Samir Allen Farhoumand has helped many companies thrive in a supply chain market that has become very confused in recent years. Part of these problems lay at the door of COVID-19 and the ways it tied up supply chains and forced them to consolidate. That’s why he recently gave a talk about optimizing supply chain efficiency in 2021 based on these conditions. These steps can help many businesses move into 2022 with ease.
Samir Allen Farhoumand Examines Optimization Problems (and Solutions) for 2021
What are the most significant problems likely to hit the supply chain market in 2021? The same kind of issues that typically exist within the market. For example, Samir Allen Farhoumand has seen that social distancing and a tighter cash flow have created a strange shrinking effect on the economy. Essentially, people are traveling less distance than they did to buy goods, huddling around a central base.
As a result, many supply chain companies are also cutting back on their workforce and focusing more on a tighter and more centralized market. This situation is complex, though, because many of these firms may rely on a reasonably extensive network of supply and demand to survive. Therefore, optimization in this scenario requires understanding your workforce needs and your customers’ demands.
Consider mixing virtual reality and artificial intelligence into your workplace to increase the efficiency of your smaller teams. CRM systems explicitly tailored to your field are critical. Samir Allen Farhoumand believes that such programs help track things like sales, marketing, and service operations, allowing a smaller number of people to handle a more significant number of tasks smoothly and efficiently.
A big part of this factor centers around improving the demand forecast, which has been wild since 2020. With shutdowns and sudden spikes in buying behaviors triggering shortages throughout the supply chain, it is essential to pay attention to these concerns. CRM programs can help out here, but it is also vital to better understand the nature of market changes in 2021.
For example, Samir Allen Farhoumand strongly suggests focusing on high-volume delivery options throughout the end of 2021. Increasing vaccination rates and stabilizing infection rates have helped to make larger shipments easier to handle and more cost-efficient. And it also helps to cut back on expensive short-term shipping costs, which occurs when using a small-volume shipping model.
The biggest step here is to learn how to spot trends before they occur. For example, the most successful supply chain companies had emergency plans in place long before COVID-19 that helped make it easier for them to keep their business operational. Just as significantly, they have adjusted these methods over the last year to ensure that they provide just enough goods for customers.