In recent years, companies across diverse industries have honed their focus on optimizing supply chains. The rationale behind this is clear: enhancing supply chains serves as the linchpin for achieving overarching objectives such as slashing operational expenses, maximizing operational efficiency, fine-tuning inventory management, and curbing greenhouse gas emissions.
Supply chains are intricate webs of interconnected components, each with its own rhythm and demands. To enhance the overall efficiency, businesses must be adept at simultaneously evaluating and managing each moving part. Technology emerges as the linchpin in this endeavor.
Eric Fullerton, the Senior Director of Product Marketing at project44, emphasizes, “If supply chains inherently require interoperability, it logically follows that technology aiming to elevate supply chain efficiency must adopt the same ethos.”
Open supply chain visibility platforms facilitate this interoperability by creating an ecosystem where businesses seamlessly integrate multiple third-party solutions into their existing tech infrastructure, typically through API integration. This adaptability empowers them to tailor their workflows and extend platform functionalities, crafting a tech solution ideally suited to their unique business requirements.
However, in the midst of the growing emphasis on interoperability in supply chains, there has been an upsurge in technology companies promoting closed platforms. This approach entices vendors as it fosters dependence on their services, ensuring customer loyalty and revenue streams for years.
On the surface, relying on a single vendor with a closed platform may seem enticing to users. Many find the idea of a “one-stop shop” appealing, promising to fulfill all their needs.
Eric Fullerton cautions, “The ‘one-throat-to-choke’ model might seem attractive in the complex and often bewildering logistics tech landscape, but its pitfalls are very real.”
Depending solely on one vendor exposes companies to precarious situations. While it might appear a secure strategy during smooth operations, it can swiftly lead to failure when complications arise.
In the case of a company tethered to a single closed platform, it becomes disproportionately vulnerable to the vendor’s circumstances, ranging from service interruptions to financial instability.
Closed platforms also bring risks like limited customization options, concerns about data security, and, significantly, escalated overall costs. In recent times, closed platforms have lured customers with enticing but temporary discounts, only to raise costs based on usage, let discounted rates “expire,” or miscalculate their own expenses. All these factors erode supply chain resilience, imperiling companies in today’s fast-paced market.
On the flip side, open platforms offer a multitude of advantages that bolster supply chain resilience:
- Facilitating collaboration and data sharing.
- Reducing the total cost of ownership.
- Streamlining carrier selection.
- Enhancing inventory management.
- Elevating operational efficiency.
- Providing opportunities for automation and optimization.
- Elevating customer experiences.
Open platforms, such as those championed by project44, are engineered to promote flexibility and collaboration. By design, they are extensible, enabling users to harness the benefits of their existing technologies and seamlessly integrate countless new solutions through straightforward API integrations.
Eric Fullerton underscores the significance of project44’s open API approach, stating, “Project44’s open API approach empowers businesses to forge a more robust supply chain, trim costs, and elevate operational efficiency. Embracing project44’s open API approach is a strategic stride toward gaining a competitive edge in today’s dynamic business landscape.”
Notably, project44’s entire business model revolves around creating open platforms through API integrations. In fact, for the initial five years of its existence, project44 functioned solely as an API-driven company. The introduction of their innovative user experience, Movement, has not detracted from their commitment to open platforms and API integrations. If anything, that commitment has only grown stronger.
Eric Fullerton affirms, “All new products we deliver are accessible through the Movement UI or our Movement APIs. We believe in offering our customers choice—the freedom to operate in a manner that best suits their business, while enabling our technology platform to enhance and refine their operations, rather than impose radical changes.”
