Nutanix and Hardis Team up on Supply Chain Transformation
The supply chain transformation collaboration between the two companies prioritizes pragmatism.
November 15, 2019
The concept of supply chain transformation may be in vogue, but, in many cases, it’s a necessity. The logistics industry is presently wrestling with an array of challenges. Consumer demand is often volatile, while their patience awaiting deliveries is waning. In addition, trade wars are disrupting traditional supply chain routes, while many trucking and warehousing operations struggle to recruit talent.
Complicating matters, however, is the fact that many of the digital technologies, from blockchain to AI, touted for their potential to drive efficiency in the supply chain sector are often difficult to deploy.
Satyam Vaghani, senior vice president and general manager, IoT and AI at Nutanix, was reminded of that reality when speaking with a professional from one of the largest retailers in the world. The retailer had created a new sensor network based on NFC designed to boost supply chain visibility, from warehouses to trucks. “They spent years deploying this new sensing network,” Vaghani said. And once the company had launched the product at scale, it needed to hire new IT and OT professionals to manage and secure the network. “In the end, something supposed to be an enhancer became something like a gremlin they had to care for and feed every day.”
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While that is but one example, it is all too familiar for digital initiatives to not only become solutions looking for problems but to cause their own management complexities. Digital transformation efforts frequently fail or at least stall. Successful digital efforts tend to have the backing not just of executives, but be pragmatic enough to win support from the employees interacting with them.
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