Microsoft Dynamics Distribution Roundup: Supply Chain Analytics 2013 Predictions; Collaboration and Diversification Strategies; Downstream Data; New 3rd Party Solutions

In February we spent a little extra time focusing on stories related to distributors.  Over the past month, solution vendors had some new distribution-related product announcements for the Dynamics market as well as new partnerships to help push those solutions into the customer base. New research revealed a continued interest in the use of downstream data by distributors, though strategic use of this data may still conflict with conventional wisdom, the researchers believe. And what does the future hold for supply chain technology?  One safe bet is probably going to be analytics, but the moving solutions forward to deliver better results will be both a technical and strategic challenge, one analyst believes.

Here's a look back at some of the top distribution-related stories from the past month.

Leveraging Supply Chain Analytics: Can Your Solution Keep Up with Data Growth?

Analytics has become a major buzzword on the web, where companies use it to assess site hits, visits, click-throughs, abandonment rates, and a number of other measures that help them increase visitor engagement and interaction. Analyst Bob Eastman of Technology Evaluation Centers has offered several SCM predictions, noting that the analytics concepts are growing in influence in the supply chain, where companies are breaking out of the traditional "knowing what happened in the past" mentality and using analytics to make fast decisions, improve customer service, and gain competitive advantages.  Dynamics ERP products and add-on solutions are likewise moving toward better built-in analytics, with efforts to call ...