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2.8 min to readSoftware Sourcing Services

Mapping your Digital Supply Chain for improved efficiency

SoftwareOne blog editorial team
Blog Editorial Team
SoftwareOne Software Sourcing Services

Tomorrow’s organizations will benefit enormously from the progress they’re making today in Digital Transformation. However, to truly capitalize on digital investments, organizations need to track the tools they are spending money on and understand how those tools are being used.

This area, known as Digital Supply Chain Management, remains largely untapped by many organizations, making it ripe for improvement. Keep reading to learn more about how your organization can begin mapping your Digital Supply Chain for improved efficiency.

Transforming to digital - why your Digital Supply Chain needs attention

Thanks to innovations like robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT), edge computing, and other digital advances, improvements in efficiency are already being enjoyed throughout supply chains. Although, as companies become more digital, their supply chains begin to change as digital disruption permeates their entire organization.

In many organizations today, employees are using new technologies and devices - sometimes even without the knowledge of top-level leadership. This web of digital tools and services that organizations knit together form a new kind of business asset, dubbed the “technology stack.” This is the Digital Supply Chain and, like any other business asset, it needs to be managed and optimized.

Future goals are taking shape - greater efficiencies in the digital supply chain

Managing these new digital assets is quickly becoming a top priority for companies that are looking for the next step in efficiency and business growth. Facing an explosion of digital technologies in the workplace, organizations need to adopt a new paradigm for keeping it all in check.

This new standard involves tracking digital investments and creating policies to map your digital assets to ensure your company is getting maximum returns. But where do you start?

Many are taking the first steps by tracking and managing their software licenses. Knowing what’s really required to extract the full range of business benefits from optimizing the digital supply chain is a multi-stage process involving many working parts - the first of those necessary parts is good data.

Road mapping your Digital Supply Chain management starts with good data

Without consistently reliable data on your digital assets – such as the inventory, entitlement, and consumption data offered by PyraCloud – organizations do not have the kind of visibility, analytics, and insight needed to manage complex licensing contracts from various vendors.

For example, trustworthy data will help identify risk. Non-supported software can lurk in your network, each day, trailing further behind with security patches that are needed to protect your system from threats. This creates doorways for cyber hackers who target businesses that either aren’t aware of this kind of threat, or haven’t created the right kinds of policies to eliminate it.

Here’s a recent example. On July 9th of this year, Microsoft stopped dispatching security updates for its SQL Server 2008 product. Companies who did not migrate to a newer product like Azure were left with unprotected infrastructures and applications. And not only was security (and hence compliance) compromised for these companies, but performance and efficiency were impacted, too.

With the right data, organizations who were on top of their Digital Supply Chain would have identified the upcoming End of Service (EOS) event well in advance and then taken early steps to begin migrating to another product. Of course, that means having the right people or partners who are knowledgeable and proficient in managing the whole lifecycle.

Lining up people and partners for the right end-to-end expertise

Even with good data, getting to the point of cost-efficiently managing an entire digital infrastructure can be time-consuming and complicated, not to mention labor-intensive.

From procurement, to deployment, to security and optimization, Digital Supply Chain Management talent is necessary.

Shifting talent around within an organization to cover the kinds of capabilities involved in digital Supply Chain Management can be tricky. Internal departments and teams are making the shift toward cross- functionality, increased collaboration, and a flattened hierarchy of decision-making – all of which characterize the modern organization.

Managing the Digital Supply Chain may require a different approach to evolving the talent structure, however. Even the most adaptable, knowledgeable teams can face serious challenges when it comes to this relatively new frontier of IT management. Technological change happens quickly, especially when working with multiple publishers and providers.

Organizations need to be able to respond quickly to vast amounts of data, and the subsequent threat landscape that’s aggressively evolving.

For many companies, making the most of their new digital-enabled ecosystem means forging ties with partners who specialize in Digital Supply Chain Management.

Leveraging the right tools

Digital Supply Chains are a new kind of digital ecosystem that requires ongoing maintenance from top-level talent that’s equipped with the right skills to keep companies protected.

For Digital Supply Chain Management, this means being versed in the technologies that can simplify license management and ensure organizations are getting the most out of their digital investments while remaining compliant. This include tools and capabilities such as machine learning (ML), artificial intelligence (AI), and data analytics, which are already helping organizations make improvements in supply-chain efficiency. Having an experienced team outfitted with the right tools to drive Digital Supply Chain Management systems will help create the best supply chain strategies going forward.

Final thoughts

As a result of Digital Transformation initiatives, Digital Supply Chain Management has become a top priority for many organizations. Ensuring maximum efficiency in your Digital Supply Chain Management efforts requires an emphasis on data quality, experienced personnel, and cutting-edge tools at the outset.

While an initiative of this size does require specialized people, processes, and tools, proper management of your Digital Supply Chain certainly has its perks. With the right planning and execution, your organization will enjoy better compliance, security, and spend optimization.

An image of a blue and red light coming out of a box.

Get the most out of your digital investments

Manage licensing, risk, and compliance across your supply chain.

Get the most out of your digital investments

Manage licensing, risk, and compliance across your supply chain.

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SoftwareOne blog editorial team

Blog Editorial Team

We analyse the latest IT trends and industry-relevant innovations to keep you up-to-date with the latest technology.