When it comes to supply chain management in any industry, connected data is essential for strategic planning and decision-making. Having access to and analysing data from varied sources, such as internal teams, external suppliers, or third-party sources, can help in optimising processes, making informed decisions, and guaranteeing efficient service or product delivery.
But first and foremost, understanding your existing data is a crucial step in any supply chain strategy. After all, it’s impossible to navigate towards a solution if you can’t identify your current standing.
Hence, an in-depth evaluation of your data, alongside the processes and platforms within your organisation, is imperative.
In this article, we delve into the importance of connected data for successful supply chain management, the characteristics of ‘good data’, the process of extracting valuable insights from internal, external, and third-party data sources, and how tools like SourceDogg can make this process significantly easier and more efficient.
Understanding the Essence of Good Data
To build an effective supply chain, the data you rely on must be dependable. Here are some key questions to consider:
- Does the information help us address our specific problem?
- Can we trust the accuracy and authenticity of the data? Where did it originate?
- Is the data current?
- Is our data set comprehensive, or are there gaps to fill?
- Does the data align with other information we have?
- How accessible is the data when needed?
When the data is relevant, accurate, up-to-date, complete, and consistent, it can be utilised to make smart decisions, identify trends, and back your proposals with credible evidence. Extracting and consolidating this data can be a laborious task.
That’s why solutions like SourceDogg can help alleviate the data collection burden by collating all internal, external, and third-party supplier data for you.
The Multi-Source Data Goldmine
In the realm of supply chain management, we often encounter diverse, scattered sources of data, making it a veritable goldmine waiting to be tapped. This section delves into how we can unlock the potential of these varying data sources:
Internal Teams – Collaborate
There’s a wealth of data often hidden in internal documents, emails, file systems, and even employees’ knowledge that needs to be extracted, cleaned, and consolidated into a single source of truth, like SourceDogg’s Supplier Master Data, for effective review.
External Suppliers – Engage
The aim here is to efficiently connect with suppliers at scale and motivate them to fill in the data gaps. The main challenge lies in ensuring the data collected meets the requirements for accuracy and consistency. SourceDogg simplifies this process, enabling you to create data input templates and send emails to all suppliers, who can then self-serve in our portal. This transfers the entire process out of your inbox and spreadsheets and into the cloud.
Third-Party Sources – Connect
We are seeing an upward trend in the augmentation and connection of various third-party systems to enrich the supplier database. Whether it’s financial data from systems such as Creditsafe or online data sources relevant to your sector, these integrations can revolutionise your view of your supplier portfolio.
Tapping into Third-Party Resources
SourceDogg is designed to efficiently absorb data from third-party sources that are vital for project success. This bypasses the internal and external supplier data collection challenges, populating your databases so that you can focus on data analysis rather than administration.
There are numerous third-party databases and data sources relevant to various sectors that you could be integrating for a consolidated supplier view. Identifying the necessary data and a potential source, or consulting one of our supply chain experts, is your key to unlocking these resources.
The Power of Connection
The power of connected data lies in its ability to transform supply chain management across all sectors. It enables more informed decisions, streamlines processes, and optimises service or product delivery. With the right approach, robust data management tools like SourceDogg can help you navigate your data challenges, understand your current position, and plot a clear path forward.
Getting started is as simple as taking the first step.
We’d love to speak to you for a personalised demonstration of SourceDogg. We’re here to understand your unique challenges, explore potential solutions, and help plot a path forward that takes full advantage of connected data. Remember, addressing these issues is not a one-way street; it’s a collaborative process we navigate together.
Let’s work to unlock the full potential of your supply chain with the power of connected data. Contact us today to schedule your SourceDogg demo and start the journey towards more effective and efficient supply chain management.
