Introduction
How to use time management and anticipation in your supply chain success.
The more you plan ahead and anticipate what you might need, the better your business will do in general. With this article, we'll be giving you tips on how to make sure that you're managing your time appropriately and planning ahead for future needs. Give yourself a head start with these three basic principles: Anticipate needs, create systems of organization, and find ways to delegate tasks where possible. You can't manage everything on your own - but when it comes to the big picture that's what counts anyway!
1. Anticipate needs : if you know what your company will need in the future, it's easier to plan for and buy them now
You can’t reach your destination if you don’t know where you are now. That means that it is crucial for any organization to have a good understanding of its current situation before it can make plans for the future. If you want to be successful in business, you need to identify and analyze your company's strengths and weaknesses so that you can take appropriate action.
A successful supply chain has many moving parts, but without an accurate assessment of the present state of affairs, there is no way to plan for growth or address weaknesses. You need a clear view of what works well today as well as an awareness about what needs work tomorrow. As such, you should conduct supply chain assessments.
Once you know what you do and how you do it it's easier to take action on quantity, process and people.
Of course you should always keep a record of what you have done and what you are doing to keep track and continue to explore your data.
You can now give projection based on experience and feedback from sales perspective
2. Create systems of organization - create a system that is easy to follow and helps you stay on top of things
Create a system that is easy to follow and helps you stay on top of things
Make sure your systems are workable. Test it. Run it. Improve it.
Set up alerts for when something needs attention. You can not miss any important step
Set up automation
Review, revise, and update as needed to make sure everything works smoothly on a yearly basis. Make sure to stay up to date and challenge what you have done last year
Follow through on what you've committed to do - if you say you're going to do it, then do it!
As for your software solution and your manpower we are always here to help and give you support based on our knowledge and our own resources. We have supported our client organization for many years with tailor made solutions only.
Create systems of organization : if you have a good system in place, it makes it easier to manage your time efficiently
If you are not organized, chaos will ensue - with the risk of miscommunication and greater amounts of wasted time that could be used elsewhere. That is why an essential part with getting things done is creating good organizational habits. These principles can help you create a system for managing your supply chain success:
- Use lists. Make sure you always know what's on deck. If something is due next week or already overdue, list them! Doing so will keep everything in perspective and prevent important tasks from falling through the cracks. But don't stop at one list. Create checklists for projects, lists of contacts, etc. - your options are endless!
- Use reminders. You can also use alerts in order to make sure you won't miss important tasks and data entry. It's much easier than trying to keep track of everything in your head!
3. Find ways to delegate tasks where possible - there are always some aspects of your work that someone else can do better than you!
Technology makes it all so easy nowadays
Technology makes it easier to manage your time efficiently but it has also made delegation much easier too with tools like chatbots, workforce management software and projects management software available these days that will help you automate some processes really well which comes back again to point 1 , anticipating needs & creating systems. You just need the right tools for the right tasks. Check them out and see which you might need!
Delegate on your staff - a successful business is a team effort
A successful business is a team effort, so make sure you invest in the success of your entire company instead of just focusing on yourself. Take care of your employees by providing room to grow within the organization. In order to get things done well it's important to have happy, productive employees that feel appreciated for their time and efforts. If they are not happy then they will go elsewhere because at the end of the day people want recognition from what they do or else it's not worth it.
Delegate to a third party - you might not have all resources internally
Using third parties can make your life much easier. If you're not good at something or you can't allocate time and/or resources then it is better you outsource that particular task.
For example, you might like doing some marketing but if that is not your expertise then why don't outsource the job to someone who does? It's the same for your supply chain. You would be surprised by how much time and money this can save you! Third parties are meant to do a specific task meaning they have built their entire organization to deliver the best result for their client.
You might be thinking that outsourcing means you need to pay more but it's the contrary.
Because of their expertise, third parties can do your job better and faster than what you could do on your own. And because they are only doing one task for you (the one you outsource), they can deliver way faster than you ever would! The best part is that if something goes wrong, which happens from time to time in supply chain management and any other industry, you have a contact right away who can help you until things go back to normal. In other words, the quality of work is much higher and there is no excuse for anything going wrong.
By delegating tasks to others not only will your life become easier but also much cheaper as everything is done for a fixed price and no longer by the hour, which means you can go to bed knowing exactly how much it cost you this week.
For example, if you need items sourced from China to be delivered in New York at a certain time then hiring a third party would definitely be your best choice. By hiring an expert who knows your sector and is specialized in sourcing these kinds of products, would not only save you money but also make sure that everything will be done on time without any problem.
Conclusion
The more you plan ahead and anticipate what needs to be done, the better your business will do in general. By delegating tasks to others not only will our life become easier but also much cheaper as everything is done for a fixed price and no longer by the hour.
Thank you for reading! We hope this was useful.
Feel free to get in touch with us for your next project if you think it make sense to outsource all or part of it.