Companies are looking to differentiate themselves and gain market share in an increasingly competitive environment. One of the tools that can make a difference is a cloud-native S&OP solution such as COLIBRI. What are the advantages of this type of software, and why does it give you a competitive edge? Answers.
Cloud-native S&OP solution: what are the benefits?
Do you want to manage your demand, distribution, forecasting and procurement processes in a simple, intuitive, and efficient way? Nothing better than a cloud-based Sales and Operations planning solution such as COLIBRI.
The software is cloud-native, based on proven techniques and cloud computing technologies that make it easy to develop, run and enhance applications. You only need a good internet connection and a subscription to use this cloud solution at your leisure.
Another advantage of a cloud-native application such as COLIBRI is that it can deliver real business value. Indeed, the solution keeps pace with the activities of each company, regardless of its sector.
In addition, the application is regularly updated and improved, mainly thanks to user feedback. This makes it a much more powerful tool than a simple Excel spreadsheet. As a result, the entire team gains in performance.
Smart, simple, and safe, COLIBRI is hosted in the Microsoft Azure Cloud. A technology that offers users guarantees in terms of data security. The Microsoft Azure cloud is subject to very strict security rules. It is currently the cloud with the highest number of certifications.
The Azure Cloud complies with a wide range of international standards, including ISO 27001, HIPAA, G-Cloud, etc. And thanks to the Azure Cloud: no more data loss. You can revert to any database state in just a few minutes. As a bonus, backups are automatic and allow total flexibility of use and data backup.
Colibri: easy and fast deployment
With high-performance supply chain software such as COLIBRI, companies can save time, make their forecasts more reliable and optimise their stocks.
However, decision-makers are often reluctant to adopt this type of tool. They fear, among other things, that they will overburden their already busy teams, choose an unsuitable or not very intuitive tool, or even lose data.
For all these reasons, many companies choose to stick with Excel. However, this tool is unsuitable for S&OP. Slow, tedious, and challenging to use in collaborative mode, the spreadsheet quickly finds its limits, and the risks of errors and wasted time are commonplace!
To address these issues, COLIBRI has chosen to go against traditional methodologies where the time required to set up new projects is long and the procedures potentially tedious.
Although the implementation of COLIBRI takes about 3 months, in practice, only 10 to 15 days are required of the critical user. The rest of the work is done exclusively by the COLIBRI consultants. Moreover, the tool was designed to make the interfacing workload as light as possible for the IT departments. In practice, this can be done in 4 or 5 days.
COLIBRI is, therefore, very quick, and easy to implement. It does not add to the workload of the teams involved within the company. And to make things easier for you, COLIBRI offers you personalised support. Are the IT teams unavailable? With COLIBRI, you can take advantage of a package with rapid interfacing. The only work to be done by the employees is to extract the data from the ERP. The COLIBRI teams will convert this information into the correct format and then integrate it. This well-thought-out Azure Data Factory service reduces the workload of IT departments by no less than 80%!
ROI in record time with Colibri
By opting for COLIBRI, the ROI is very quickly achieved: immediate gains are indeed at stake. In terms of productivity, agility, growth, and cash flow.
You can respond better and earlier to market demand thanks to better planning and forecasting. You have the right stocks at the right time. You can sell better and obtain better service by avoiding shortages or delays. Your customer satisfaction rate is improved. By improving the service rate, you limit lost sales: your turnover can increase by 2 and 10% with COLIBRI.
Another advantage is a better-sized stock. You limit obsolescence and the immobilisation of cash flow. Your stocks are valued, and you get cash back. This cash flow can be used to invest in new products and machines or recruit new staff.
If you work with companies that charge late payment penalties, COLIBRI can help you reduce these penalties by up to 20%. This will have a positive impact on your result.
Inventory or obsolescence is reduced by 20-30% and the load and planning cycle by about 50%.
Finally, thanks to COLIBRI, you benefit from a reduction of approximately 20% in emergency costs. For example, if demand is not anticipated in the industrial sector, you have to act quickly by launching a small production run in the middle of a large one. For the company, this urgent approach means lower output rates, longer set-up times and, automatically, lower productivity.
A good S&OP solution, therefore, brings direct gains, but not only… Qualitative gains are also at stake. They are more challenging to measure, and yet they are real!
Benefits on quality
In concrete terms, knowing you can better anticipate and respond to demand will enable you to satisfy your customers better. They will commit themselves more durably over time; you will improve your brand image.
Better anticipation also helps you to have better relations with your suppliers and, therefore, to manage their contracts better. You benefit from a strong position during negotiations.
Finally, you work with more relaxed teams. Absences, human errors, and turnover are significantly reduced. Employees are more fulfilled and more loyal to the company. This a critical point at a time when companies are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit the right people… and to keep them!
Adopting COLIBRI means choosing a native cloud solution that guarantees you a rapid ROI with both qualitative and quantitative gains. Ask for your demo!
