Warehousing System Selections

ERPs and SaaS native emerging solutions providers can provide a low cost of ownership while meeting business needs. ERP providers SAP, Oracle, Infor, and Microsoft have varying levels of capability, often offset by increasing levels of complexity and cost associated with their solutions.  Jasci, Mantis, and Generix are also options here for low cost of ownership.

More established providers that have been in market long enough have often adapted industry-centric or specialized solutions. Examples include Techsys, Deposco, Made4Net, Synergy, etc

The long established leaders in the warehousing space have built expansive capabilities with optimization engines capable of solving the most complex problems across industries. While often table stakes for managing complex supply chains, they bring with them similar complexity in implementation and maintenance, and higher costs of ownership along with it.  Blue Yonder and Manhattan have recently been joined by Infios and Softeon in this tier of providers.  Each has faced challenges in modernizing their architectures and migrating clients to the latest platforms, and SCT encourages those embarking on these journeys to bring in specialists during the planning and vetting phases.

Bolt-On solutions to problems that have eluded even the best of breed providers offer perhaps the best opportunity for progressing capabilities and achieving value with incremental investment. SCT believes these innovative solutions are too often neglected due to mis-perceived complexities of implementation.  These include SVT Robotics automation adapters, Matilda Technologies eBoL solutions, Autoscheduler’s task orchestration engine, Sendflex’s parcel management solution, Longbow’s Rebus visibility software, LoadSmart’s appointment scheduling, and Slot3D’s slotting intelligence, amongst others.

Armed with industry-centric templates, 3PLs can ramp up operations in public or dedicated warehouses and provide scalable services for warehousing operations in short order.  Many 3PLs combine services with transportation but are happy to gain a foothold into new clients with standalone warehousing services.  They range from global players with robust technology footprints and large workforces, to regional startups hyper-focused on customer service.  SCT can help identify key players for evaluation, and manage the RFP process through contracting and implementation.

From the Big 4 advisory firms down to a plethora of niche startups that have evolved out of the software provider landscape, a large number of implementation and support specialists offer on shore, near shore, and off shore services to scale and accelerate implementations.  They are often critical extensions of the software provider.  SCT works with many of these firms to ensure scoping and staffing plans are vetted and budgets are aligned to our clients success criteria.  Examples include Accenture, Delloitte, Netlogistik, Bricz, Longbow, K2S, etc.

Our value proposition lies in the process that ensures requirements are not a regurgitation of the current state, but a well developed visionary view of capabilities that will achieve organizational objectives, and that the leadership team is well aligned to those objectives, and these objectives are ready to be vetted with the broader organization and potential partners.

• Stakeholder Alignment & Program Charters – Interviews with key stakeholders are combined with SCT-led education on the current Warehouse Management technology landscape with a focus on your critical business needs and opportunities. Aligning on key objectives for the project through a high-level review, or a detailed Opportunity Assessment will allow SCT to build consensus and shared vision across the organization for WMS project objectives to ensure alignment during the requirements definition and vendor selection.
• Integrated System Architecture & Analytics Design – As SCT lays out a broad view of the provider landscape, it is often necessary to shortlist those providers that are more likely to participate in the proposed architecture.  This may include large WMS vendors, smaller niche providers, adjacent software providers, and warehouse automation technologies.  Vendor identification and interviews allow our clients to hear the stories and prioritize activities in a way that will provide the needed insight to develop scope for the evaluation and program planning exercises.  The output is a longer term vision to a holistic architecture that establishes a foundational alignment for roadmap development and vendor selection purposes.
• Requirements Definition – Detailed process walk-throughs through each area of the business and user persona allows SCT to align current state capabilities to best practices, identifying the list of critical capabilities needed from a warehouse solution as well as additional capabilities and considerations.  The output is a prioritized list of requirements to be used in an RFI/RFP, along with any near term improvements that can be achieved prior to a more formal project.
• Critical Differentiators – SCT’s elevation of critical requirements and differentiators across functional requirements and provider approach can be leveraged in weighted scorecards as an effective tool to socialize priorities across different stakeholder entities within the organization and to ensure that priorities are aligned when selecting a vendor and solution.

SCT Advisory provides RFI and RFP support for Warehouse Management System and associated technology selections by capturing and prioritizing key business requirements, facilitating the organizational alignment on program objectives while orchestrating the selection process with the right group of warehousing solutions providers given the required capabilities, budget and culture fit.  Our unique value proposition combines the depth of familiarity with the solutions and how they can be configured or customized to achieve process objectives and operational results, combined with an understanding of the effort required to translate requirements into systems capabilities.  We drive aggressive plans with the partners, while setting realistic expectations and contingency plans with our clients.

• Sourcing Strategy, RFP Oversight, & Vendor Selection – As project scope is defined, mobilizing the best-fit ecosystem of vendors and services providers across software, cloud, services, and support is needed.  Designing partner-friendly programs leveraging our industry expertise provides a stream-lined approach and short list of candidates to deliver a successful implementation.
• RFP Management – Managing vendor communications, scoring responses, consolidating evaluations, and tracking contract progress can be time-consuming and complex. Our proven methodology streamlines this process, keeping it efficient and transparent—while providing clear updates and recommendations to your executive team.
• Vendor demonstrations are a critical step in vetting the solutions and ensuring consensus on success factors and preferred vendors across the organization which is critical to the success of the overall program.  SCT provides vendors with guidance on your organizational priorities and while presenting what we see as critical differentiators to you for a 360-degree view of the options to choose from.  Briefing sessions following the demonstrations translate vendor positioning into valid expectations, and roundtable discussions unveil any reservations from the team that can be addressed in future conversations with the vendors.
• Program Planning – Company-wide projects require careful collaboration, roadmap development, milestone planning, and executive engagement. With hundreds of supply chain projects completed, SCT knows which questions to ask, critical success milestones to track, and KPIs to monitor—helping you build a strategic program plan that drives lasting value across your organization. Following vendor demonstrations, as the preferred solution is materializing, Scoping workshops allow our customers to dig deeper into capabilities and setup requirements to more fully develop an appreciation for solution capabilities and the effort required to achieve them.  SCT facilitates workshops with 1-2 vendors to walk through the day in the life of warehouse operation (end to end given the surrounding system architecture), implementation methodology, roles and responsibilities, and critical success factors.
• Scoping, Scheduling, and Roles & Responsibilities – Aligning project and program objectives with high level estimates of effort allows a best in class approach to take shape.  Iterations allowing the evaluation of complexity and projected results allow refinement of scope to deliver optimal value.  Considerations of staff availability and supplementation options allow time and cost tradeoffs to be evaluated, delivering an ideal balance of speed and value.
• Program Justification & Business Case Preparation – Investment priorities will be scoped and sequenced, providing clarity on transformation strategies and business justification.  Cost estimation and returns on investment will be combined into a time phased justification for your program, and combined with soft benefits and insights to socialize effort & procure funding.

SCT’s advisors integrate with your project teams to help extend conversations related to warehousing project design and its successful delivery.    Embedding ourselves into regular conversations with program stakeholders provides a third-party view of progress and a supportive yet challenging voice seeking to provide optimal impacts and value realized from of your warehousing solutions, while minimizing the disruptions that might result in the process.  Participating in or leading steering committee meetings provides a third party view free from internal politics on the readiness for system cutovers as well as the ability of the solution to achieve value.

• Industry Best Practices – Our advisors have succeeded in guiding some of the most complex environments through global design contemplation efforts the balance operational efficiencies with throughput while protecting agile processes prepared to address the needs of channel growth, shifting demand, and the prospect of merger and acquisition impact to operations.  Throughout design and continuously as issues arise and parking lots are addressed our advisors provide invaluable insight into industry recognized best practices and opportunities to improve existing processes. Managing the balance of delivering the best solution and deferring potentially disruptive changes to the business delivers a high value outcome with opportunity to grow from a foundation of success.
• Implementation Methodology – Following the critical elements of a best in class methodology assures solution readiness and business preparations to absorb the extended capabilities that implementations have to offer. Our advisors, through years of experience, ensure the rigorous exercises of data cleanliness, testing thoroughness, and robust training are executed in alignment with the appropriate milestones.
• Change Management – Change management is perhaps the most critical element assuring the success of an implementation. Preparing the business for the impacts of process and technology changes, while championing the positive impacts it will have on the personnel and the business can go miles towards driving the correct outcomes. SCT works with client leadership to build awareness of pending change and communicate effectively across stakeholder groups while preparing them for a successful transition.
• Program Leadership Alignment & Coaching – Ensuring stakeholders maintain a clear line of sight to both project success and program objectives is critical.  Opportunity often lies beyond your typical cadence of status reporting and milestone presentations.  With ongoing and frequent dialogue beyond the mechanics, our advisors will cultivate a dialogue with project stakeholders deliberating project risks related to people, process, and technology, adding rigor to change management and calibrating scoping decisions to balance results with objectives around schedule and costs.
• Steering Committee Oversight & Support – Formal, objective reviews of program success prove useful to calibrating program investment.  Our advisors, extracted from the day to day challenges of operations and project management, provide a useful rudder to steer your program to achieve its longer term vision, and serve as a reality check when responding to trends and anticipating potential disruptions.