There is, of course, a shortage of data scientists. This is compounded for supply chain, which might not be viewed as attractive as finance, sales and marketing. But analytical platforms can alleviate this shortage. This is because within the platform environment, “citizen data scientists” can build new apps and solutions.
As the line between the physical and digital world blurs in business, the algorithmic supply chain affords companies the ability to leverage massive data from increasing connections among people, businesses and things. This allows them to respond quickly and profitably to changes in market demand. In an algorithmic supply chain, decision-making relies on the company’s intellectual property (IP) that captures data and encapsulates it into reusable, unique and optimized information assets. Embedding this IP in supply chain processes, the company can solve large-scale, dynamic problems and create competitive advantage.
UPS provides a powerful example of using analytical platforms to build On the Road Integrated Optimization and Navigation (ORION) to support its core business processes. ORION generates daily routing manifests to 55,000 UPS drivers. The platform incorporates optimization, heuristics, predictive analytics and custom mapping. It generates $300-$400 million in annual benefits, based on reducing fuel consumption by 10 million gallons, carbon emissions by 100,000 metric tons and driven miles by 100 million, annually.