BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - March 10, 2009) - The order-to-delivery cycle is a critical
process during this time of economic uncertainty due to its close
interaction with the customer. The order-to-delivery cycle is an important
determinant of the level of customer satisfaction -- if the delivery
process is poor in any way it will impact customer satisfaction negatively.
Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (
NYSE:
HHS), explores in its most
recent benchmark study, "
Perfect Order, Happy Customer: Managing the Order-to-Delivery Cycle"
how Best-in-Class companies are streamlining internal processes, providing
cost and inventory data upfront, and leveraging technology to optimize the
order-to-delivery lifecycle. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report,
visit:
http://www.aberdeen.com/summary/report/benchmark/5706-RA-order-delivery-cycle.asp.
The report benchmarks the following sub-processes within order-to-delivery:
Request for Quote, Order Promising, Order Capture, Order Scheduling and
Order Fulfillment. The cycle presents many opportunities for reducing error
and waste; and, as a result, almost 90% of Best-in-Class companies have an
order-to-delivery initiative in place. Their commitment to the process is
driving the performance improvement in inventory as a percentage of sales
and customer service levels; for example, Best-in-Class achieved a 4%
decrease in inventory as a percentage of sales over the last 2-year period
(order-to-delivery lead times, logistics costs as a percentage of sales,
out-of-stock inventory occurrence, and perfect order rates are also
benchmarked in the report).
The top pressure forcing companies to invest resources to improving the
order-to-delivery cycle is customer mandates for faster and more unique
fulfillment. While this might suggest customer service reflects primarily
fulfillment capabilities, Aberdeen's report shows the entire process, from
beginning (quoting) to fulfillment brings performance improvement. For
example, Best-in-Class companies have a strong ability to support a single
quoting process to customers, irrespective of the sales channel, and they
also have a strong ability to provide a single view of inventory across
multiple facilities. These are just some of the processes discussed in the
report.
"The order-to-delivery process is a somewhat neglected process compared to
others. The predominant vehicle companies utilize to balance supply and
demand is Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP), which leaves demand
planning to a monthly or quarterly exercise. However the fact that the
order capture process is actually the point of true matching of supply and
demand is ignored. The problem with this is that there is no visibility
connecting real-time demand with the supply capabilities of the
organization," said Nari Viswanathan, Vice President / Principal Analyst,
Aberdeen.
A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the
following underwriters: Infor and Syncron. To obtain a complimentary copy
of the report, visit:
http://www.aberdeen.com/summary/report/benchmark/5706-RA-order-delivery-cycle.asp.
For additional access to complimentary
Supply Chain Management Research, please visit
http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/-supply-chain-management.
About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company
Aberdeen is a leading provider of fact-based research and market
intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having benchmarked more
than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is uniquely
positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating
demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment
analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets,
corporations turn to Aberdeen™ for insights that drive decisions.
As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in
context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's
analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of
Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement -
Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role
Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit
Aberdeen
http://www.aberdeen.com or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more
about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748 or go to
http://www.harte-hanks.com.
© 2009 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com
Contact Information: Media Contact:
Nari Viswanathan
Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
(617) 854-5293
nari.viswanathan@aberdeen.com