Your Guide for Choosing the Right Supply Chain Management Software for Your Business

Maybe you’ve been inundated with all the paperwork and the operational procedures involved with running a successful supply chain company. Mistakes are slipping in. You’re working late to keep up. Or, perhaps you’re falling behind your competitors and struggling to deliver a level of customer service you’re proud of. It might be that your current software is becoming obsolete, is expensive to support, or lacks the innovative features modern logistics companies really need.

Whatever the reason, you’ve decided that it’s time to consider making an investment in modernizing your logistics management software. Picking the right solution for your business may seem like a daunting task. We’re here to help!

Whether you’re running an out-of-date supply chain management software or not running a supply chain software for your business at all (we see you, Excel warriors), we’ve got good news: there’s a solution for you.

Key Takeaways

• Types of supply chain management software include shipping status and visibility solutions, order management, warehouse management (WMS), freight software, and many others. 
• Magaya is unique in that we deliver a complete supply chain software solution developed on a single Digital Freight Platform. Everything you need to run a successful, highly-competitive logistics services company is just a click away in Magaya Supply Chain.
• Magaya software is designed specifically for logistics service providers such as freight forwarders, 3PLs, NVOCCs, warehouse operators, and more. We presently serve over 2300 companies in over 90 different countries.

What are the main types of supply chain management software?

Here’s the thing about supply chain management software — picking the right type is, well, difficult. Why? Because with the endless options out there, it can be tricky to understand what’s right for you and your business. Every business has its own unique needs, demands, and requirements. Every step of the process to keep that business running is vital, which means — above all — the tools you’re using to ensure every step of your supply chain management should be highly efficient, functional, and intuitive.

In the next few paragraphs, we’ve laid out the top types of supply chain software you need to know about. We’ve included the stuff you’ve always wanted to know—the pros and cons, the features and gaps, and of course, the general positives and negatives associated with each type of program.

Ready to dive in? Here we go.

Shipping Status and Visibility Software

This type of software is exceptionally popular for modern companies in the supply chain realm because they’re able to track their shipping activity in real-time. That means that, with this type of supply chain management software, companies are able to receive real-time alerts that provide detailed information on their cargo that’s shipped to customers worldwide. In a world where demand is growing, larger supplies of cargo are being shipped out, and high-volume orders are the norm, it’s vital that the risks associated are closely managed. With shipping activity software (which often sends alerts directly to smartphones at any time of the day), companies are now more in-the-know, updated, and in-tune with where their cargo is at all times.

Order Processing Software

As you know, the ordering process is a vital piece of the supply chain puzzle. There are several types of supply chain management software options out there that are directly associated with making this task easier, more seamless, and efficient, too. This type of software often helps with every step of the way—from PO and sales order processing to order management to order fulfillment and beyond!

Lean Inventory Tools & Management Software

If you’ve been involved in the logistics field for any amount of time, it’s likely you’ve heard the phrase lean inventory. This concept—which dates back to the 1940s—suggests that companies should only create what’s absolutely needed at the moment. The idea? They’d avoid potential inefficiencies and costs associated with overstocked warehouses and large surpluses. Lean inventory is all about cutting down on your excess—decreasing your unnecessary products and increasing warehouse space in a streamlined way. Sound tricky? It is. That’s why there are supply chain management tools available for companies to help create plans by using demand forecasts, materials planning, and scheduling in order to get a clearer picture of what the future of the supply chain will look like—all while avoiding excess!

Warehouse Management Software

Warehouse management software helps you run your warehouse, balance your inventory, and provides a huge variety of tools to keep your warehouse functioning smoothly. The thing about warehouse management software for supply chain logistics is that this type of software can be as broad or as specific as you want it to be, leaving room for flexibility. Whether you want your solutions to provide advanced supply chain planning tools or you simply need something to help the kitting. and bundling processes, there’s a warehouse management software out there that can help solve your day-to-day warehouse needs.

Specialized Freight Handling Software

If your logistics business includes the shipping of goods, then you’ll want to pay attention to this type of supply chain management tool. This unique, specialized section of SCM is industry-specific and aims at functionality for freight handling. As you know, shipping goods comes along with unique compliance standards, new regulations that are frequently emerging, and emergency situations that arise (such as recalls or sudden surges in demand). With this type of software, you’re better able to maintain your product quality throughout the entire chain by using technology that can specialize in your goods—like ensuring your products are being refrigerated at the perfect temperature right up until the last stop of their delivery route.

Bid and Spend Tool Software

Two of the most integral parts of supply chain operations are sourcing and procurement, so it makes sense that these would be areas where specialized software can help streamline business operations. These types of supply chain management software tools can help you dive into your practices and take a microscopic look at your money—where you’re spending it, what you’re spending it on, the individual price of each item that you’re both bringing and sending out, and how they affect your supply chain logistics. Further, you can minimize employee effort for the procurement process, allowing these tools to automate huge chunks of it and reducing the frequency of errors and mistakes that are known to happen along the way.

Analytics and Reporting Software

You can’t manage what you don’t measure. You can’t take your eyes off of the performance of your customers and suppliers, levels of demand in the pipeline, and so much more. That’s where this type of supply chain management software comes into play. With analytics and reporting software, you can see how well your carriers are performing, granting you the chance to see patterns of both success and error, and also allowing you to analyze processes at every stage of your supply chain. This data enables you to uncover what works and what doesn’t. Not only does this help you to find new strategies and adapt when needed, but also to quickly retire old models and processes that are holding your company back.

Collaboration and Communication Software

As a supply chain logistics expert, you know how important communication is for creating a seamless supply chain flow. These types of tools allow companies and suppliers to work together, communicate, and collaborate in a designated space, allowing them to eliminate challenges with communication issues, requisition bottlenecks, order problems, and more!

Transportation and Logistics Software

Supply chain software management programs that specialize in transportation and logistics will help you track your inventory, plan every step of the way (from one location to the next), maximize your space, and plan for LTL (less than load) shipping. But these tools don’t just help you orchestrate the actual transportation, they help you to tackle issues as they arise because they are functioning in real-time, which means you’re able to pinpoint when and why your inventory is backed up or slowing down in a particular area, as well as intervene to rapidly solve the problem.

Compliance Software

Nowadays, it’s vital for you to be able to assure consumers that the products they’re using—that you have a hand in—are safe, ethical, and above all, well-made. That’s where this type of software comes into play. With supply chain management software specializing in compliance, you can easily adhere to both ethical regulations as well as environmental requirements easily. These types of tools can keep this segment of your supply chain on track, in the right, and checking all the correct boxes.

While these are some of the most common types of software for supply chain management, there are others as well, such as:

• Security Software
• Demand Forecasting Software
• Supplier Management Software
• And even more!

What do all of these tools have in common? They ultimately just solve one problem. From Shipping Status Tools to Warehouse Management Tools to Analytics, each of these types of supply chain software is functioning for individual purposes. So what’s the difference between these segmented solutions and Magaya? We’re not just solving one little piece of the puzzle in your supply chain management problem, we’re offering a complete solution encompassing your whole business.

The Magaya Digital Freight Platform: a Single SCM Solution to Power Your Whole Business

At Magaya, we take great pride in helping professionals like you to understand what you’re missing when it comes time to select the best supply chain software for your unique needs. If you’re looking for something that covers the complete logistics process of your company—from delivering the merchandise from seller to buyer, then you’ve come to the right place.

One of the most common challenges our team of solution experts has come across in their years of logistics experience industry is siloed data. When data is in silos, companies suffer from lost productivity, increased errors, and this negatively impacts the bottom line. Instead of having accounting, operations, customs, and other data strewn out across multiple platforms and from disparate sources, Magaya puts you in command of your entire business, delivering a single source of the truth with a single solution to run your end-to-end operations.

No matter what your business covers in the supply chain – from the distribution process to warehouse management, cargo systems, and e-commerce – Magaya will help you find exactly what you’re looking for.

Magaya Supply Chain is a modern, highly-efficient solution that adapts to the needs of your company with its vast array of configuration capabilities and the Magaya Digital Freight Platform of add-on products, integrations, and extensions. That means that the Magaya system can be tailored to do exactly what you need it to do – quickly, delivering unmatched ROI and fast time to value. Download the Magaya Supply Chain data sheet for detailed features and benefits.

How Magaya Compares to Other Logistics Software Vendors

When you look at any other SCM vendor, tool, or software, you’ll undoubtedly find a wide array of applications that are implemented to help portions of your supply chain.

Magaya is unique in that we deliver a complete supply chain software solution developed on a single platform. Everything you need to run a successful, highly-competitive supply chain company is just a click away in the Magaya Supply Chain solution. Our goal is never limited to solving a single problem — Magaya is dedicated to delivering the solution for all your problems within your supply chain management logistics.

Magaya gives you the tools to:

• Process orders and shipments with complete accounting and communication functionality integrated into each step
• Turbocharge your warehouse productivity with the power of real-time data and modern automation tools
• Customize your documents and reports, online ordering, proof of delivery, and more to make your data more actionable and useful than ever before
• Grow your business with a solution built to scale to meet your evolving needs

Ultimately, our number one goal at Magaya is to support your business to run faster, leaner, and more efficiently, and to provide a better logistics experience across the board for all your operations. Your success is our success, and everything we do has this as our end goal.

Building a Bright Future with Magaya

We love to serve our customers—leaders in the field of logistics, warehousing, wholesaling, and nearly every single aspect of the supply chain—and are dedicated to helping them succeed and grow. We serve over 2300 companies in over 90 different countries.

Are you ready to become one of our happy customers? If you’re tired of juggling endless platforms to remedy countless issues within your supply chain, it’s time to switch over to Magaya, the ultimate solution for every piece of your supply chain management puzzle.

Have questions? Want to know more? Looking to speak to an expert to help you better understand what Magaya can do for you? Give us a call at +1-786-845-9150 or contact us directly!