Increasing customer demands, competition, and rising development costs are changing the face of business. To stay competitive, companies must transform their supply chains from cost-based, back-office functions to flexible operations designed to effectively address today's challenges. Product life-cycle management provides the framework for this enterprisewide optimization.
The Internet is proving to be a most effective tool in transforming supply chains across all industries. Suppliers, distributors, manufacturers, and resellers now work together more closely and effectively than ever as a single, virtual organization. As a result, companies change both how they conduct business and how quickly customers receive products from suppliers.
By implementing networked and integrated supply-chain management processes/systems, companies can reduce their inventory and associated costs, make better real-time forecasting decisions, speed the delivery of products and services, streamline the payment cycle, increase revenues, and improve service. Today's technology-driven supply chain also enables customers to manage their own buying experiences and increases coordination and connectivity among supply partners.
