Distributors are managing their businesses with outdated processes, supported by outdated solutions, such as Order to Cash or O2C. Keep reading to learn how to use the Plan to Profit distribution management processes to replicate operational and decision-making methods and enable margin growth.
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Most would agree that you cannot, or should not, drive your car by looking in your rear view mirror. It is much safer and wiser to look forward and to focus on where you are heading or where you need to go. If we drive simply by looking through the rear view mirror, our journeys will not be too successful.
Distributors are managing their businesses with outdated processes created and supported by outdated software solutions. Some of these outdated solutions are the result of having purchased MRP (manufacturing) software back in the late 80’s/early 90’s and modifying them to a level such that they are unable migrate to newer versions. Now they are afraid to purchase modern software for fear they run into the same problem. Other distributors coded their own software and are under the incorrect assumption that this is exactly what they need.
The truth is, Order to Cash distribution management processes don’t show a true picture of any transaction. They don’t provide any visibility into profit and loss, margins, sales predictions, or future inventory requirements.
These distributors are putting themselves, their businesses and their employees at risk. They are not planning for growth; they are neither maintaining nor growing margin. They are slowly but surely being out maneuvered by the competition and will eventually lose their market position.
A new model has emerged that represents the real-world process that companies need in order to match or exceed expectations. This process replicates a company’s operational and decision- making methods and actually delivers them a means to maintain margins and then increase them. As we describe this new approach you will notice that you are already familiar with the flow and its application, but it expands to provide deeper insights and understanding through robust software functionality.ever before, both B2B and consumer customers are empowered to make themselves heard. The voice of the customer is more powerful than ever before in leveling the competitive landscape – making it more important than ever to have a strong customer engagement strategy.
Download the whitepaper to learn how to go beyond order to cash processes and successfully implement a Plan to Profit approach for actionable insights and improved distribution management processes.
