In recent years, many organizations around the world have decided to migrate their supply systems to cloud solutions. Although some decision makers still view these platforms with skepticism, the truth is that cloud software is here to stay as it goes far beyond a trend.  The efficiency, connectivity and agility of these platforms have transformed supply operations in a positive way.

With a cloud solution that adapts to the specific needs of the business, Supply departments can eliminate “patchwork quilts ” by uniting in the same space all the key elements of the supply chain, such as purchasing plans, orders of services, suppliers, tenders, contracts, reports and invoices. Additionally, the cloud allows organizations to respond quickly to changes, as has been the case during this pandemic.

Likewise, it generates a significant cost reduction, increases information security and ensures business availability. When you see the sum of the benefits, it is clear that the future of sourcing lies in the cloud.

Benefits of cloud solutions

1. Less operational burden, more time for strategic tasks

Why wish the day had more hours, if you can work in an automated way? With a cloud platform, organizations eliminate information silos, therefore, they can make decisions in real time, based on data that they can access at any time. Furthermore, by having each stage of the supply cycle centralized, manual processes are reduced, which can be the cause of errors (and reprocessing).

2. Data exploitation

Data is the oil of the 21st century, but are you really taking advantage of it? With cloud tools that combine Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, organizations can completely transform the Supply Chain. Some uses of data range from generating valuable reports for decision making, proactively identifying risks, finding the best suppliers for a purchasing process, to analyzing the load of your team to optimize operations.

3. Process transformation

In the new reality, remote work is becoming more common. This means transforming work spaces and guaranteeing access to information from anywhere and at any time. Cloud solutions facilitate collaborative and remote work, guaranteeing security, transparency and traceability at every stage. In this way, it is no longer necessary for a team to be in the same space to make a decision, it is enough to enter a cloud platform to see progress of the purchasing or contracting process, record observations, view pending items or upload updates in time. real.

How to choose the best cloud solution for my organization?

This is a frequently asked question among people who are starting a Digital Transformation process. Beyond the acquisition cost, some characteristics of the solution must be identified that will make it add value to the Supply department, such as:

• Tools for managing the end-to-end cycle.
• Integration with other organizational tools, such as ERP.
• Supply Chain Analytics tools for the use of information.
• Intuitive interface that facilitates use by the supply team, other areas of the company and suppliers.

Cloud solutions provide an opportunity to rethink and transform sourcing processes to bring speed, automation, security and trust to a strategic area for organizations.