The ‘Frankencloud’ That Threatens Manufacturers’ Modernization Progress

No manufacturer was immune to the widespread and dramatic market impacts of the global pandemic. Between fluctuating consumer buying behavior and supply chain disruptions, manufacturers the world over were faced with an unprecedented level of volatility — and for many, their internal systems simply couldn’t keep pace with the change.

Today, the business community continues to consider the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, one of which has been an accelerated digitization push among organizations that quickly recognized the detrimental challenges of paper and manual processes. Cloud technology has proven instrumental in aiding these firms to move toward a more responsive and agile future, but simply adopting cloud-based solutions isn’t enough.

That’s according to David Stephans, chief revenue officer at Rootstock Software. Speaking with PYMNTS, Stephans explained why manufacturers must develop a holistic cloud strategy if they are to truly benefit from their modernization efforts and future-proof operations for the inevitable volatility ahead.

Wake-up Call

No two manufacturers shared the exact same experience as supply chains were squeezed and redirected, but many shared the common hurdle of surviving through disruption with legacy systems in place.

“In this environment, many paper-based, manual and inefficient processes came to light, as they couldn’t immediately be moved to a remote work environment,” explained Stephans.

He pointed to one example of a manufacturer that, pre-COVID, relied on physical plastic folders to track work orders and other tasks.

“This jacket moved through production, including pick, pack and ship processes, with updates made in the physical folder along the way,” he explained. “Of course, since the job jacket created the potential for contact exposure to COVID-19, it had to be eliminated.”

In another example, Stephans highlighted a manufacturer that had previously relied on a whiteboard to schedule and manage the shop floor — a tool that is far from ideal in a remote working environment. In both cases, these legacy solutions were replaced by cloud-based technologies that not only supported the need for contactless and remote operations, but also armed manufacturers with valuable data to analyze and optimize workflows.

The ‘Frankencloud’

Though there is a multitude of cloud-based technologies available to replace legacy solutions, Stephans warned that it is not advisable for manufacturers to simply throw cloud tech at various problems. In the wake of the coronavirus fallout, many firms discovered this the hard way.

“Some manufacturers moved to the cloud, but they lacked an overall cloud strategy,” he explained. “As a result, they ended up with various cloud-based point solutions, essentially creating a ‘frankencloud.’ Cutting-edge capabilities, such as analytics and AI (artificial intelligence), are just as complicated to implement and integrate across clouds.”

Developing a cloud strategy ensures interconnectivity and communication between the growing number of cloud-based apps and platforms in use in the back office.

In practice, this means operating various solutions, like an ERP and CRM, on the same platform to integrate data models. This is a particularly beneficial strategy for the manufacturing sector to optimize forecasting and more seamlessly share sales and production information, Stephans noted.

Taking a platform approach allows manufacturers to obtain a holistic view of the complete lifecycle between buyer and supplier in the supply chain, arming organizations with data that can be used within the enterprise, as well as between business partners, to strengthen collaboration initiatives.

Real-time data exchange between finance, sales and operations teams, for instance, can help manufacturers minimize inventory and enable just-in-time production. Interconnected apps allow for a well-rounded view of the customer experience, which can in turn support a stronger bottom line.

And overall, the adoption of an integrated platform approach to cloud migration supports the kind of agility that many manufacturers found themselves lacking at the beginning of the coronavirus crisis. Looking ahead, agility will continue to be more important than ever to ensuring that supply chains flow smoothly.

According to Stephans, “operational agility [is] a manufacturer’s ability to adapt to change. If a company wants to switch to a new product line, how quickly can they do it? Ramping up a product is only part of the equation.”

The cloud, when adopted strategically, can fill in the blanks to optimize all aspects of operations.