Send us Fan Mail CROs are responsible for meeting their numbers. Making sure their teams are hitting their quotas. Or they will struggle with their own. Also, they need to have control of the entire funnel, starting from the lead acquisition to signing the contract. But sometimes, the journey may start well before that. Also, the customer journey could be different per industry type. So which are the KPIs they need to master in order to meet their numbers? In today's episode, we invited a panel ...
Mar 23, 2023•58 min•Ep. 468
Send us Fan Mail When it comes to the available options to design your storefront, there are a ton of them, whether you are looking for open-source or paid ones. Most open-source platforms have a trend. Making money by selling hosting, tightly coupling with payment providers, or selling premium themes or add-ons. Open-source platforms are also more suitable for communities and universities where development resources are free or not as expensive. So how does OpenCart compare with the other platf...
Mar 22, 2023•56 min•Ep. 467
Send us Fan Mail The process manufacturing space is complex, with several different PLM options. As well as manufacturing processes that require completely different capabilities. Food manufacturing requires things such as Yield measurement, while the process space might be super heavy with the versions and revisions of its formulas. There might also be other complications, such as fleet management and eCommerce.An average process manufacturer needs a lot in an ERP. So how does ProcessPro differ...
Mar 21, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 466
Send us Fan Mail Finding the right system for the right job is more difficult than you would think. Most companies end up mixing the boundaries of the systems. While the journey of data science could be powerful, it’s hard to get meaningful insights that will be actionable and drive business outcomes with data siloes. So what do companies need to do to get results from their data science initiatives? In today's episode, our guest, Tony Aug, discusses the first steps enterprises need to take for ...
Mar 20, 2023•42 min•Ep. 465
Send us Fan Mail Operations are all about KPIs. You need a ton of KPIs to measure efficiencies. To lead your team. To motivate them. To make sure they are moving at the optimum speed. Manufacturing or non-manufacturing ops can't operate with KPIs. Don't have good data? Most likely misleading KPIs. Don't have data at all? How would you have KPIs at all? Have a ton of data but no insights? How would your KPIs be reliable? So which are the KPIs COOs need at their fingertips to ensure their success?...
Mar 16, 2023•59 min•Ep. 464
Send us Fan Mail The smaller eCommerce platforms might claim to be cheaper than other mainstream platforms such as Shopify or BigCommerce. They might also have claims such as not charging the transaction fee. But let's face it! Most eCommerce platforms are owned or have an alliance with payment companies. That's how they make money. Running an eCommerce platform is expensive, and the fee that you pay barely covers the cost of running the platform. So is EKM Powershop really a deal, as they claim...
Mar 15, 2023•56 min•Ep. 463
Send us Fan Mail The systems designed for process manufacturing differ completely from discrete manufacturing. The process manufacturing verticals are also deep into logistics and transportation management, as the regulatory bodies might need to report as part of the traceability compliance. They also have very strong QC requirements with the shop floor equipment integrated. Finally, recipe management and yield calculation are completely different from discrete verticals. So which system in the ...
Mar 14, 2023•58 min•Ep. 462
Send us Fan Mail Running a business is hard. But changing business at each inflection point could be harder. You need changes in people, processes, and technology to enable growth at each inflection point. But the hardest change management project that any organization can ever undertake is the ERP implementation, as the ERP implementation touches every discipline possible in the entire company. And regardless of how many times you have done it, you will still get surprises. But the more impleme...
Mar 13, 2023•48 min•Ep. 461
Send us Fan Mail Most smaller companies struggle to understand the importance of a CIO. In smaller companies, it's not uncommon to have developers, a CFO, a VP of Supply Chain, or a VP of marketing playing or claiming the role of a CIO. They might also not understand the importance of enterprise architecture, IT portfolio planning, and master data governance. But a CIO is a very specialized skillset that requires experience in managing complex enterprise applications and infrastructure. It takes...
Mar 09, 2023•59 min•Ep. 460
Send us Fan Mail The ecommerce shop owners are likely to be lured by the idea of open source. But once you start managing your store on an eCommerce platform, you might spend more time with technical issues than selling. osCommerce is one such platform that is often among the popular open-source cart options and has been installed on thousands of sites. Also, there was a time when osCommmerce was an OK option because the other options were equally outdated. But not anymore. And definitely not in...
Mar 08, 2023•54 min•Ep. 459
Send us Fan Mail There are nuances right within the ERP system, such as most processes being driven using size, style, season, brand, and color. But then the integrations are super involved too. You have integration as thick as PLM, WMS, and a designer toolbox such as Adobe Illustrator. Then the supply chain processes are fairly unique as well, with the need for vendor collaboration, sampling, and order placement during R&D. So, which are the systems designed for the Apparel industry? If you...
Mar 07, 2023•58 min•Ep. 458
Send us Fan Mail Most SMBs don’t understand the importance of the packing process. They might have a very serialized pick, pack, and ship process and might pack one order at a time. As companies mature, they gain efficiencies by decoupling the process steps and optimizing them individually. Packing is one step that is often ignored. Most SMB companies might simply send the order from their eComm or ERP to print the shipping label using the order or pick list, skipping the packing step. So not on...
Mar 06, 2023•44 min•Ep. 457
Send us Fan Mail CFOs need a ton of KPIs to ensure profitability. To ensure all revenue and expenses get accounted for. To maintain the debt-to-equity ratio. To get favorable terms from the bank. To maintain the price of the stock. But doing all of this might require thousands of KPIs. Also, as companies grow, CFOs might not have the bandwidth to keep track of every transaction of the business. So they require KPIs that are not only reliable but traceable in a manageable manner. So which KPIs ar...
Mar 02, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 456
Send us Fan Mail Headless, composable, and microservices architecture could be confusing even for developers. But it gets more confusing when you look under the hood. With too many moving parts. And not a clear understanding of which component is supposed to do what. What is most confusing is this whole notion of the front end for the front end. Sound cryptic? It is! Why would you need that? There are many reasons. Caching, performance, ease of development, composability, and scalability. But ma...
Mar 01, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 455
Send us Fan Mail One channel that might not be immediately apparent to be different would be the office dealer space. It has similar flavors, such as building material and auto parts distributors, for the requirements of local fleets and PODs. It also has unique integration requirements with furniture manufacturers and distributors that might be more expensive with horizontal offerings. Also, they have unified commerce requirements at a much smaller scale where they need inventory to be synched ...
Feb 28, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 454
Send us Fan Mail Large programs require a lot more planning and strategy than smaller ones. Due to the number of functions involved and the need for collaboration among those functions. The default answer for most companies while leading large programs would be to go to a large SI and start it. The challenge with the approach is that each SI has practiced and might not have a centralized entity that could help you identify the right products and define the architecture. And might result in confl...
Feb 27, 2023•39 min•Ep. 453
Send us Fan Mail Rework issues could eat up all of your margins. There could be several reasons why there might be rework orders. The rework could be quality issues in the production process. Or they could be because of the issues with incoming raw materials. So what are the best practices for reducing rework in the manufacturing industry? In today's episode, we invited a panel of cross-functional experts for live interviews on LinkedIn who brings significant expertise to discuss Manufacturing R...
Feb 23, 2023•58 min•Ep. 452
Send us Fan Mail While there is much talk about the coolest eCommerce platforms out there, the large majority of the market share is still in the brick-and-mortar setting, especially among retailers. This makes the POS and OMS experience far more critical than eCommerce. Also, to get the eCommerce experience right, you need to have: Omnichannel experience and Unified experience. Whatever the name you may want to give, it's a necessity. In today's commerce experience. So how can Fluent Commerce h...
Feb 22, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 451
Send us Fan Mail The small job shop market is also flooded. With unique software that could be perceived as different. From the mainstream ERP systems. The JobBOSS2 system is one example. That was created by jamming together the best of E2 Shoptech and JobBOSS. JobBOSS was known for easy to use QuickBooks-like functionality. For smaller shops, but had a much superior UX. E2 Shoptech, on the other hand, had robust features and was behind in its technology. In today's episode, we invited a panel o...
Feb 21, 2023•59 min•Ep. 450
Send us Fan Mail The foundation of retail business relies on having access to good quality data. Without the right data, retailers make uninformed decisions, such as raising their prices or targeting expensive channels that are likely to fire back. The problem is much worse when they might have multiple systems, as getting true insights from this architecture is much harder. So what do retailers need to do to operate in a hybrid environment where the traditional methods of running a retail busin...
Feb 20, 2023•44 min•Ep. 449
Send us Fan Mail Rework issues could eat up all of your margins. There could be several reasons why there might be rework orders. The rework could be quality issues in the production process. Or they could be because of the issues with incoming raw materials. So what are the best practices for reducing rework in the manufacturing industry? In today's episode, we invited a panel of cross-functional experts for a live interview on LinkedIn who brings significant expertise to discuss Manufacturing ...
Feb 16, 2023•59 min•Ep. 448
Send us Fan Mail How hard could it be to choose a payment provider? And what could go wrong with eCommerce integrations? Well, if you don't understand how to integrate them, you could be locked out of your account. You might not be able to access your funds for the products you may have sold. But that all might be necessary if you want to protect yourself from fraud. So how would 2Checkout help? In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to condu...
Feb 15, 2023•57 min•Ep. 447
Send us Fan Mail Do you know an ERP from Germany, but it is not SAP? Do you know an ERP system that has a similar look and feel as the other manufacturing software such as Infor or Aptean? Do you know an ERP system that has similar workflows built up as NextWorld? Do you know an ERP system that might not be as penetrated in North America? If you have guessed Abas ERP, then you are right. In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to conduct an in...
Feb 14, 2023•58 min•Ep. 446
Send us Fan Mail Buying a machine is an expensive investment that most companies would think twice before thinking about replacing. Also, replacement decisions could be complex as various factors need to be considered including buy vs maintain, and the overall cost of ownership for both of these decisions including taxes. If you are thinking of replacing, machinery dealers could not only help you maintain but might be able to sell at the carrying costs on your balance sheet, if not for profit. I...
Feb 13, 2023•42 min•Ep. 445
Send us Fan Mail How hard could job sequencing be? Isn't it all about the order of the jobs? Yes, but there could be several rules that could be used depending on your strategy. Earlier due date, Longest Processing Time, Shortest Processing Time, First-Come, First Serve, and Least Setup Hours - to name a few. So what are the best practices when it comes to job sequencing? In today's episode, we invited a panel of cross-functional experts for a live interview on LinkedIn who brings significant ex...
Feb 09, 2023•58 min•Ep. 444
Send us Fan Mail Do you know a CMS platform that is often installed alongside commercetools and SFCC? Do you know a CMS platform that is completely headless and not part of the suite like HCL Commerce? Do you know a CMS platform that is designed for a best-of-breed composable experience? Do you know a content modeling platform in the headless world? If you have guessed Amplience, then you are right. In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to c...
Feb 08, 2023•55 min•Ep. 443
Send us Fan Mail Do you know an ERP that has one of the strongest functionality for pharma? Do you know a pharma ERP that is targeted at SMB wholesale distribution customers? Do you know an ERP that might have pre-baked functionality for CSOS reporting? Do you know an ERP that has POS and eCommerce built as part of the ERP? If you have guessed Blue Link ERP, then you are right. In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to conduct an independent ...
Feb 07, 2023•58 min•Ep. 442
Send us Fan Mail Logistics planning requires an understanding of constraints and building relationships with carriers. While your KPIs might appear OK on the surface, there might be other issues such as packages arriving damaged or the carriers sub-contracting most of their operations. Understanding the root cause of these issues requires you to simplify your KPIs. But ensure that KPIs are well communicated and understood by everyone involved. As they say, change for the sake of change is not go...
Feb 06, 2023•40 min•Ep. 441
Send us Fan Mail Consigned inventory could be a great strategy for startups trying to get space in retailers' warehouses. It could also be a great strategy for distributors and retailers to carry an inventory of unfamiliar brands without committing too much capital. But consigned inventory complicates the business processes for all parties involved. So what are the best practices when it comes to incorporating consigned inventory as part of the business model? In today's episode, we invited a pa...
Feb 02, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 440
Send us Fan Mail If I had to describe eCommerce in three words, it would be search, recommendation, and personalization. And 90% of the eCommerce sites are extremely poor at these three things. But fear not; headless is changing that. While Algolia is used in the context of headless, you could have the same search experience even with monolith platforms. So what is Aloglia, and where does it fit in the eCommerce value chain? In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live d...
Feb 01, 2023•57 min•Ep. 439
