
  3. 3. No inventory tracking method.
  4. 4. Inaccurate inventory counts. Inventories were constantly adjusted for missing or untraceable inventory. Lack of accurate counts meant ordering more supplies to fulfill customer demands.
  5. 5. Over ordering meant not having enough space to store the extra bulk material.

The chaos caused by not returning bulk items to their designated location can make conducting a physical count a Herculean task. With missing inventory placed at unplanned staging locations, it added to the warehouse imbalances.

An Ideal Journey

Organizing any operation-chemical manufacturing or distribution—starts with analyzing its operations, growth initiatives and business goals for the next five years.

Ways to make warehouses more efficient include:

  • Review existing warehouse storage and design in terms of locations and inventory groupings.
  • Using federal, state and local safety guidelines based on chemical properties, create procedures stating where chemicals must be stored.
  • Number locations by aisle, row, rack and bins.
  • Place the fasting moving items close to the shipping area.
  • When receiving bulk containers, label them with a scannable barcode.
  • Label the put away locations and staging locations so checkers can quickly and easily count quantities in a specific location.
  • Provide workers with mobile devices that let them scan barcodes providing real time work details and order status updates.

Processes and Procedures in the Chemical Industry

Chemical manufacturing and distribution companies have many similarities in terms of receiving, inventory, planning, shipping and warehouse management.

The basic processes within the chemical distribution industry are centered more around warehouse management, inventory, planning, repacking, light manufacturing, shipping and receiving. Chemical manufacturing adds route operations, resources and work in progress (WIP) testing.

Inventory management processes in a chemical distribution company start with Purchasing and Receiving.

Purchased products are bulk or packaged chemicals, packaging items, labels and other supplies. These products normally come from an approved primary vendor or supplier.

Reporting and analytics shows two statistics that determine the effectiveness of the primary supplier:

  1. 1. The buyer’s decision to switch to an alternate vendor for a specific purchase.
  2. 2. The number of times this change occurs.

Vendor ratings showing the percentage of purchases delivered on time and in full is also important to buyers.

Figure: 1High-level Flow of Purchase Order-to-receive Process

High level flow of purchase to receive process

The next major process is inventory and warehouse management.

The most efficient warehouses are organized by aisle, row, rack, bin, lot or batch. They have pallet ID tags and box IDs. Materials managers seeking better organization find that using a license plate number for rows, racks, bins and pallets works best. Using scannable barcodes lets users with mobile devices easily retrieve inventory.

Using this method reduces lost inventory, incorrect counts and locations. It also makes tracking individual products faster and easier such as when repacking items.

Labeling all warehouse locations is also critical when streamlining operations. Two common methods are Serpentine and Standard. Most companies follow a four location naming standard with aisle, rack, row and bin.

Figure: 2Layout of a Typical Warehouse in a Chemical Distribution Company

Layout of a typical warehouse in a chemical distribution company

The third main process used by chemical distribution companies is capacity planning or master planning.

These companies should plan to break bulk and repack, changing labels at each stage. Master plans help track human resources, label printers, packaging machines and other devices.

Typical operations such as repackaging or breaking bulk require those stations and their operators. These functions cannot occur when either is unavailable.

Distribution companies seeing fast moving or express items require planning that is more agile. Agility requires operating on a net change mode instead of completely recreating set-ups every hour. Having that flexibility helps planners make key decisions and set priorities that optimize the work effort.

Figure: 3High-level view of Master Plan in Microsoft Dynamics 365

High level view of master plan in Microsoft dynamics 365

The fourth major process is production and packaging.

Production in chemical distribution companies uses light manufacturing operations such as repacking. A bulk container is opened and quantities required to fill an order are removed.

Typical work orders include operations such as filling, packing, labor, quality and Labeling. The yield provides the quantities and costs to produce each container.

Labeling is the fifth major process.

Labeling is an additional operation on the shop-floor. Including an integrated label management solution included in normal workflows ensures merchandise is properly tracked.

Figure: 4High-level Repack Process in Chemical Distribution

High-level Repack Process in Chemical Distribution

The last two steps are order management followed by billing.

Once inventory is available, warehouse pickers should select the fastest route that lets them gather all items to fill that order. Items are then packaged, labeled and wrapped. Typically, they include certificates of analysis, safety data sheets, a packing slip and a bill of lading. Smaller orders often include a commercial shipping service tracking number.

As soon as everything is packed and shipped, the final step is sending the customer an accurate bill.

Figure: 5High-level Customer Sales Order to Shipment in Chemical Distribution

High level customer sales order to shipment in chemical distribution

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What a Distribution Company Looks Like in Microsoft Dynamics 365

Below is a quick view of what a chemical distribution company would look like in Microsoft Dynamics 365 assuming all required raw materials are available.

01.Products

This information is maintained within the Product Information Management (PIM) module. For a chemical distribution company, it is the heart of supply chain and manufacturing.

At a high level, Product falls into these categories:

Item Group Type Defination
Item – RM Raw Material Ingredient Purchased
Item – INT Intermediate Produced as Part of the Formulation
SKU Finished Product Containerized Finished Product through a Formula
Label Package – Raw Material Labelled Raw Material
KIT Finished Product Packaged into 1 case with same SKUS
BOX Package – Raw Material Package Purchased
Container (Tote, Drum, Etc.) Package – Raw Material Package Purchased
Package (Cases, Kits, Etc.) Package – Raw Material Package Purchased
Services Services  
Supplies Expensed Packaging Material, Lab Supplies, Office Supplies, Etc.  

In addition, companies should define products requiring tracking by batch, location and license plate. These items may also require coverage settings, lead times and other attributes such as chemical properties and label elements such as hazard statements, pictograms and hazard symbols.

02.On-Hand Inventory

Having a detailed view of inventory by batch, serial number, site, warehouse, location and license plate number for each product provides an inventory snapshot. The data applies to multiple roles such as planners, buyers, customer service representatives and materials managers.

D365 can also produce an inventory value report. It shows inventory quantity and total value plus the physical and financial cost by unit. Having a view into on-hand inventory value for both inventory and WIP can then be reconciled back to General Ledger.

In Dynamics 365, there are many different ways of slicing and dicing inventory. One screen is an on-hand list view displaying all available inventory based on dimensions. Selecting the dimension displays the site, warehouse, location, batch and serial number.

On-Hand Inventory step 1

On-Hand Inventory step 2

03.Sales Orders

D365 is versatile in terms of orders for chemical products, kits or cases. In Microsoft D365, customers can have products shipped to them or directly to their customer.

This process starts when customer service creates a sales order with the customer’s PO number. They add the products being shipped to the customer. The order can include specific customer instructions and notes. Notes and attachments can be set for printing on specific documents such as the packing slip or bill of lading.

For distribution, Microsoft Dynamics provides a Distributed Order Management (DOM) indicator. It provides a complete picture of inventory across the warehouse and ensures the order processes correctly.

Sales Orders Step 1

Sales Orders Step 2

Sales Orders Step 3

04.Master Planning

Depending on how the packaged items are set up for planning (e.g., min/max, requirement or period) with lead times and calendar setup, companies can run a master plan in a regeneration mode. This mode displays all supply, demand, planned supply and forecasted demand or net changes since the last full master resource planning run.

Typically, companies run master planning for all items or items under a certain coverage group such as fast moving items.

Master Planning

05.Production of Kits and Cases

Microsoft Dynamics 365 has extensive functionality supporting all chemical distribution company production operations. The operations can be streamlined for simplicity or conform to current methods.

For example, setting a production order in D365 can include finished goods produced, work planned, tracking operations, routes, resource cost and job scheduling.

Different views are set based on security roles and privileges. These allow different sets of users to view the production order, picklists, route cards or job cards.

Production of Kits and Cases step 1

Production of Kits and Cases step 2

Production of Kits and Cases step 3

Companies can also use Gantt charts to visually see planning and job scheduling. D365 has a powerful visual planning and scheduling tool that comes handy when scheduling tasks for all sales orders planned during a day, week or a month.

Production of Kits and Cases step 4

Bill Of Materials(BOM) journals are used in the production process to add finished goods into inventory and to reduce the inventory components within the formula or BOM.

These journals help reduce the process time instead of using a full production order.

A BOM journal cannot perform functions like tracking jobs and operations. It also is not part of visual planning.

Production of Kits and Cases step 5

Note: Xcelpros earlier blog post on “Operational Challenges in a Chemical Company: Key Solutions” explains production and operations in more detail.

06.Shipments

International shipments add export documentation not required for domestic deliveries. Both shipment types use a common document set generated by D365.

Using D365’s advanced warehouse management functions, outbound work and a shipment wave is created to pick products and put-aways for packaging.

D365 enhanced with the power of Integrated Chemical Management (iCM) prints a documentation package including:

  • Warehouse Work: Displays sales order number, work number, product batch or lot number, license plate information and put-away location in barcode formats. Work is processed using a barcode device.
  • Packing Slip: Displays the sales order number, customer PO number, delivery method, ship date, product to be delivered, quantity delivered, unit of measure, batch number or lot number delivered, ship to address, ship from address, back-order quantity and other related information.
  • Bill of Lading: Displays ship to address, sales order number, hazard information, pallet information, number of boxes, master bill of lading number and related materials.
  • Certificate of Analysis (C of A): Displays product, company logos for private label customers; test specifications; test results including visual, fraction, integer tests; approver information; expiration dates or best before dates; and test dates.
  • Safety Data Sheets (SDS): Displays product label information, pictograms, hazard statements, warning statements, transportation and U.S. Department of Transportation required information by country and language, CAS number information, etc.
  • Shipping Labels: Displays company logo, ship to address and product information.

Shipments step 1

Shipments step 2

07.Invoicing

After shipments are done, Microsoft Dynamics 365 gives companies the ability to create invoices in a batch mode or mass select shipments for invoicing. The system also lets them print or email a specific customer email address.

Invoicing step 1

Invoicing step 2

Invoicing step 3

Key Takeaways

Chemical distribution company executives should compare what their firm looks like now and how it might look after migrating to Dynamics 365.

D365 allows companies to streamline processes with a robust, simple, easy to understand and powerful system. Its ability to integrate with other Microsoft applications allows your company to fully integrate and enhance efficiencies.

Power tools such as master planning and production Gantt charts provide the ability to plan and schedule your production operations.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 helps boost your business efficiencies through the “one Microsoft ecosystem” by working seamlessly with products such as Office 365.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 can address most chemical distribution company requirements without modification.

The Differentiator - one Microsoft ecosystem

What does your company look like in Microsoft Dynamics 365? Talk to us to take a test drive.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Customer Service Keys Benefits

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Customer Service: Keys Benefits

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Customer Service: Keys Benefits 700 500 Xcelpros Team

At a Glance

  • Customer support professionals face constant challenges trying to understand customer requirements while making connections on an emotional level.
  • Emotional connections with customers has become an extremely important requirement for companies looking to boost their bottom-line.
  • Artificial intelligence (AI) for customer support coupled with machine learning (ML) helps analyze large volumes of customer data using tools like Natural Language Processing (NLP) and advanced voice recognition, to generate.

Introduction

Today’s customers want more affordable, convenient services that cater to their unique needs. Significantly more business is transacted seamlessly across both physical and digital channels. This is a result of increased trust in day-to-day technology which has led to increased sales, along with an easy way for customers to recommend products and services to other people, creating a whole new network of promoters. To take advantage of this change in behaviour, more companies are working harder than ever to deliver better services and provide great end-to-end customer experience.

67%

of customers are willing to switch brands looking for a better customer experience.

Source: Forbes

A lot of brands fail to create a positive emotional experience which directly impacts customer loyalty. This dissatisfaction results in customers switching between brands due to a poor customer experience.

Companies that excel in customer experience can uplift their revenues by 4%-8%.Source: Bain

Understanding this, more companies are beginning to come around to the benefits of investing in AI-automated technologies, with some choosing to focus on boosting their revenue, and others favoring customer experience over price and quality. This doesn’t ignore pricing, but let’s companies place more emphasis on the user experience. Additionally, most of these systems can be automated, further increasing the benefits.

80%

of the customer interactions will be handled by AI eliminating the presence of human agents by 20202

Source: A Gartner Study

Enhancing the customer experience with AI

In a digital world where every minute is important, it doesn’t make sense to have multiple virtual customer service agents set up to manage small issues. Using AI-based solutions to answer simple questions can help control costs to your company along with offering a host of additional benefits such as:

  • Providing faster issue resolution
  • Answering customer questions 24/7
  • Sorting and routing messages
  • Ability to transfer to live support as necessary
  • Freeing of asset availability to manage high value incidents

This is accomplished by analyzing large volumes of data much faster than a human. AI also uses high-level voice recognition to identify the voices of customers, understand the problem and provide the necessary responses. This all allows for faster prediction of market requirements with much higher accuracy.

Another tool born of AI, Natural Language Processing (NLP), analyses human language to understand context and determine outcomes seamlessly, and often undetected. NLP works in a union with voice recognition to ensure faster problem resolution for customers, reducing frustration. These solutions are deployed as bots and can even be set up to transfer to a human assistant in the event the system is unable to assist. This is important to remember as AI isn’t a replacement for human interaction, just a tool that facilitates an improved experience.

Using AI for enhancing customer experience helps organizations achieve a number of sought after benefits including minimizing pain points, and reducing the number of hours spent by customer agents on simple tasks. AI driven automation with advanced machine learning helps empower your support agents to do their job more efficiently, creating more opportunities for up-sell and cross-sell activities designed to increase sales.

In today’s Age of the Customer, personal, emotive customer interactions play a critical role in bridging the gap for what disruption and digital innovation alone cannot solve. For brands to compete – and win – in CX in 2018 and beyond, service leaders must ensure their teams optimize processes and communication in ways that create positive emotional experiences for customers.

Dennis Fois | CEO of NewVoiceMedia

Harness the power of AI for effective customer services. Get started with a assessment.

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Exploring options – How Dynamics 365 can help

Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 Customer Service insights let’s businesses leverage AI-driven insights to improve their customer service experience. Microsoft has included the following innovative features designed to help track performance across various channels

  • Dashboard Reference
  • Data Subject Rights (DSR) requests under GDPR

The dashboard reference comprises of various dashboards such as –

1.KPI summary dashboard This offers a macro-view of customer service experiences in your company, displaying topics currently generating the highest volume along with emerging issues.

2.New cases dashboard This is an overview of all the newly added customer cases in your system.

New cases dashboard

3.Resolutions dashboard This is a company-wide view of all case resolutions. AI helps identify the issues that impact resolution time.

Resolutions dashboard

4.Customer satisfaction dashboard Offers an overview of all the customer satisfaction scores in your company using AI automation to track the topics which have the highest impact on CSAT scores.

Customer satisfaction dashboard

5.Topic details dashboard This is a detailed overview of key performance indicators(KPIs) for specific topics using AI automation to showcase the impact by product and channel on customer satisfaction scores and resolution time.

Topic details dashboard

Aside from built-in dashboards, visual filters, and interactive charts that give an overview of operational data across all channels, Dynamics 365 also offers actionable insights based on critical performance metrics and emerging trends from your customer service system, highlighting areas that could benefit from improvement and could significantly impact business growth.

Dynamics 365 AI for Customer Service Insights provides a number of valuable benefits including

Improving customer satisfactionBuild brand loyalty by resolving issues before in a timely fashion. Gain a comprehensive understanding of CSAT scores used to calculate customer satisfaction.

Increasing operational efficiencies Streamline operations with insights from case resolutions, historical comparisons, and backlog trends to evaluate customer service agent performance. Monitor case volumes and expected support topics to optimize efficiency.

Enhancing visibility Dynamics 365 helps with effective visualization of customer engagement patterns, customer service operations using various AI-automated dashboards, machine learning capabilities and agent performance, and more. Discover and share critical insights using interactive charts and filters with AI for customer service.

Key Takeaways

While things like sales, pricing and quantity is often the main focus of businesses, it’s important to understand that developing good experiences with customers is just as important, sometimes more. Satisfied customers become extremely effective promoters of the brand simply by recommending your products or services to people they know. This helps businesses expand as loyalty leads to an emotional connection.

As we continue to see newer, more advanced technologies designed to simplify and enhance customer service experiences emerge, understanding the simple fact that people never forget how you made them feel will be even more important. The future of AI in customer service is indeed very bright.

Also Read: Artificial Intelligence in Insurtech : Reshaping the Insurance Industry

Boosts Supply Chain Resiliency

Visible and Shareable Data Boosts Supply Chain Resiliency

Visible and Shareable Data Boosts Supply Chain Resiliency 700 500 Xcelpros Team

Introduction

Covid-19 and its variations, a trade war with China and ongoing cyber attacks are just some of the problems supply chain managers are still facing in 2021. Similar issues may occur at any time making supply chain managers nervous and cautious.

One way to improve overall supply chain performance is through accurate data collection plus improved vendor communications. Knowing what you need and when you will need it is important to keeping inventories under control.

Working closely with vendors is especially important when seeking diverse raw materials and active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) sources. Being able to pivot from a supplier in one country to a different firm halfway around the globe can make the difference between a happy customer and an unhappy one. Having more than one source helps make your supply chain resilient.

Critical components of a secure supply chain are:

  • Accurate, real-time data available to decision makers any time, anywhere
  • Detailed knowledge of each supplier and who supplies them
  • A diverse, geographically spread-out network of suppliers
  • Sharing appropriate data with vendors to ensure adequate inventories

Figure: 1Critical components of a secure supply chain are:

Critical components of a secure supply chain

All of this is based on data available through Internet of Things (IoT)-connected devices.

Data Collection in the Digital Age

The IoT lets companies connect real-time monitoring devices to a wide range of production machines. Each IoT device can then be connected to a Microsoft Azure IoT hub. The hub can signal when completing a manufacturing process or reaching an inventory threshold, for example.

Each data point goes into a secure, cloud-based network allowing authorized users to see the real-time progress of each production run. When appropriate, that data can be shared with vendors. Sharing select data with vendors lets companies maintain balanced inventories, informing them when supplies of a particular precursor chemical are running low, for example.

Performance data from many individual machines can be combined into one real-time data stream. When it is analyzed by as Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management inventory forecasting tools, pharmaceutical manufacturers can then reach out to their diverse vendor base, ensuring a constant flow of raw materials.

The same general process for raw materials coming into a plant applies to finished products leaving it.

D365’s Supply Chain Management module includes inventory tracking tools. Pharmaceutical manufacturers will know where every labeled and scanned product is at any point in time.

For example, say a company has part of a product manufactured in Asia and then sent to Europe for additional assembly. A Supply Chain Management dashboard containing data from a Microsoft Power BI report can let a company know of a major shipping delay, such as the Suez Canal blockage last year. Having all of this information in one spot at one time lets company leaders decide if they want to wait for the blockage to get fixed or ship the materials by air.

Having a diverse supply chain in terms of raw material providers and finished product shippers provides additional options and security.

Supplier Knowledge

The more a company knows about its suppliers, the better prepared the company is when disaster strikes.

In an article on supply chain mapping, Sedex states companies should:

  1. 1Learn where primary suppliers and their suppliers are located. Having detailed supplier records helps accomplish this task.
  2. 2Integrate this information into a single data source.
  3. 3Conduct a risk assessment to determine where to focus their attention next.
  4. 4Research each supplier so your company is aware of any risks to them.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) tools such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management provide a single shareable data source. If, for example, a trade war breaks in one region, a company can sort through its supplier list and find out which companies are affected.

XcelPros has a unique approach to ensuring decision makers have information critical to them. XcelPros can create analytic reports using intelligence gathered in Microsoft Power BI. The reports can map geographic locations, such as those of raw material providers. The Power Bi report is then embedded in a D365 Supply Chain Management dashboard, giving executives “at a glance” views.

Combining the artificial intelligence capabilities of Supply Chain Management with the analysis functions of Power BI lets executives know what is happening in terms of potential supply chain disruptions and where they might occur.

Power BI features include:

  • Transforming data in shareable graphics
  • Explore data obtained from many sources
  • Share customized dashboards and data, such as between Sales and Inventory Control

Having geographically-dispersed vendors also helps.

Supply Chain Diversity

What happens when your primary API supplier’s workforce is decimated by another round of coronavirus infections? For example, say Supplier A does not have enough healthy workers to produce the quantity of essential materials at the right quality point. If your company has other vendors who can fulfill your order requirements, nothing changes with your customer. If you don’t have back-up suppliers or ways to get the finished products to them, it could cost you.

A study by the Hackett Group found that those with a diverse supply chain had lower overall operating costs and spent 20% less on buying.

Effects include a higher return on investment (ROI), lower prices to the manufacturer’s customer and improved customer service, an article in Supply Chain states.

Working with small and medium-sized business suppliers (SMBs) has several advantages over only dealing with large multi-nationals. These include:

  • Efficiency at the local level
  • Innovative services
  • Faster delivery when the SMB is closer to the plant

Figure: 2Advantages of working with SMB Suppliers

advantages of small and medium-sized business suppliers (SMBs)

“The companies that build resiliency into their supply chains will be best positioned for success and growth as they will have an adaptive advantage in the face of change and volatility,” Supply Chain states. Having options in terms of near-shore and off-shore suppliers lets, “companies spread their risk, mitigating the impact that social, political and geographic incidents could have on raw material price and availability.”

Supply chains that are diverse in terms of location and their ability to provide raw materials and precursor chemicals give pharmaceutical manufacturers the ability to survive disruptions.

Having this information is one thing. Letting the people who have what you need in time to get it to you is also vital.

Supplier Communications

“Effective communication between buyers suppliers helps support long-term goals by building a strong and trusting relationship in which both parties are comfortable sharing information and working together to support these goals,” a report by the ISS Group states.

“Communication builds trust and ineffective communication demolishes it,” a Canadian Center for Science and Education report cited by ISS states.

Giving suppliers advance knowledge of the types and quantities of needed materials can prevent potential problems, such as running out of stock. Companies can improve risk management when vendor communications share real-time data over a secure, cloud-based network. Microsoft D365 provides the data sharing and security functions required by today’s top pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Dynamics 365’s Finance module provides data sharing between a company and up to 15 legal entities. For example, a pharmaceutical manufacturer wants to share some inventory information with a partner to ensure the production plant has enough raw materials on hand for a special project. D365 Finance permits sharing the reference and group data but not transactional information like the name of the customer requesting the project.

Sharing the information between a manufacturer and its vendors is based on an important assumption: there is accurate, timely data.

Supplier communications also lets companies monitor product quality. Quality assurance is critical, especially in terms of medicines, drugs and other pharmaceutical products requiring regulatory compliance.

Summary

Supply chains can be very fragile as the debacles from 2020 have proven. Having accurate inventory information, knowing how each supplier is affected by activities and events beyond their control and communicating with them will help make your supply chain more resilient.

Book a assessment to get started with our data management solutions built for supply chain resiliency.

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warehouse management techniques

Warehouse management techniques : Tips to increase efficiency

Warehouse management techniques : Tips to increase efficiency 700 500 Xcelpros Team

Introduction

Pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturing companies face greater risks when it comes to inventory control than some other industries. Why? Because some of the same chemicals used to make effective medicines can also create addictive street drugs. For example, ephedrine, which is used to treat breathing problems, is also an active ingredient in methamphetamine. The Food and Drug Administration has strict rules for companies making and distributing drugs. All companies, especially those in the pharmaceutical sector, want to run their warehouses efficiently. Common efficient warehouse management includes:

  • Maximizing and optimizing all available space
  • Keeping inventory to lean levels
  • 50% of enterprises spend more than $1.2 million each year on cloud services
  • Using inventory tracking technology efficiently
  • Organizing the workforce so its time is used wisely

Warehouse management best practices also emphasize the “3 C’s”: control, coordination and communication. Standard practices, where control is maintained by only one department, usually results in difficult coordination and communication between departments such as sales and finance.

Enterprise resource management (ERP) software with warehouse management and inventory control modules can help manage warehouse inventory.

Maximizing Warehouse Space

Maximizing warehouse space includes stacking items logically, and using vertical space to your advantage.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) suggests hazardous chemicals be labeled with hazard warnings and the chemical name. Other chemical storage tips from the CDC include:

  • Keeping all stored chemicals, especially flammable liquids, away from direct sunlight and heat.
  • Keeping like chemicals together and away from those that might cause a reaction if mixed.
  • Storing liquids in unbreakable or double-contained packaging.
  • Storing flammable materials, acids and highly toxic or controlled materials in dedicated cabinets designed for those purposes.
  • Storing volatile and odorous chemicals in a ventilated cabinet.
  • Keeping all unused or empty compressed gas cylinders in a dedicated storage area.

Figure: 1Maximizing Warehouse Space

ERPs and Inventory Management Techniques

Use ERP to Run Lean

ERP software often includes warehouse management tools and technology designed to help companies balance inventories with current and future needs.

For example, warehouse management is integrated into Microsoft Dynamics 365’s Supply Chain Management. There’s even a connected Warehousing app available on the Google Play Store and Windows store that connects cellphones and other mobile devices to the network running D365’s Supply Chain Management. Each device must have its own copy of the app and be configured to connect to the local warehouse computer network.

Microsoft’s warehouse management module apps let workers use their cellphones, tablets or other connected devices to perform activities such as:

  • Printing and reprinting labels
  • Generating license plate numbers, confirming item types and quantities on a license plate or pallet and splitting full license plates
  • Starting production orders
  • Get information about particular items in a location

These warehouse management software settings can be configured to allow users different permissions in different warehouse locations. Software such as Microsoft Intune is used to mass deploy settings and service warehouse mobile devices.

Once devices are configured, cellphone cameras can be used to scan many common barcodes, including QR codes.

Another important part of the warehouse management module is the Transportation Management function. It lets workers register when a driver arrives, noting the driver’s name and license number, tractor and trailer number plus the location in the warehouse (e.g., Receiving Bay 1, Shipping Bay 3, etc.).

A key function for the pharmaceutical industry is setting work audit templates to interrupt an inbound order. Since many medicines require strict environmental controls, workers can be prompted through the audit template to check the temperature in delivery containers. They can then be told to check a particular container at a particular point in the receiving process.

Another method of boosting efficiency and controlling warehouse inventory is by requiring warehouse workers to confirm the product, location or quantity when they pick items. This reduces the likelihood of inventory errors caused by inaccurate counts.

Improving Efficiency With an ERP

When IDC conducted its 2018 survey, 45% of independent service vendor customers preferred the lift and shift cloud migration method for moving business applications. Combined with cloud computing, 69% of end customers understand the positive implications of using cloud-based software. These include agility, scalability, cost effectiveness, efficiency and others.

Is Cloud Computing Worth the Cost?

One reason many companies purchase an ERP is its ability to help them run their day to day operations more efficiently. One example is the ability to use an intelligent warehouse management system to cluster purchase order putaways. Workers put away products in a specific area and then pick multiple license plates at once before putting them away in different locations.

In a related activity, workers can check incoming product quality before technically receiving it and taking ownership of it. D365’s Warehouse Management module lets users log these checks with mobile devices.

This same intelligent warehouse management system also lets pharmaceutical companies efficiently process purchase order returns. The item is entered into Supply Chain Management and then scanned, starting the process. Items being returned are picked and sent through the warehouse process using mobile devices. The software also creates the shipment and load.

Similar configuration settings help inventory, procurement and delivery management become more efficient. Workers are no longer moving randomly from place to place within a warehouse, picking items from six different locations for a single order. Instead, they might pick items for six different license plates from the same general location, move to a second spot and add additional items. By using this method, each worker’s time is used to maximize the amount of actual work done, achieving more production.

ERPs and Inventory Management Techniques

Six of the most common inventory management techniques are:

  • Bulk shipments
  • ABC Inventory Management
  • Backorders
  • Just in Time (JIT) shipping
  • Consignments
  • Cycle counting

An innovative warehouse management system helps executives decide when buying in bulk is appropriate and when going lean is better. How? By sharing data with sales, finance and other departments. Warehouse managers can see what sales are coming up and know what raw materials to order.

The same situation applies to deciding what to produce and what to have in inventory based on importance. Data shared between systems lets managers make and adjust these calculations.

Backorders are becoming more common as Covid-19 related issues delay raw material shipments. While using them is a common warehouse management technique, effective ERP software helps firms control backorders and order materials from alternate suppliers.

Just In Time (JIT) inventory management reduces the amount of stock available at any given time to the bare minimum. Using D365 Supply Chain Management lets chief executive officers understand the complete supply chain. They can decide what items to get only when needed and what to buy in bulk.

Combined with precise inventory tracking to know when a specific medication is approaching its expiration date, pharmaceutical manufacturers can use consignment selling with confidence. Alerts will let them know when they need to refresh a seller’s stock.

Cycle counting, where workers count only a small quantity of product, is rendered nearly obsolete by an ERP. Using barcodes and electronic scanners, warehouse managers have an accurate idea of inventory at all times.

The Future of Warehouse Management

The future of warehouse management systems isn’t workers running around with pencils and clipboards. Instead, it’s automating many manual processes with real-time access to critical data.

“Warehouses will be built on current effective process-driven technologies such as widespread supply chain automation, hyper-effective robotic technologies and yes, plenty of drones to go around,” 6 River Systems predicts.

Leading that charge will be artificial intelligence-enabled ERP software coupled with industrial internet of things (IIoT) sensors. This combination will enable pharmaceutical companies to more efficiently track materials as they run their businesses.

Minimize redundancy and maximize your warehouse productivity. Book a consultation to learn how.

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Removing Roadblocks when Implementing Microsoft Dynamics 365

Removing Roadblocks when Implementing the Microsoft Dynamics 365

Removing Roadblocks when Implementing the Microsoft Dynamics 365 700 500 Xcelpros Team

Recap

In a previous post, we looked at the basics of the high-level steps involved in adding Microsoft Dynamics 365. In this post, we will take a look at common implementation problems and ways to avoid them or reduce their effect.

It’s time for a change. Your company decides to modernize with Microsoft System Dynamics 365 Finance to automate and modernize your financial operations.

Now you need to make it work for you.

Four Challenges

The four main challenges that can impact an ERP implementation project’s budget and timeline are:

  1. 1.Applying experience with other enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, expecting Dynamics 365 to behave the same way. It will not.
  2. 2.Users may expect certain functions built into D365 because of the previous ERP. These functions may have been customized to get where they are. Attempting to add them can keep the project from achieving its objectives and add constraints.
  3. 3.Wish lists items can also cause the implementation cost to go out of control. A Change Champion can reign in these wish lists to ensure the right amount of focus is placed to achieve the best possible result.
  4. 4.Using inaccurate information from other companies’ installations researching a different D365 module.

Being aware of these issues from the beginning will help avoid a failed ERP implementation.

Figure: 1Main Pitfalls affecting a project’s scope, budget and timeline

Main Pitfalls affecting a project's scope, budget and timeline

Common Problems and Causes

These are a few of the most common D365 implementation problems and their likely causes, each of which can frustrate executives and employees.

Problem Example Possible Cause
A tool or important feature was left out Payment terms are missing A scenario was misspelled or overlooked in the Design Phase
Legacy data upload is incomplete or corrupted Names are misspelled, dates are wrong, amounts are inaccurate, etc. Data was not input properly into the legacy system
A specific configuration is incomplete or not working properly Departments are not being notified when payments are made Lack of communication between staff and implementation team

The most likely cause for the majority of these issues is communication. For example, the implementation team did not clearly understand what was being asked, or different people requested changes to the same section.

A good way to resolve communication problems is by having the Change Champion review and approve the updates during the design phase. Customization best practices means having the Change Champion approve or deny all change orders and requests.

When data is not properly entered into the system, the business will need to search its records and recreate the missing material.

Other Common Implementation Problems

One of the most common reporting issues deals with those at the end of a month. For example, Inventory shows 10 barrels at $10 each were used. However, Finance shows 9.2 barrels were used, resulting in a dollar discrepancy.

This is the kind of issue best brought up during user access testing (UAT) when the implementation team can define cell properties. That way, inventory and finance agree.

D365’s Finance module has detailed reporting options. The ability to input data depends on a person’s security roles, privileges and duties. For example, someone who wants to “Generate financial reports” must have that role, privilege and duty assigned to them.

When a user needs to generate a report and can’t do it, they should talk to the system administrator or security administrator, Microsoft states.

Reports used data input into the system. When data is not being accurately added, reports will reflect the inaccuracies.

An excellent way to resolve these issues is by involving the training team early and often. Have them create training materials and then have users perform the tasks in the UAT environment to ensure everything works as designed.

Following Methodology

D365 implementations follow a strict methodology. Problems occur when executives or employees try to get around the system. Seeking an easier path by using a method from the legacy system usually causes problems with D365.

Dynamics 365 is set up logically – Form follows function, step follows step. Trying to go from Step 2 to Step 6 without performing the intermediate actions is a recipe for trouble.

Microsoft has its own “Sure Step Methodology” as part of its ecosystem. This methodology:

  • Is designed specifically for Microsoft implementations
  • Defines key activities and deliverables
  • Provides tools and templates

Focusing on the ‘To Be’

Change, no matter how beneficial, is always stressful. Many people are comfortable performing tasks a certain way. They are uncomfortable doing it differently.

When employees focus on the “As Is,” which is how tasks were done with the legacy system, they get bogged down and have trouble adapting to D365. Instead, they need to consider the “To Be,” which is the end goal.

For example, Inventory uses one legacy system and Finance uses something different. Some fields are identical but others are different. In D365, both departments must change how and where they input data.

By focusing on the “To Be,” the end result of implementing D365 is a leaner, more accurate and more profitable business that benefits both departments.

Here’s an example of “To Be.”

  1. 1.Intelligent financial information using data from multiple sources permits intelligent operations.
  2. 2.Intelligent operations lead to improved productivity.
  3. 3.Improved productivity leads to faster fulfillment, which leads to timely delivery.
  4. 4.All of these steps lead to increased profitability, which funds improvements in everything else.

The Value of Microsoft Dynamics

One way to implement change management is by explaining some of the values inherent in Microsoft Dynamics.

These values include:

  • Empowering employees, giving them real-time access to actionable data
  • Driving faster innovation
  • Facilitating smarter decisions with user-based workspaces
  • Delivering real-time responses to customer demands
  • Reducing transportation costs and increasing delivery accuracy
  • Scaling up or down as the business changes
  • Using mobile phones, tablets and other devices that let employees perform more tasks where they work

Summary

Implementing Microsoft Dynamics 365 is often looked at as complicated, or fraught with problems – but only if you let it. Taking a forward thinking approach focusing on your “To Be” goals helps the implementation move forward faster.

Companies that navigate smoote implementations often start training almost from Day One. Training employees early gets their buy-in and lets people learn how D365 can make their work lives easier.

Having a Change Champion helps keep the implementation on time and on budget.

Anticipating problems before they occur allows managers to head them off. Change will occur. Instead of resisting, workers are better off spending that energy on learning how to maximize their value.

The overall result will make your company more efficient, more agile and more profitable.

Get More Done

Improve your chemical, pharmaceutical or life science business by updating your ERP to Microsoft Dynamics today. Visit www.xcelpros.com (a Microsoft Gold Partner) or call 1-855-411-0585 to learn more.

dynamics 365 implementation

Making your Dynamics 365 implementation successful

Making your Dynamics 365 implementation successful 700 500 Xcelpros Team

Scenario

Your chemical or pharmaceutical company has an outdated, outmoded, clunky legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. Finance is complaining that Inventory is unable to produce the right numbers. Sales is wondering why nothing ships on time. Departments and executives are angry at each other because their individual systems work just fine but nothing works together.

It’s time for a change. Your company decides to modernize with Microsoft System Dynamics 365 Finance to automate and modernize your financial operations.

How do you make D365 work the way you want it?

Installation of D365 ERP is a Process

Implementing Microsoft Dynamics 365—or any other ERP system—is a process. It takes time. It’s not a matter of just downloading some software, letting it run and then “boom,” your company is up and going.

There are as many as three tiers and four production stages.

Tier 1 looks at the “out of the box” Dynamics 365 solution. Is it going to work for your company as is? For existing companies, especially those with legacy systems, the odds are that your D365 will require some customization. At a minimum, your staff will need at least some training on Dynamics 365 to be able to successfully perform their jobs.

Tier 2 is known as “the Sandbox” because this is where your staff gets to play with Dynamics 365’s wide array of features. Sample customer data—purchase orders, sales orders, etc.—is loaded. This tier is also where your experienced employees examine the product closely. For example, a person who inputs purchase orders can see how D365 performs this function. Is something you need missing? Let an implementation professional know so they can modify the program.

The final environment is Production – a live environment where business will perform its functions.

Typical ERP implementation has 4 major phases (which could still change based on the implementation):

Figure: 1Primary Phases of Dynamics 365 Implementation

D365  finance supply chain management

  1. 1.Scoping and blueprinting: This is where Xcelpros SMEs help your company determine which Dynamics 365 features and modules are best suited to achieving your goals. The topics you’ll want to discuss include:
    1. a.Your pain points
    2. b.The issues you have now
    3. c.What you would like to accomplish
  2. 2.Design and development: This phase involves configuring Dynamics 365 to install the features you need to run your business. For example, there may be specific fields—like part of a formula—that aren’t currently a part of D365. This field needs to be programmed and added to the software. Other fields may be worthless. You want them removed to avoid confusion.
  3. 3.User acceptance testing (UAT): This is where your employees get to work with Dynamics 365 in a hands-on environment similar to the Sandbox but configured for you using generated test data. This is used to determine:
    1. a.What questions do your employees have?
    2. b.Do the modules behave the way they are designed?
    3. c.Is something you need missing?
  4. 4.Going Live: D365 is now ready to go. The production environment is fully set up and the master data is loaded. Actual sales orders, purchase orders, production orders and inventory data are ready. It’s finally time to make the change.

Implementations Take Time

Dynamics 365 implementation timelines can vary greatly from organization to organization –

  • 0 days: The amount of time a company is effectively out of business during the implementation process
  • 3 – 9 months: The time for a rapid implementation involving three entities: two chemical and one pharmaceutical
  • 10 months to 2 years: The time a typical full implementation takes when a company converts from a legacy system

Selecting an Executive Change Champion

One of the biggest obstacles to a successful implementation is having too many people making the final implementation decisions. Being known as “the person who brought our company into the 22nd Century” is a glamorous title. Many executives may want to assume the Change Champion role or at least give their input.

An old proverb says, “a camel is a horse designed by a committee.” This can be interpreted as letting too many people make requests and changes will:

  • Add confusion
  • Add costs
  • Delay the implementation

Confusion occurs when departments are not aligned on feature requirements or if there is change resistance. Some standard phrases of change resistance are – “The old way of doing things is just fine” or “This is what we are used to”

A Change Champion is a single point of contact, not a committee. They act as a relay and buffer. They relay information and requests from other executives and employees to the implementation team. They also relay requests from the implementers to the company. They act as a buffer between the legacy users who are resistant to change and the people working to improve the company through modernization.

A Change Champion:

  • Is a proponent of change in the company
  • Supports and defends the Dynamics 365 implementation
  • Is able to make difficult decisions
  • Is accountable and fully involved

They understand and are able to explain how Dynamics 365 will undoubtedly make the company more efficient and profitable, and how it stands to make everyone’s lives—from the chief executive officer to the people unloading truckloads of supplies—a whole lot easier. They’re able to explain how change will come whether people like it or not.

The Champion explains how Dynamics 365 can eliminate bottlenecks and remove redundancies.

This person is ultimately accountable for ensuring the right features are selected and installed. They are the ones with the authority to sign change orders to be able to spend money where it provides tangible value to your firm.

They make the call whether or not to add a customization or use what is already supplied. Is a feature a “must have” as in it’s required for the company to work properly or a “used to doing?”

“Used to doing” features are ones based on how the legacy ERP system operates. Employees are “used to doing” a particular task in a specific way. They resist change even without understanding that D365 makes their lives easier overall.

Training is Critical

The most successful ERP implementations occur when training teams are involved from the start. Some companies ignore it, expecting their employees to figure out the new system on their own. Others start training after the implementation process is well underway. Both of these scenarios delay getting Dynamics 365 running smoothly. They also increase resistance to the new product and its new way of doing things.

As employees begin using D365 starting in Tier 2, Xcelpros’ trainers are able to show them how to perform basic steps, and then build on what they learn. For example, have trainers use Step-Action tables to document the steps for adding a new customer. Which fields are completed first? Which are done automatically? What does someone do if an automatic field is blank?

Starting training early pays big benefits later. Employees learn that their ideas count. As they begin to use Dynamics 365 in a Sandbox environment, they become more comfortable with it without the risks involved in a live production environment. Documenting a regular process and then having employees perform it lets the trainers see what they need to update for your staff. Maybe an employee spots an unnecessary or confusing feature or a critical one that needs to be added. Getting this done early on can save your company valuable time and money.

What’s Next

Understanding the ins and outs of Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a big step towards a successful implementation. As is understanding the importance of a change champion, and the role they play. In an upcoming post, we’ll take a look at common implementation problems and some of the best ways to either avoid them or reduce the impact they pose.

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