IT platform for SMEs
Case study Supply Chain Finance: IT platform for SMEs
Abstract
The significance of IT platforms are that they facilitate information, communication and new technologies and allow companies to improve efficiency and optimise their supply chain processes. By definition this implies that an IT platform is a cloud-based software which is not installed on a company’s server but is accessible via an Internet browser by using electronic devices.
In this article a literature review and a field research (e.g. a case study) are carried out to investigate the role of a ‘real’ IT-platform connecting companies in the supply chain, and to define Supply Chain Finance metrics in terms of the improvement of liquidity and efficiency. In alignment with the outcome of the literature review a case is studied and analysed for the Heering-Holland company as an OEM manufacturer in the supply chain of conditioned poultry transport solutions using the IT platform of TradeCloud.
Key words: IT platform, ERP system, supply chain, working capital, new business models, artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, digital competencies, supply chain finance, lean manufacturing
Jan Jansen, Elena Kaledinova, Ann Wolter
The case study is published here: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/356810323_CASE_STUDY_SUPPLY_CHAIN_FINANCE_IT_PLATFORM_FOR_SMES
The figure above shows flows in a supply chain and how a focal company can be connected to its suppliers and customers through an IT platform.
