Great ways to reduce your business costs

Before you can begin to make reductions in your business costs an analysis of what is happening in the organisation is essential.

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Having materials, including finance, in the right place at the right time, is the object of the exercise. However, a more stringent analysis of the supply chain will provide a qualitative overview of the data surrounding each component, and how that information is shared between customer and supplier.

Touches

By reducing the number of links in your supply chain you reduce the number of touches and reduce the stress on the whole operation, minimising the risk of non-fulfillment.

Supplier Management Software found at sites such as Supplier Management Software company Contractswise can have a major impact on efficiency. This type of analysis looks at both the accuracy and compatibility of financial transactions.

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It cannot be emphasised enough that the number of touches on the supply chain reduces efficiency and is therefore not cost effective. Although constant checking seems a good thing, lack of cross-department communication can mean tasks are repeated, impacting profit. Software which reduces these operations and yet gives a real-time analysis is a sound investment.

By re-assessing your needs, it may become clear that you are operating on a pattern of demand which is outdated. Constant analysis means you will have an accurate idea of whether your monthly assumptions hold up.

Global

This constant assessing will mean you will reduce the amount of stock you are holding at either end of the supply chain, impacting both procurement and sales. Improving your ordering system will involve complying with global procurement standards, examples of which can be found at the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply. By examining the ordering process, and its position in the supply chain, you will discover whether it is a cause of waste.

This overview will open up the possibility of streamlining the process, and offer solutions which have not been considered, such as outsourcing some operations and thus cutting overheads. Short-term projects are a good example where a full-time employee may not be needed once the job is completed, and such tasks are ripe for sub-contracting.

Increased technological input is inevitably impacting the supply chain. Sourcing the software to help your company stay ahead of the competition should be on your to-do-list.