Altitude

Spent the better part of the day today attending a seminar/sales pitch for SAP logistics software. It really is incredibly comprehensive. What is amazing isn't its computational power, formulas, etc. but the fact that it can penetrate every aspect of your business. When a warehouse hourly scans a barcode in China, we can have computers in the California warehouse prepare for receipt and update pending quantities. When a worker in Cali scans it in, we can close out the PO instantaneously. When it is scanned out, the invoice goes out automatically the same day. The power of this is difficult to visualize at first, but it means we can extend and streamline our supply chain to a much greater degree. Not only do the automatic documentations speed up payment processing, but we can now factor in shipments while they are still on the water. This is two extra weeks of flexibility. This software still costs an arm and a leg, but it seems that in the near future, SME's are going to be able to match the logistics prowess of your UPSs and your Walmarts. Good news for entrepreneurs, indeed.