“Do you simply have data about your company or do you have accurate information?”
Data is gathered for a purpose, the goal is to turn data into information and provide a basis for taking action. Did you know, that Information can make or break your business? Do you wonder how?
In the words of Peter Drucker – The Purpose of Information is not knowledge. It is being able to take the right action. Hence, Information is valuable because it influences a decision or an outcome.
For example, if a manager observes that the company’s inventory has increased month over month, the manager uses this information to control the inventory and procurement.
What is Information?
According to Business Directory, Information is defined as:
Data that is accurate and timely, specific and organized for a purpose, presented within a context that gives it meaning and relevance and can lead to an increase in understanding and decrease in uncertainty
Are You making one of the following Information mistakes?
Technology, hardware, and software are abundantly available to everyone. However, we observe, that some companies are still not making optimum utilization of the same. They are not able to gather accurate data and derive critical information from it to make informed decisions.
We have come across some manufacturing companies where;
- Data is not captured in the digital format
- Data is not stored in a centralized location to be accessed easily by all
- Well-defined information management strategy is not in place
What are the disadvantages of not managing Information properly?
- When data is not gathered in digital format it cannot be shared easily across mobiles, laptops, from any time, anywhere.
- Multiple copies of data, files, information has to be stored at each office location. There is a high possibility that, data is not accurate across locations.
- Employees have to spend considerable time in data collation, data reconciliation, creation of reports and so on.
- Since there is no single source of accurate data, the company is not able to provide the right information to the right people to make informed decisions.
- The company is unable to get a quick reference for past records and track trends.
- The company is not in a position to set business rules & manage by exception.
- The Company is incapable to build a corporate IQ or knowledge bank from the trends
How to use accurate information effectively for informed decision making?
Let me share a small anecdote, of how we helped a company, become profitable by providing valuable insights into their information.
This manufacturing company that approached us was having trouble maintaining healthy working capital. Their working capital was reducing month over month.
A detailed analysis of their business information revealed a flaw in their inventory control practices. They had accumulated 40% excess inventory over the last year and this was slowly eating into their working capital.
How we helped them overcome this problem?
We helped roll out Inventory Control best practices and implemented Spectrum ERP solution as a single source of information, to enable data-based decision making in the company.
We provided tools & applications to process data, analyze it and give meaningful insights into the business. With our Dashboards, Business Specific Reports & Analysis, they can easily understand trends and current state of affairs. Our Alerts & Notifications ensure appropriate, informed, timely decisions.
Ever since then, the company has a firm grip on their inventory and a close watch on their consumption pattern. They have never faced a situation of stock-outs or excess inventory. Effectively, this has resulted in healthy working capital and they are able to ensure profitability.
At Force Intellect it is our endeavor to help manufacturing companies transform digitally and leverage ERP to make their business efficient, productive & agile. To learn how you can capture the relevant data in digital format, maintain accurate information for enabling informed decisions, Request a Demo of Spectrum ERP.