Supply chain optimization means finding solutions to improve the flow and communication of pertinent information as a way to enhance efficiency and productivity. For years, it has served as a top priority across myriad industries, because businesses that increase the speed and effectiveness of their manufacturing, inventory management and distribution will ultimately find themselves as more profitable organizations. 

The key to optimizing supply chain operations is, and always has been, the use of data. Today, companies are generating massive amounts of information as part of a business movement referred to as big data. Organizations are now collecting large amounts of information and strategically using it to enhance virtually all aspects of their business. 

An article in the online publication RIS News has offered a number of ways big data can help optimize the supply chain. One of the key points made by Ramesh Sethuraman and Satya Krishna Kunadharaju, the authors of the article, is that big data can make an organization more agile and proactive.

"Improve agility to respond to business dynamics and ensure a proactive response to business critical issues before they escalate," they wrote. "Use IT performance monitoring tools to identify and eliminate system performance issues before it becomes visible to stakeholders and affects retailers' operational efficiency."

Of course, big data can only truly help the supply chain if companies implement proper business management software solutions or ERP systems like Microsoft Dynamics NAV. Working with a provider of these business software solutions will help organizations obtain the tools needed to ensure their big data strategies offer the greatest possible benefit to their supply chain.