Managed Integration Services Will Be Key for Supply Chain Managers in 2020

Editor's Note: From autonomous ecosystems to circular economies, supply chain managers are coping dynamic change in 2020. OpenText, a leading Enterprise Information Management (EIM) solution provider, recently shared its insights with SCMR and made a few bold predictions. Here's what we hear from Mark Morley, Director of Strategic Product Marketing.

*Autonomous Supply Chains will transition into Autonomous Ecosystems

In 2019, companies began to explore combining disruptive technologies to bring greater value to their supply chain operations. These Proof of Concepts (POCs) brought together technologies like blockchain and IoT to form the ‘Blockchain of Things', however these POCs still remain at the initial stages. As companies start to introduce digital backbones across their internal and external business operations, it is expected that the Autonomous Supply Chain will be extended into the enterprise. 2020 will see this extend a step further with the emergence of Autonomous Ecosystems as companies look to leverage the benefits of these combined technologies both within and outside their business operations.

*Managed Integration Services will accelerate the introduction of “Digital Backbones”

The digital backbone will become a critical component of a company's digital transformation strategy for 2020 as companies look to streamline and optimize digital information flows. Managed Integration Services will help accelerate the adoption of digital backbones in 2020, providing integration of internal Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Warehouse Management Systems (WMS) with external trading partners such as third-party logistics carriers. As global markets adapt to changing political and economic conditions in 2020, Managed Integration Services will help companies develop a flexible and scalable integration platform to meet these changing needs.

*Digital ecosystems will power circular economies

Today's consumer driven markets are changing dramatically as companies try to adapt to increasing pressures to develop ethical or more responsible sourcing strategies. Developing greener, more sustainable supply chains is a priority for most companies. However, in doing so, companies need to digitize information flows and automate business processes with seamless enterprise integration to be able to establish these new sustainable working practices. In 2020, we will see AI being leveraged to help predict both waste and recycled product levels that will serve as an input to new manufacturing processes.

“This effectively helps to establish a constantly revolving circular economy that minimizes waste, develops greener working practices and allows companies to better align their brands with consumer expectations,” concludes Morley.

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