FOSTER CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--E2open, a leading provider of strategic, cloud-based solutions for collaborative execution across global trading networks, today released the results of a joint research project with SCM World in a new report titled, “Collaborative Execution: Speed, innovation and profitability.” Based on a survey of 374 supply chain professionals, the findings suggest that in “truly collaborative” trading relationships, targeted operational metrics, such as inventory days, total landed cost, and cash-to-cash cycles, can be expected to improve by 50 percent over those without collaborative execution capabilities.
“Collaborative execution is defined as working together to improve supply chain performance by continuously solving real problems with better information,” said Fahim Afghan, Vice President of Research at SCM World. “We saw from a majority of responses that, by harnessing this collaboration, supply chains can be leaner, with less inventory and lower costs. At the same time, we saw the expectation that risk can be reduced and innovation increased, with a rapid rate of learning.”
By a ratio of nearly two to one, supply chain professionals agreed that one of the biggest barriers to collaborative execution is a slow issue resolution process. This was identified as a systemic problem related to quality of information flow, in terms of both the granularity and timeliness of data shared.
Similarly, 92 percent of respondents agreed that rapid problem resolution was part of good collaboration, with an underlying theme that true collaboration can be defined in terms of speed, both in problem solving and in organizational learning. More than half of the responses indicated that speed of response in truly collaborative relationships was twice as fast or faster, with learning curve improvements more than 50 percent greater than in non-collaborative trading partner relationships.
“A key takeaway for me was that the trust and strategic maturity needed to foster good collaborative relationships do exist,” said Mark Woodward, President and CEO at E2open. “Yet the information flows and speed of resolution are not yet at satisfactory levels, which suggest that a greater investment in cloud-based systems is required to enable timely information exchange and faster collaboration.”
Summary of Key Findings:
- Information sharing is the vital element of collaboration, with 73% and 83% respectively asserting that customers must share demand data and that suppliers in turn must disclose availability information
- Trust and governance are not key concerns for collaborative relationships, with less than one-third of respondents concerned with partners using information in a negative way
- Effective collaboration creates cost efficiency, with an overwhelming 80% strongly agreeing that they derive this benefit
- Eighty-two per cent of respondents believe collaborative relationships enhance the innovation process, enabling more effective experimentation
- The rate of learning increases by at least one-and-a-half times in a collaborative framework, according to 70% of respondents
The SCM World webinar and report covering the complete results of the “Collaborative Execution: Speed, innovation and profitability” study, including panelist insights from Lenovo, Avon, and Orica, are both available from E2open. View the Collaborative Execution webinar. Download the Collaborative Execution report.
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About E2open
E2open is a leading provider of cloud-based, on-demand software solutions enabling enterprises to procure, manufacture, sell, and distribute products more efficiently through collaborative execution across global trading networks. Brand owners use E2open solutions to gain visibility into and control over their trading networks through the real-time information, integrated business processes, and advanced analytics that E2open provides. E2open customers include Celestica, Cisco, Dell, Hitachi, IBM, LSI, Motorola, RIM, Seagate, and Vodafone. E2open is headquartered in Foster City, California with operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.e2open.com.
About SCM World
SCM World, a RaptureWorld company, is the leading global community and think-tank for senior level supply chain executives. Hosting a dynamic and interactive annual programme of end-user and academic-led webinars, events and research projects for its members, SCM World is the de-facto benchmark for forward-thinking supply chain leaders and their global teams to stay current through cutting edge content. Organizations from across multiple industry verticals use SCM World to further enhance supply chain learning and development, including the likes of HP, Nestle, Tyco, RIM, Nike, GlaxoSmithKline, Cisco, Schneider Electric, Shell, Motorola, The Dow Chemical Co, BASF, Applied Materials and many more.