The digital revolution is well under way in the supply chain Industry. The industry was behind the service industry where simple to use designed interface, mobile apps and IoT are the norms. However, thanks to the disruptive input of Amazon and other forces of change, the logistic industry isn’t just catching up. In fact machine learning, additive manufacturing, smart factories, advanced analytics, e-learning are just some of the trending projects for the near future.

This fast paced revolution is also lead by customers’ expectations. As they are used to transparency of information and instant access to data and analytics anywhere. Customers expect and demand flawless customer service from suppliers. e-Learning has a role to play regarding demanding customers

WRONG ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT CHANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE LOGISTIC INDUSTRY

Facing a dire need for change, logistic companies need to evolve quickly to keep up with the competition. It’s as good start to have the will to change. It requires some courage to undergo such fundamental changes concerning processes and technology. Companies should not however forget about the key component of any change: the human factor.

According to a study made by Hughenden consulting, on average companies investing in the S&OP process is mostly spend on technology.

This type of strategy only leaves 10% of the budget on training, convincing people of the advantages of theses changes in their daily work.

In the end, the success of a project will depend on the people using the technology. Focusing almost exclusively on the technical aspect of a project isn’t the way to go. Most studies show a 60 ~ 70% of organizational change fail, and that is mainly because of a poor understanding of the human factor.

ONLINE TRAINING IS KEY IN THE DIGITAL REVOLUTION OF SUPPLY CHAIN

Traditionally, training a team requires to gather everybody in the same room. While this method has its advantages, it can become difficult when training a team of drivers scattered across Europe. Online training can be enforced instantly to a specific number of people with no geographical or time limitations. Online training offers new ways to learn: engaging videos, gamification. The audience can be engaged and the results can be validated and analyzed.

Moreover, the old stereotype of box movers isn’t relevant at all. With all new technologies being developed and implemented, companies need skilled and knowledge workers capable of adapting to new tools and processes. With the average attention span constantly dropping for the digital natives, interactive online trainings are the way to go.

Many executives in the logistic industry were asked what factors were important to succeed in the digital transformation. Investing in staff training was one of the most quoted results. This proves that the awareness of this need is growing which is a promising result. Given the advantages of Online Training regarding result testing, fast implementing and live analytics, the managers shouldn’t pass on this option.

McKinsey predicted in a recent study that the mobile education solutions should become a 70 billions market by 2020. The supply chain with all its specific needs should benefit from it.