Three Common Global Supply Chain Issues that Affect Your Bottom Line

When was the last time you heard of a large or even a medium-sized company that is strictly domestic? It happens, but not very often. Today, the vast majority of enterprise-class companies are global. Why? The benefits of sourcing from low cost countries and selling into new foreign markets are too strong to dismiss.

And while companies have found a way to go global, many are still making due with sub-standard global processes and technologies borrowed and tweaked from domestic operations. Global transportation and supply chain visibility are two such areas.

It’s not enough to track goods domestically; supply chain managers must monitor shipments around the globe and account for the added complexity of moving goods across international borders.

A recent study by AberdeenGroup showed that only about 30% of companies have automated data and event monitoring and/or have optimized process capabilities in place. From source to destination, the inbound process steps or milestones needed to synchronize product and information flows are still being monitored manually (phone, fax and email) in up to 49% of all companies.

Here are some questions to ask yourself to highlight ways you may be losing money without the right processes in place for goods that need to cross international borders.