- Supply chains are the nervous system
of many organizations.
They are complex, rely heavily on a constant flow
of accurate and timely information,
and they span the breadth of how we design, plan, produce,
fulfill, ship, and operate our products.
Historically, though,
supply chains have been seen as cost centers,
made up of manual steps
within legacy systems that are siloed, rigid,
and costly to maintain.
Most organizations have struggled to justify
a digital transformation in this area
with a, "If it ain't broken, why fix it?" thought process.
In the last two years, however,
the world has been exposed
to the fragility of our supply chains.
It has fundamentally transformed how the market views them.
As issues arise and blockages occur,
businesses recognize the need for end-to-end visibility
and the ability to adapt across these siloed systems.
What's more, they're realizing that supply chains
can be a big differentiator,
driving top-line growth
and enabling them to build a better brand.
At their very core, supply chains are a data problem.
Customers need to unlock data
and insights from multiple sources
and then orchestrate, automate, anticipate, and react better
across the full network of their suppliers.
This is a tectonic shift
across the entire supply chain network.
It's clear to Microsoft that our customers
simply don't have the time
to go on a full transformation journey.
They need a composable approach
to solve these immediate challenges.
So to support you, our customers,
we've created Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management.
This is not a rip and replace solution.
Instead, it's a solution designed
to surround your existing investments
in ERP and legacy solutions.
Whether you're using our own Dynamics 365 ERP
or something third party,
Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management
works effortlessly alongside it.
It's incredibly easy to adopt
and means you can immediately unlock
capabilities and insights,
and quickly overcome challenges.
The capabilities are turnkey
and can be introduced individually or in tandem.
The key to success of Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management
is our extensible platform.
Every capability in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management
is underpinned by a common data model.
We also place a great emphasis on AI and analytics.
Furthermore, with Teams embedded directly in the workflow,
internals and stakeholders
can easily communicate with each other
in the moment of impact.
This is the supply chain solution
that the market is demanding right now.
We're also focusing on key partnerships
that extend our offering.
So I'm excited to share with you today
an incredible example of this,
our partnership with FedEx.
FedEx and Microsoft share a vision
for reimagining commerce experiences for businesses,
so they can offer their consumers
more integrated ways to shop
and faster, more efficient deliveries across the globe.
Together, FedEx and Microsoft
are using AI and machine learning
to extrapolate new insights
from the 17 million packages
that pass through the FedEx network each day,
ultimately to help brands
deliver more improved customer experiences.
Today, Lydia is going to show an example
of our most recent supply chain management investments,
including this exciting FedEx integration
through the lens of our customer FOCO.
Over to you, Lydia.
- Thanks, Ray.
Before the global pandemic,
did you ever give any thought to supply chain?
When you ordered a product,
did you think, "Hmm, it says it'll be here in March,
but maybe it won't actually arrive until August
or maybe it won't turn up at all."
The fact that we're even thinking about supply chain
demonstrates how much of a global problem it has become
in the past two years.
Supply chain used to be something
that just existed in the background;
the customers had no awareness of,
something we took for granted.
Not anymore.
COVID 19 and the ongoing impacts on supply chain
are massive.
Not only are businesses
having to deal with a complete shutdown
of factories producing parts,
they're also facing major shipping issues,
new federal regulations,
losing large portions of their workforce,
and, for the first time,
customers who are hyperaware of these challenges
and now expect an accurate prediction
of exactly what day and time a product will arrive
in order to place that order.
What would a world look like
where all of these problems went away?
Today, I'm going to share with you
a really wonderful success story.
FOCO is an incredibly successful retailer and manufacturer
of sports and entertainment merchandise.
For 20 years, they've held relationships
with over 700 sports and entertainment brands.
On their site, you'll find products from the NFL, the NBA,
60 different English football clubs, Disney, DC Comics,
the list goes on.
We're going to see how FOCO
is not only overcoming supply chain problems,
but actually taking the opportunity to turn supply chain
from a cost center into a way to differentiate
and deliver an awesome, reliable customer experience.
Let's see how this works.
I'm FOCO's merchandise buyer.
Today, I'm placing a rather large order of hats
from my manufacturer.
These will ultimately be sold to consumers
all over the country.
One of my top priorities in this time
is to make sure that this order is completed on time
to meet predicted demand.
There are a whole host of factors
that can impact when this order arrives at my warehouse:
weather patterns, issues at port, part availability.
Historically, I had no concrete way
to predict or track any potential issues
without a large amount of effort on my part.
Now, with Supply Chain Insights, this is far easier.
It was incredibly easy to get this connected
to my existing ERP solutions
without needing to replace them.
And I can now easily understand exactly when an order
is expected to make it to my warehouse.
At the first sign of trouble,
AI detects an anomaly and lets me know
that there will be a four-week delay
in shipment of the order from my manufacturer to me.
This is going to cause a serious delay.
It means products will not be available
to ship to customers.
I immediately explore alternative options
and choose the suggestion to select a different manufacturer
from my list of approved manufacturers.
This means the orders will be produced on time
and we can still meet customer demand.
The decision to switch from one manufacturer to another
isn't a small one.
Usually, this collaboration and plan adjustment
happens in a mess of different places:
over email, in Word documents, on memos, not ideal.
Instead, using embedded Teams collaboration capabilities,
we can all work from the same hub,
we can communicate with the new manufacturer
and easily share required information in one place,
get agreement, and make sure that these products
are delivered to our warehouse
in time to meet my delivery deadlines.
We're back on track.
Fast forward six weeks and potential disaster avoided,
the products have arrived at my distribution center.
Businesses like FOCO sell through a multitude of channels.
And here, our order manager
can see a centralized view of all of the orders.
For our order manager, insights are crucial
to ensure we can meet the delivery commitment
we made to the customer.
Where inventory and orders
are typically tracked in separate solutions,
using Intelligent Order Management,
we can see a clear combined view
that helps us to understand exactly where inventory is
and where it needs to go.
We take that even further,
thanks to the newly released Microsoft-FedEx integration.
This gives FOCO access to a whole host of capabilities.
They can offer two-day delivery with FedEx,
have access to live information
about the capacity across their fleets,
and intelligent delivery dates
are instantly calculated using AI from FedEx.
With this clear understanding
of when an order must be delivered by
and the most cost and time-effective way
to deliver each order,
we can confirm delivery choices for all orders,
confidently share an order progress update
with every consumer via text or their preferred channel,
and get them on the road.
With our orders delivered on time,
it's time for consumers to try the products.
It's not uncommon for customers to purchase multiple items
and then keep the one they love the most
providing a seamless returns experience
is a crucial part of delivering an amazing brand experience.
FOCO use the New Order Management Returns app,
which plugs into their existing e-commerce solution.
It provides consumers with a really simple,
guided self-service returns experience.
The experience captures just enough information
to drive the business process
and coordinate a refund or exchange,
requiring minimum effort from the consumer.
They head to a drop-off location of their choice,
present a simple QR code,
drop off their items without the need to box them up,
and the return is complete.
This is such a simple
and positive experience for the consumer.
The final step for FOCO is very simple.
Multiple unboxed returns
from multiple drop-off locations are tracked
and FOCO can coordinate a simple consolidated return
to the warehouse.
Furthermore, FOCO has access to clear insights
to let them know how efficient their operations are
throughout the delivery and returns process
so that they can identify ways to work more effectively.
We've seen today how FOCO is able to triumph
in times of great supply chain challenge.
They're able to transform their end-to-end journey
using Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management
alongside their existing ERP deployments.
They can predict delays,
effortlessly deploy a plan
that avoids or minimizes those delays,
and then coordinate an on-time, cost-effective delivery
to the consumer.
And importantly, the consumers have the visibility
and understanding that they're craving.
In times when consumers are struggling
with their relationships with brands,
they can be confident that FOCO is a retailer
that they can rely on.
This was all made possible,
thanks to Dynamics 365.
Back to you, Ray.
- Thanks, Lydia.
It's so exciting to share
the incredible investments we're making in supply chain
and especially around Intelligent Order Management.
In a time when our customers
are calling for turnkey solutions
that transform the supply chain experience,
it's an absolute game-changer.