Gururaj Rao, Managing Partner, nuVizz Inc., 404-937-1971

Mobile technology is pervasive and disruptive. It has made huge strides in the consumer market. But, when we look at mobile technology adoption in enterprises, it is still in its infancy.

True mobile technology means commonly available smartphones and tablets that run standard operating systems such as iOS, Android, and Windows. There are a number of business scenarios in supply chain and logistics where mobile technology makes perfect sense, and can improve operational efficiencies and reduce costs. The newness of technology creates a level playing field for all parts of enterprise in how the technology is leveraged to solve business problems.

A number of reasons may explain why supply chain and logistics businesses are slow to adopt mobile technology:

Today's true mobile technology provides a number of capabilities for supply chain and logistics, at a fraction of the cost of traditional technologies. Capabilities such as bar-code scanning, document management, GPS tracking, real-time field work force management, shipment tracking, and real-time proof of delivery can all be achieved using widely available smartphones and tablets.

The best part is that the cost of these smartphones and tablets is dropping every day. Since these devices can also be used for personal use, it opens up the opportunity of Bring Your Own Device programs to further reduce the cost of doing business — and move the costs from being capital expenditure to operational expenditure.

Points to Ponder

In order to make effective and efficient use of mobile technology in your supply chain enterprise, invest time in the following actions:
[null, {"document_url": "http://www.inboundlogistics.com/cms/article/achieving-true-mobility-in-supply-chain-and-logistics-operations/", "unformatted_src": "//resources.inboundlogistics.com/userfiles/guru_rao.jpg", "src": "http://resources.inboundlogistics.com/userfiles/guru_rao.jpg", "formatted_filename": "guru rao"}, null]