Order management in a supply chain refers to tracking, capturing, fulfilling, and managing customer orders. Order management begins when a customer places an order and ends when they receive the item or service. Using reliable order management software is a critical aspect of order management in the supply chain. You can use an Order Management System (OMS) to track and process order entry activities.
Increasing the level of performance in your company relies on how you implement an order management system in your business functionalities.
How an order management system works
An order management system is software integrated into your business functionalities to improve the productivity of your daily operations. It captures orders through multiple channels to enable the management of pricing and product configurations. Here is how an order management system works;
1. Receiving orders
Receiving customer orders is one of the fundamental functions of an order management system. How quickly you receive order messages from customers determines the speed at which you will fulfill them. The company must confirm received orders and process their payments. If the product is not available, companies should save it as a backorder and let the customers know when the product will be available.
2. Picking
During the order management cycle, picking ensures the warehouse personnel picks up the items from the warehouse on time. They must pick the right product and the right amount under the needs of the customer. The picking process is also delicate. Skilled personnel should handle the process to avoid losses associated with material handling.
3. Packaging
Make sure you properly pack all items ordered by the customer with the appropriate packaging material. Ensure the product reaches the customer in one piece by keeping it in the expected condition.
For instance, you should package perishables like meat in frozen containers to keep them in the best conditions. Also, fragile items such as glasses and mirrors get wrapped with bubbled material to prevent them from breaking during transportation.
4. Shipping
After receiving the order, pick, package, and choose the best way to ship the item. It depends on the product and the customer whether it gets shipped by water, road, or air.
You should print a shipping label with the customer’s details and send a confirmation message to your client that the order has gotten fulfilled. It is then imperative to track the order getting shipped to ensure that the customer has received it on time.
5. After-sales services
After the product has reached the customer, the company should take another initiative to get feedback about their customer service experience. The company can make improvements in its order management system to ensure they achieve optimum customer satisfaction. If the customer is not happy with the product, you can process a refund or return according to their product policies.
Benefits of an efficient order management system
Your business needs an accurate and dependable order management system to realize high returns and build a positive reputation in the market. Here are a few more benefits of an efficient order management system:
1. Provides reliable data
When companies utilize reliable software like SAP Business One, they can obtain reliable data crucial in managing customer orders. The software can simplify the ordering processes enabling optimizing the speed of receiving and fulfilling orders to customers. Moreover, it allows data to stream in real-time to identify inefficiencies and fulfill customer demands according to the expected standards.
2. Keeping a balance in stock levels
Implementing an effective order management system can help you prevent overstocking and under-stocking incidents affecting your profitability. It allows businesses to access accurate metrics about sales and inventory levels.
SAP Business One inventory counting keeps the required amount of inventory at hand to ensure they meet the demands of their customers. It also prevents buying of excess stock, which may reduce storage spaces for the required supply at any given time.
3. Efficiency in order fulfillment
SAP Business One managed services provider ensures that there are no mistakes in order fulfillment to avoid losses. Large volumes of customer orders can cause confusion, which can lead to incorrectly labeled packages. Automating order fulfillment processes helps in reducing the risks of inaccuracies to meet high standards of customer service.
4. Saves time
An efficient order management system enables high performance in operations and reduces time wastage in troubleshooting issues in the order fulfillment process. It helps you to create time for development strategies for fostering the growth of the company. Get SAP Business One to ensure fast order fulfillment procedures to scale the number of customers you serve daily.
Order management helps streamline subsequent steps in the supply chain to ensure you deliver products on time to the customer. It also allows you to fulfill several orders from different customers simultaneously if they share a geographical location.
5. Improving productivity levels
SAP Business One inventory management software helps to increase order fulfillment rate improving the productivity levels of the company. The more efficient your company becomes at fulfilling orders, the more your returns increase and the overall productivity level in totality. The order management system ensures that operations in the warehouse run smoothly according to the standards set by the company.
It provides accurate real-time data on customer orders to reduce incidences of spoilage or theft, especially while shipping products. You can track your order fulfillment process to ensure the highest level of transparency and accountability on the ordered products.
Bottom Line:
SAP Business One is a top-notch software to integrate into your ordering management processes. Wisys is an ideal partner to integrate the software into your business operations to optimize how you fulfill orders from customers. Call us now to get the most reliable software that can seamlessly optimize your order management practices in the supply chain.
