Supply Chain Visibility and Transparency 

High visibility of the complicated supply chain would mean low cost, high customer satisfaction, and limited disruptions. The supply chain visibility helps the product team to recognize and resolve the weaknesses in the SC process like order fulfillment or inventory declining issue before it comes up. Today, we’ll discuss supply chain visibility and transparency; how to increase it, advantages, and disadvantages.

What is Supply Chain Visibility? 

Supply chain visibility offers you a clear picture of activities in the inventory, and tracks various goods and products. It helps shippers to improve cost control and customer service by managing the following;

• Risk mitigation
• Limited disruptions
• Status updates
• Inventory movement

Resultantly, the supply chain would become quick and stronger in the process of achieving visibility. The objective of SCV is to know how your SC processes work out while decreasing the risk factor. However, when you integrate collected data with the key insight, then optimization of the supply chain would help you to achieve efficiency.

How to Amplify Supply Chain Visibility 

Mapping SC Network

Before achieving SCV, it is significant to comprehend how it works and the source of the company’s resources. The best strategy is mapping all the suppliers and vendors and knowing how they deliver goods and products to the company. However, when you know the delivery map of your product reaching the customers; then it becomes simpler and easier for you to make your SC visible.

Proactively Sharing Updates

When the problem impacts your SC processes, then it is significant to openly share changes with your customers. You should avoid waiting for your customers to approach customer support service if they haven’t received the orders. Rather, you should reach out to them and let them know that you are aware of the problem and plan to deliver their package on time.

While communicating with them, they don’t need to know why the shipment is late, and let them know when they would receive the product. Usually, customers understand the reason when you are open with them and offer them reassurance that you are working on it.

In-Contact with Supplier

The best strategy is to be in contact with the supplier and vendor and find out when the new shipment would arrive. If you have developed a collaborative relationship with them, then you can confidently inform customers when to buy the product. You should make sure to beware of all the problems when they impact your SC processes.

Tracking Shipment

If you developing e-commerce, then it is significant to include an automated tracking tool in your website. This tool would inform customers about order processing, shipment, and receiving time. However, it should have a live tracking feature to let customers know where the product is in the delivery process.

Shipping Updates in Real Time

Live tracking and real-time update is a great feature and it would inform customers where the product is and how much more time it would take to approach them. Many businesses and companies send text messages to customers and offer them real-time updates.

Online Shopping Assistant

If you don’t have a tracking feature, then it is significant to partner up with such firms that would offer you online shopping and tracking assistant services. There are various order tracking applications that inform customers where the product is and when it would reach the customers.

Advantages of Supply Chain Visibility 

Some of the key benefits and advantages of supply chain visibility are as follows;

Limited Disruption

If you are aware of the potential disruption before it comes up, then it reduces the problem. Communication and strong data analysis in the supply chain operations decrease the potential roadblocks, and it would deliver exceptional results.

Quickness & Agility

One of the main objectives of achieving visibility and transparency is to increase your capability of quickness and agility. Transparency allows you to stay ahead of the situation while dealing with the supply chain. However, it helps you to bring changes in order to increase growth and productivity regardless of the circumstances.

Fast

If you are making SC decisions based on the data, then you don’t have to wait for the opportunity to come on your way. Rather you should be quick to exploit the opportunity whenever it comes up. It helps you to increase visibility and agility in the SC processes.

Satisfying Customer Demands

The focus of SC processes is to evolve and satisfy the needs and demands of customers. The consultation and transparency of SC processes help you to align key SC elements in order to satisfy the needs and wishes of customers.

Data Based Results

Transparent SC helps you to access the supply chain database. When you analyze this data with the consultation of any professional, then it helps the shipper to make smart decisions.

Disadvantages of Supply Chain Visibility 

Some of the main disadvantages and challenges to supply chain visibility are as follows;

No Data Analysis

Transparent SC won’t be helpful when you can’t differentiate between the data that is helpful and that is not. It is significant to beware of the various elements of the supply chain; sharing information goes a long way in knowing the challenges that would come up.

SC Interruption

Limited visibility would lead companies to lose control over their SC network. It is difficult to beware of various elements of the SC processes, especially the ones you don’t have control over. The limited demand visibility would amplify inventory levels in the SC network and processes.

Data Sharing

In order to make the system work efficiently, it is significant to share the information at different levels of the SC processes. Problems would come up when various stakeholders don’t share information.

Conclusion: Supply Chain Visibility and Transparency 

After an in-depth study of supply chain visibility and transparency; we have realized that SCV helps you to beware of the problem and make changes accordingly. If you are learning about SCV, then you should keep in mind the abovementioned strategies to improve it, advantages, and disadvantages.