Distributed order management is a way for retail businesses to broker order fulfillments across the services of multiple parties while providing a global, integrated view so that inventory management can be intelligently sourced. More precisely (and less confusingly), distributed order management is a system that lets retail owners get an eagle-eye look at their supply chain, coordinate and compare orders from different suppliers (including third parties), and even get real-time visibility on orders in transit. In a sense, distributed order management is the retail version of the inventory management systems that order fulfillment services use to track shipments and stock across multiple platforms. Therefore, taking advantage of distributed order management lets retail businesses maintain a high level of flexibility and effectiveness in their fulfillment processes. Here’s how.

Manage Multiple Fulfillment Processes at Once

Understanding the benefits of distributed order management is easier if you compare it to how the traditional systems work. Traditionally, order management systems assume a relatively static company and are tied to a limited number of suppliers. This means that retailers have to use multiple systems to see all of their suppliers, may be unable to view third-party options, and lack the adjustability needed for flexible business practices.

In sharp contrast, distributed order management forms a central hub from which your order fulfillment activities can flow. In addition to being receptive to third-party options, distributed order management lets you compare price points between suppliers and even split orders between parties in order to optimize potential savings. Workflows can be defined and differentiated for alternate types of orders and demand can even be sensed and monitored for how it can influence ordering.

Cross-Channel Integration

Distributed order management systems are an excellent way to unify disparate sales channels and their associated systems. This makes inventory sourcing a much faster and overall more effective and efficient process. Products can be sourced from different channels or even other store locations quickly and with full visibility. Perhaps most importantly, this cross-channel integration means that your information will be more accurate overall. One of the inherent hazards of multiple channels using distinct systems is that they may not all be on the same page. Inventory accounts from one system may deviate from another, be slow to update, or simply not reflect the real-world status of stock. Unifying these channels allows for a single, true picture to emerge and be used.

Enhanced Customer Experience

Retail is under constant pressure to improve profits and reduce costs, so trying to keep excess inventory to a minimum is a common way of improving the bottom line. Unfortunately, this places businesses at increased vulnerability to unexpected developments or the fallout from demand predictions being off. This results in stores commonly facing out-of-stock moments and lacking a reliable way to get the customer what they want. Distributed order management helps solve this problem in a few different ways. First, it has a unified view of your inventory and supplies, so you will never be caught unawares. Second, you can use cross-channel integration to track inventory at other store locations, alternate suppliers, or even goods that are in transit to the store. This expands the options you have for getting the customer what they want and locating and shipping your available-to-promise inventory.

Look to Lean Supply Solutions for Efficient Distributed Order Management

Lean Supply Solutions is a third-party order fulfillment company in Toronto whose operations are based around the Lean Methodology, a proven philosophy focused on eliminating any operations, equipment, or resources that are not capable of adding value to clients’ supply chains. By striving to ensure that the right products are provided to the right customers at the right time, Lean Supply Solutions is able to offer consistent, accurate, and quality results. To learn more about the Lean Methodology, outsourcing to Lean Supply Solutions, or to ask any questions, give us a call at 416-748-8982.

For any business, but especially e-commerce ones, your longevity is going to be determined not just by how many customers you attract but by how many you are able to convert into regular, loyal patrons. Logistics management and logistics efficiency can both play an important role in this task, primarily because of how central the shipping experience is to the e-commerce customer. The delivery is the most direct form of interaction between an e-commerce business and the customer after all, so it makes sense that logistic performance would have a lasting impact on their goodwill and willingness to buy from you again. Here are some things to keep in mind when looking to see if your logistics strategy can give a good customer experience.

Be Specific and Be Transparent

Be direct and clear about what your shipping options are, their terms and conditions, and any associated costs. This is not the time or place to try some marketing twists and make customers sort out the difference between “Light Speed,” “Quick Speed,” and “High Speed” delivery. Be concise and to the point and ideally your page should be able to give an estimated delivery date for each option you have available. Clearly lay out how much each shipping option costs, as well as any conditions you may have for free or reduced shipping costs. This also applies to any reverse logistics services or logistics strategy you may have—make sure terms and conditions for returns are clearly laid out and understandable.

Once the order is placed and the shipping process has begun, customers will appreciate being kept updated on its progress. Any effective supply chain service will have a way of tracking your shipments, ideally in real time, and letting customers have access to this information for their orders can go a long way to improving their experience. People don’t like unknowns and the piece of mind these trackers can bring should not be underestimated.

Use a Good Information Management System

An information management system is any software that helps you coordinate and/or monitor supply chain activities, warehouse inventory levels, order tracking, customer orders, and so on. An integrated information management system enhances logistical efficiency by providing a central hub through will all information flows and can be accessed. On the customer end of things, a good information system means that your website will have up-to-date stock counts, be able to process orders faster, and can help keep customers informed on the status of their deliveries.

Automate Your Communications

Automating your communications technology is a basic step that helps streamline and speed up the order fulfillment process. Being able to relay orders between departments, inform customers of the status of their order or any delays, and otherwise take actions without requiring manual sign-off or initiation can be a huge enhancement to logistical efficiency. Naturally, there will be some processes that can’t or shouldn’t be strictly automated, but if there are ever any tasks that are simply “take info from point A and give it to person B” then you’ve got a great candidate for automation.

Maximize Your Storage Space

Your storage space should ideally have a “Goldilocks” relationship with your inventory needs—not too big, not too small, but just right. Being unable to store enough inventory to regularly meet customer demand only leads to shortages, delays, and lost opportunities to enhance the customer experience. Engaging in a warehousing solution or third-party partnership that lets you expand your inventory as needed is an effective form of logistics management that is worth consideration by any ecommerce business.

Look to Lean Supply Solutions for Logistically Efficient Order Fulfillment Services

Lean Supply Solutions is a third-party order fulfillment company in Toronto whose operations are based around the Lean Methodology, a proven philosophy focused on eliminating any operations, equipment, or resources that are not capable of adding value to clients’ supply chain. By striving to ensure that the right products are provided to the right customers at the right time, Lean Supply Solutions is able to offer consistent, accurate, and quality results. To learn more about the Lean Methodology, outsourcing to Lean Supply Solutions, or to ask any questions, give us a call at 416-748-8982.

The efficiency of your supply chain services is rooted in how well you streamline processes and balance costs. It can therefore seem odd to try and expand into seemingly unnecessary areas, like green supply chains. This is understandable, after all a supply chain is not the first thing people think about when looking for green approaches, nor is a sustainable supply chain going to make the most dramatic impact on the environment. However, this overlooks some very real net benefits that can be seen when incorporating sustainable elements into your supply chain. By going a little bit out of the way, you can end up with a more effective—and in some cases, more efficient—set of processes over all.

How Do You Make a Supply Chain Green?

It may help to first explain why we actually mean when we talk about sustainable supply chains. The central element is reduction of waste and your carbon footprint. For instance, shipping takes a large number of packaging materials, some of which are made from plastic—which in turn is made from oil. By taking steps to reduce packaging materials used or switching to materials made from sustainable materials, you can help lower the impact of your own operations. Another example can be taking steps to synchronize deliveries and minimize vehicle travel, which can lower emissions. Lastly, having a good returns policy that lets you reuse, refurbish, and recycle products can save unnecessary waste from landfills.

The Benefits of Going Green

Improvements in Financial Performance

One thing that can get overlooked when thinking about sustainable supply chain services is that they are largely connected to reducing inefficiencies. Saving on packaging materials, transportation costs, and recapturing value from returned products all have very clear benefits to your bottom line. Most of the time, the only difference in a cost-saving and green initiative is the stat at which you end up measuring. A reduction in packaging costs often translates to an increase in renewable packaging. Have your partnered with another company to share shipping costs and space? You’re now effectively carpooling and reducing oil use and emissions. Realizing the way that green initiatives can improve your bottom line is often just a matter of changing your thinking.

Enhancing Your Brand Image

Taking the initiative for green supply chain strategies will earn dividends among your customer base. Today’s modern consumers are also environmentally-conscious ones. They will respond well upon learning that a company is making an effort to go green and do its part to help the environment. You can try and sell this angle by offering reports on how much material or fuel has been saved or by how much emission has been reduced. If you know how your competition handles its practices, you might even be able to offer direct comparisons.

Get Green Supply Solutions with Lean Supply Solutions

Lean Supply Solutions is a third-party logistics (3PL) fulfillment company whose operations are based around the Lean Methodology, a proven philosophy focused on eliminating any operations, equipment, or resources that are not capable of adding value to clients’ supply chains. By striving to ensure that the right products are provided to the right customers at the right time, Lean Supply Solutions is able to offer consistent, predictable, and quality results. To learn more about the Lean Methodology, outsourcing to Lean Supply Solutions, or to ask any questions, give us a call at 416-748-8982.

A kitting process in manufacturing is when a collection of parts and materials are grouped together in a single kit that has its own SKU number. These components are then delivered directly to the point-of-use, usually a specific part of the assembly line. It can help to think of kitting as pre-washing plates for a dishwasher, or how a hygienist will clean and prep your teeth before the dentist shows up. Making use of a full kitting process in a warehouse can be an impressive boon to your operations and efficiency. Here’s why.

Reduces Warehousing Requirements

Warehousing and distributions services base their costs in part on how much space your items take up. A kit containing multiple items with a single SKU will not only take up less shelf space than items stored separately, but it is considered a single item for shipping costs as well. Kitting processes in warehousing also introduce a useful level of standardization into the supply chain that helps simplify cost modeling. After all, the contents of each kit are predetermined, which makes calculating and predicting costs much easier than if the components had to be drawn separately. Kitting also makes it a lot easier to track inventory levels since you only have one item to focus on.

Enhances the Manufacturing Process

For manufacturers, the key benefit of kitting is that it reduces material handling and processing times at the point-of-use. Think of it like cooking. Without kitting, you are spending time finding each ingredient or utensil as the recipe calls for it. With kitting, you have everything you need arranged by the stove and you can get down to business without interruption. Kitting also reduces the number of deliveries to the point-of-use and the material storage space needed for assembly lines.

Better Inventory Control

Let’s continue with the cooking analogy for a moment. Imagine if your recipe calls for some milk. Without kitting, you’d go to your fridge and get the milk, except you suddenly discover that the carton is leaking or worse, the milk is expired. Now you have to delay carrying out the recipe to get a replacement. Alternatively, you might find out that you don’t have any milk at all or are running low and will need to get more in order to finish the other recipes you have planned later in the day. With kitting, both of these scenarios would not occur. This is because any shortages or quality-control issues would be resolved prior to this point when the kit is first assembled.

Look to Lean Supply Solutions for Kitting and Order Fulfillment Services

Lean Supply Solutions is a third-party order fulfillment company in Toronto whose operations are based around the Lean Methodology, a proven philosophy focused on eliminating any operations, equipment, or resources that are not capable of adding value to our clients’ supply chain. By striving to ensure that the right products are provided to the right customers at the right time, Lean Supply Solutions is able to offer consistent, accurate, and quality results. To learn more about the Lean Methodology, outsourcing to Lean Supply Solutions, or to ask any questions about kitting and fulfillment services, give us a call at 416-748-8982.

When used in the context of product fulfillment services, the term “accuracy” refers to a collection of quality measurements that reflect how well your order fulfillment process has met a customer’s need. In the world of e-commerce fulfillment, an order is considered “accurate” if the correct product is delivered on time, to the correct customer, and in the expected condition. This represents, in essence, the basic promise between your business and the consumer. Many elements of accuracy are handled at the warehousing and distribution levels, before the product actually ships out. Everything from shipping labels to pick-and-pack procedures to packaging materials can play a role in how accurate your shipments will be and, in turn, how strong the customer experience will be.

Accuracy Is Key to Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty

With new customers, your first impression will go a long way towards influencing how likely they are to return and shop again. This applies as much to ecommerce fulfillment as it does to brick-and-mortar shops. If you go to a restaurant and the waiter is slow, gives you the wrong food, or if the chef burns your order, are you likely to return again?

How about if you buy a lemon from a car dealership? What if an online store doesn’t deliver your Christmas presents in good condition or only gets them on your doorstep in the new year? All of these scenarios represent the same essential situation and outcome: a failure of accuracy and a customer who is not likely to return. With existing or regular customers, it is important to maintain accuracy.

Although a good history with your business can earn you some leeway and benefit of the doubt, all it takes is one bad experience to start souring the relationship. The perpetual flipside to e-commerce is that it is very easy for customers to start shopping elsewhere, which makes loyalty an incredibly valuable thing that should not be jeopardized.

Accuracy Reduces Costs

Even if you don’t care about customer satisfaction (good luck with that!), maintaining a high level of order accuracy can have other impacts on your business that need to be kept in mind.

Minimize Reverse Logistics

An effective reverse logistics and returns policy is something that every business should have but is not something they ever want to need. Each step of the process, from shipping the product back to repackaging and refurbishing, incurs its own costs. Although the purpose of reverse logistics is to recapture value, it is always better to be in a situation where your customer doesn’t want to return the product in the first place. Naturally, accuracy helps with this goal.

Avoid Re-Shipping

Reshipping a returned product is another part of reverse logistics, but it bears separate mention because it has other impacts on your business. Shipment carriers have a finite amount of space available, so there is a very real opportunity cost that is felt whenever you are returning products or sending a customer a repaired or replacement item. Every item that undergoes shipping and packaging as part of reverse logistics is taking up space that could have been spent on another, more profitable order. Maintaining high accuracy helps limit how often this sacrifice has to be made.

Technology and Accuracy

There are numerous ways to help improve order accuracy. Some methods are process-based while others are rooted in technology. Bar codes, for instance, can be combined with robots and sensors to quickly identify and place or retrieve items. Warehouse management systems can help provide configurable and flexible integration of the workflow to help monitor and drive accurate performances.

Look to Lean Supply Solutions for Accurate Fulfillment Services

Lean Supply Solutions is a third-party order fulfillment company in Toronto whose operations are based around the Lean Methodology, a proven philosophy focused on eliminating any operations, equipment, or resources that are not capable of adding value to clients’ supply chains. By striving to ensure that the right products are provided to the right customers at the right time, Lean Supply Solutions is able to offer consistent, accurate, and quality results. To learn more about the Lean Methodology, outsourcing to Lean Supply Solutions, or to ask any questions, give us a call at 416-748-8982.