What is the Microsoft Supply Chain Platform?

Supply chain resiliency is one of the biggest pain points for retail and distribution companies. Global suppliers are less reliable than before, often due to unforeseen circumstances. Adding to that, the costs of transportation and raw materials keep rising. Insight is the first step in order to take back control of your supply chain and to be able to move swiftly and act fast. But getting insight is easier said than done, because this asks a lot from your software and systems.

Manage risks with the Microsoft Supply Chain Platform

Over the past few years, the unforeseen supply chain disruptions brought new risks to the surface, such as shortages in stock and unpredictable deliveries. Not being able to predict and deliver reliable services is a big risk, but on the other hand, keeping stock is expensive. The Microsoft Supply Chain Platform helps companies to better manage these risks by giving end-to-end visibility and control of all processes in the supply chain.

The Supply Chain Platform is a connected data ecosystem. It is an open, flexible platform, that connects processes and data across all supply chain and ERP solutions a company uses. The Supply Chain Platform uses a combination of apps and tech, such as Teams, Dataverse, Power BI, Power Apps, Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management etc.

One of the key parts of the Platform is the Microsoft Supply Chain Center. This is like a control tower, or a ready made command center that unifies data from disparate systems to predict and mitigate disruptions. It’s a cloud data solution that brings data from all systems together: from your ERP and warehouse management systems, but also external from news sources.

The Supply Chain Center contains for example supply and demand insights, news, a data management layer and Intelligent Order Management. Especially the Intelligent Order Management functionality can add great value. It helps to orchestrate all order channels, EDI, in-store sales and customer service and connect these to the fulfillment systems, such as ERP, warehouse management and systems from delivery providers. With Intelligent Order Management you are able to automate and optimize fulfillment.