Modern trade is about information
Great quote from C.J. Cherryh how modern trade and logistics work.
“Trade isn’t about goods. Trade is about information. Goods sit in the warehouse until information moves them.”
This is a fundamental concept for anyone in business or thinking about going into business.
The nature of business has changed
The nature of business is not just changing it has changed in fundamental ways. The way modern supply chains make money is by adding value to the production and delivery of a product, either for example by combining two or more products to make a new one or by making a product speedily available to the customer.
In this way supply chains transformation themselves into value chains and function on a global basis.
Infomation fuels modern commerce
And all of this is underpinned by information. Information/data is the fuel that powers modern-day commerce.
Infomation literally informs all aspects of a value chain from how a product is designed, manufactured, transported, stored, distributed and all the way to its consumption.
Globalization
Global supply and value chains are changing in and with it globalization.
The whole system is in, as McKinsey rightfully points out, is in transition.
Servitization
One important area of this transition is the “servitization” of manufacturing.
Servitization, especially in manufacturing is considered “a process of building revenue streams for manufacturers from services.” The future of manufacturing rest in services. And critically, information will play a central role in this future.
