Gartner Identifies the Top 8 Supply Chain Technology Trends in 2019

Gartner, Inc. has identified the top 8 supply chain technology trends in 2019.

Gartner’s top strategic supply chain technology trends have broad industry impact, but have not yet been widely adopted. They might be experiencing significant changes or reaching critical tipping points in capability or maturity.

“These technologies are those that supply chain leaders simply cannot ignore,” said Christian Titze, research vice president at Gartner. “Within the next five years, if half of large global companies are using some of these technologies in their supply chain operations, it’s safe to say that the technologies will disrupt people, business objectives and IT systems.”

The top 8 supply chain technology trends in 2019 are:

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI technology in supply chain seeks to augment human performance. Through self-learning and natural language, AI capabilities can help automate various supply chain processes such as demand forecasting, production planning or predictive maintenance.

“AI supports the shift to broader supply chain automation that many organizations are seeking,” said Mr. Titze. “For example, AI can enhance risk mitigation by analyzing large sets of data, continuously identifying evolving patterns, and predicting disruptive events along with potential resolutions.”

Advanced Analytics

Advanced analytics span predictive analytics — those that identify data patterns and anticipate future scenarios — as well as prescriptive analytics — a set of capabilities that finds a course of action to meet a predefined objective. The increased availability of Internet of Things (IoT) data and extended external data sources such as weather or traffic conditions allow organizations to anticipate future scenarios and make better recommendations in areas such as supply chain planning, sourcing and transportation.

“Advanced analytics are not new, but their impact on today’s supply chains are significant,” said Mr. Titze. “They will help organizations become more proactive and actionable in managing their supply chains, both in taking advantage of future opportunities and avoiding potential future disruptions.”

IoT

The IoT is the network of physical objects that contain embedded technology to interact with their internal states or the external environment. “We are seeing more supply chain practitioners exploring the potential of IoT,” said Mr. Titze. “Areas that IoT might have a profound impact on are enhanced logistics management, improved customer service and improved supply availability.”

Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

RPA tools operate by mapping a process in the tool language for the software “robot” to follow. They cut costs and eliminate keying errors. “We are seeing a significant reduction in process lead times RPA technology is used to automate the creation of purchase and sales orders or shipments, for instance,” said Mr. Titze. “RPA technology reduces human intervention and improves consistency across manual data sources within manufacturing.”

Autonomous Things

Autonomous things use AI to automate functions previously performed by humans, such as autonomous vehicles and drones. They exploit AI to deliver advanced behaviors that interact more naturally with their surroundings and with people.

“The rapid explosion in the number of connected, intelligent things has given this trend a huge push,” said Mr. Titze. “The once distant thought of reducing time for inventory checks by using drones’ cameras to take inventory images, for instance, is here.”

Digital Supply Chain Twin

A digital supply chain twin is a digital representation of the relationships between all physical entities of end-to-end supply chain processes — products, customers, markets, distribution centers/warehouses, plants, finance, attributes and weather. They are linked to their real-world counterparts and are used to understand the state of the thing or system in order to optimize operations and respond efficiently to changes.

“Digital supply chain twins are inevitable as the digital world and physical world continue to merge,” said Mr. Titze.

Immersive Experience

Immersive experiences such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and conversational systems are changing the way people interact with the digital world. “In supply chain, organizations might use AR along with quick response (QR) codes and mobile technology to speed up equipment changeovers in factories,” said Mr. Titze. “Immersive user experiences will enable digital business opportunities that have not yet been fully realized within global supply chains.”

Blockchain in Supply Chain

Although supply-chain-related blockchain initiatives are nascent, blockchain has potential to fulfill long-standing challenges presented across complex global supply chains. Current capabilities offered by blockchain solutions for supply chain include traceability, automation, and security.

“Organizations might use blockchain to track global shipments with tamper-evident labels, allowing a reduction in the time needed to send paperwork back and forth with port authorities and improved counterfeit identification,” said Mr. Titze.

Gartner clients can learn more in “The 2019 Top Supply Chain Technology Trends You Can’t Ignore,” which provides an outlook into other emerging trends that m

Softbank Eyes $2-3 Billion Investment in Relaince's Jio; Due Diligence is Currently Underway

Japan’s Softbank is reportedly looking to make a $2-3 billion investment in India’s fastest-growing telecom firm Reliance Jio as billionaire Mukesh Ambani looks to deleverage business by selling stakes.

This comes on the back of reports of Saudi giant Aramco in discussions to buy a 25% stake in Reliance Industries’ refining and petrochemical business for $10-15 billion.

“Softbank has long been seen as a potential investor in Jio,” JPMorgan said in a research report. “For the past 2 years, our conversations with investors have highlighted expectations of Softbank investing in Jio and hence the news flow is not surprising.”

It, however, remains to be seen how much money does Softbank actually put in, what the implied equity valuation is and if the e-commerce venture is included in the Jio entity.

It was reported that SoftBank’s Vision fund is currently undertaking due diligence to buy a stake in Jio Infocomm, which in September 2016 launched pure play fourth-generation or 4G technology-based telecom services and within a span of two years have become India’s third largest telecom company with highest monthly subscriber additions.

Both Reliance and SoftBank spokespersons declined to comment on the matter.

“In our view, for a meaningful de-leveraging, investors would likely want to see an equity inflow of more than $5 billion from a single investor or a combination of investors,” JPMorgan said valuing Jio at $50 billion.

It, however, put implied equity value at $25 billion. Reliance Retail was valued at an implied equity value of $35 billion.

“A potentially smaller equity sale, which although would establish a larger equity value of Jio, would not be seen as a meaningful positive, in our view,” it said. “We also need to see what the potential stake sale would involve. More importantly, from a stock price perspective, we believe the potential investment would have to be an equity investment in Jio and not in the proposed InviT as that would be a quasi-debt investment.”

As of now, Jio is the carriage and content vehicle, while Reliance Retail is the offline retailer. It remains to be seen where the eventual commerce would sit - Jio or Retail, and whether it would be part of any Jio equity stake.

“Overall, we maintain our view that while the earnings environment for the company is deteriorating with downside risks to refining and petchem (petrochemical), stock multiples would keep on moving higher on expectations of potentially large stake sales on higher than current implied equity values for the various businesses,” JPMorgan said.

In a separate report, HSBC Global Research said RIL’s consolidated adjusted net debt has declined to $33.2 billion in the Q4 FY19 that ended on March 31, from $42.7 billion in Q3.

Edureka Launches Tech Career Guide with Precise Learning Paths for In-Demand Technologies

Aimed at addressing the skill gap in the IT industry, Edureka, a global e-learning platform for trending technologies, today launched their Tech Career Guide 2019 - a one of its kind guide that provides  technology professionals with the precise learning paths for in-demand technologies namely, Machine Learning, Big Data, Cloud Computing, DevOps, Blockchain and Cybersecurity. This 360-degree career guide also touches upon industry outlook, job trends, salaries, and learning hours for these technologies in addition to sharing findings of a survey on the most sought-after technology job roles this year. With the Tech Career Guide, IT professionals who want to upskill will now have easy access to a one-stop solution to build their dream career path: https://www.edureka.co/career-guide.

Vineet Chaturvedi, Co-Founder, Edureka, said, “Today’s IT professionals are already aware of the importance of re-skilling in the fast-evolving industry. What they lack is structured and expertly-curated learning paths to the rewarding job roles which they aspire to land soon. We have observed that while preparing for such roles they often get misled by irrelevant information online or waste too much time finding their own way. We have launched the Edureka Tech Career Guide to fulfill this need and help IT professionals efficiently prep for the trending technology jobs where there exists a huge skill gap.”

The Edureka Tech Career Guide seeks to answer the most frequently asked questions around technology career paths, especially those for emerging technologies while providing credible information based on Edureka’s deep expertise in these technologies. It is the ultimate resource for technology professionals seeking answers on the most searched queries:

Which technical skills are worth learning?
Which job titles are the most rewarding & their industry outlook?
The exact career path to hot technology job roles, recommended learning hours & resources 

As per Web Master global data (2015-18), 34.4% searches have been on how to attain a job role (e.g. data scientist), 30.7% searches have been on specific technology categories, 19.8% on specific tech careers and 15.1% on what courses to take to bag such roles. It is evident from the above data that technology professionals know which technology they want to upskill in – they just don’t know how to go about it in an organized manner. This fact is also supplemented by the sheer number of similar queries received by Edureka on it’s blogs and YouTube channel daily. A dip-stick survey conducted by Edureka, as a foundation for the career guide, also showed the same findings. Only 13.8% of the surveyed technology professionals said they were skill-ready for their dream job, 16.5% of them said that they felt they were not skill-ready, and the remaining techies said they were still up-skilling, often in an unorganized way.

As more and more people search online on how they need to upskill and don’t get anywhere, there is a definite need for a resource that guides IT professionals through a step-by-step process on upskilling. The Edureka Tech Career Guide 2019 aims to offer all this and more to technology professionals who are unsure of the learning path to their dream career. It also gives the recommended learning roadmap to those who have already started their learning journey and provide course correction if needed.  Check out the Edureka 2019 Tech Career Guide here:  https://www.edureka.co/career-guide.

About Edureka:

Edureka is a global e-learning platform for live, instructor-led training in trending technologies. They offer short term courses supported by online resources, along with 24x7 lifetime support. Edureka has an unwavering commitment to help working professionals keep up with changing technologies. With an existing learner community in more than 100 countries, Edureka’s vision is to make learning easy, interesting, affordable and accessible to millions of learners across the globe. 

Bentley Systems Announces Drummond Community High School Team as Winners in First Future Infrastructure Challenge: DEC Hyperloop

Bentley Systems, the leading global provider of comprehensive software solutions for advancing the design, construction, and operations of infrastructure, announced Drummond Community High School of Edinburgh, Scotland as the winning team of the first ever Future Infrastructure Challenge: DEC Hyperloop, which took place April 7 through 9. Hosted by Bentley Institute and Class of Your Own, the challenge included sixth form students, ages 16 to 18, from four schools in the UK whose assignment was to conceptualise a design of a hyperloop transport system and stations for Singapore.

Students from participating schools, The Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School from Greenford, London; Drummond Community High School from Edinburgh, Scotland; King Ecgbert School from Sheffield, South Yorkshire; and More House School from Farnham, Surrey, travelled to Bentley Systems’ offices in London on April 7. They were tasked with creating the hyperloop concept and a presentation to convey their cohesive plan to a judging panel.

The overall winners of the challenge are students from Drummond Community High School, Faye Fulton, Ryan Gordon, Alizah Mughal, and Wiktor Rauba, led by DEC (design, engineering, construction) teacher, Mark Holden. The winning team members and their teacher were awarded a complimentary trip to Singapore from Bentley Systems to attend its annual Year in Infrastructure Conference, which will be held this year October 21 through 24 at the Marina Bay Sands Resort in Singapore.

The four participating schools were selected from 100 schools studying the Class of Your Own Design Engineer Construct! (DEC) learning programme, which is intended to educate students about and encourage exploration of careers in architecture, engineering, and construction.

In the spring of 2018, following meetings with students studying DEC at a higher or advanced level, the four schools were invited to enter teams to take part in the first Future Infrastructure Challenge to mark the 10th anniversary of Class of Your Own. Delivered in partnership with Bentley Systems, the programme will be released as a full curriculum for schools around the world later this year.

Mark Holden, teacher for the winning team, said, “Drummond High School is committed to nurturing big ambition in its students and equipping them for the world and workplace of tomorrow. The school became involved in the DEC curriculum after seeing its success – and the attributes of its students – from across England and recognising how closely this fit our own aims. We have enjoyed several years of unparalleled opportunities and great successes and are delighted that this has led to this collaboration with Bentley and COYO. The development of our team has been incredible to watch, but also the effect on the school community as a whole has been palpable. Knowing that students from our school are taking part in such a huge project, working with such esteemed professionals on this scale is a constant reminder to all of our students of what they can achieve.”

Over the two days prior to the presentation day, the students created their designs using laptops and software provided by Bentley Systems at the offices of four globally recognised companies: Arup, Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners, Turner Townsend, and WSP.

On April 9, the teams presented their concepts to a distinguished panel of judges:

Harj Dhaliwal – Managing Director Middle East & India, Virgin Hyperloop One

Chris Barron – Chief Communications Officer, Bentley Systems, M. Arch., Harvard Univ., board member of the Zofnass Program for Sustainable Infrastructure

Professor John Miles – Arup/Royal Academy of Engineering Chair Transitional Energy Strategies, University of Cambridge

Professor Cam Middleton – Laing O’Rourke Professor of Construction Engineering, University of Cambridge

Iain Blight – Director of Station and Building Engineering at HS2

Chris Preston – President of Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (ICES), Bentley’s Inaugural Professor at the National College for High Speed Rail

Sadie Morgan – Co-founder, dRMM Architects; board member National

Infrastructure Commission / Chair of Independent Design Panel for HS2

Andrew Tyley – Partner, Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners

Ian Stilgoe – Vice President Geopositioning Europe, Topcon Positioning Group

Harj Dhaliwal, managing director Middle East and India of Virgin Hyperloop One, said, “We can’t solve 21st century challenges with 19th century technology. As the first new mode of transportation in over 100 years, hyperloop is changing the narrative for mass transportation. It’s great to see the next generation of engineers and designers embracing this technology and the new type of thinking it requires. I have been overwhelmed by the approach to innovation and the out-of-the box thinking the young students have demonstrated. All of them are winners today.”

The teams’ concepts were judged according to feasibility and quality of design, social and economic impact, building efficiency, sustainability, originality, and quality of the presentation.

Chris Barron, chief communications officer for Bentley Systems, said, “It has been a pleasure hosting these talented students, seeing their hyperloop designs, and watching their excellent presentations. It was, in a word, inspiring, not only because of the depth of research they performed, and the thoughtfulness of their designs, but also because they demonstrated that the next generation of infrastructure professionals are ready to face the challenges of advancing our economy and sustaining our environment. Bentley is committed to supporting STEM learning programmes like Class of Your Own, which inspire and challenge students to think creatively about the future of infrastructure and to perhaps even pursue careers in infrastructure-related fields. We’re looking forward to hosting more events like this around the world.”

71% of Indian Consumers View ‘Security’ as Most Important Element of their Online Experience: Experian Report

Experian, one of the leading data analytics and decisioning companies, today released the 2019 Experian Identity and Fraud Report: Asia-Pacific Edition. The report highlights that trusted online relationships are based on businesses providing both a secure environment and seamless consumer experiences. With insights from almost 6,000 APAC consumers including India, the report found that majority (71%) value ‘security’ as the most important element of an online experience, followed by ‘convenience’ (15%) and ‘personalisation’ (14%).

Of the 590 APAC businesses surveyed, 65% of Indian businesses have experienced an increase in online fraud-related losses over the past 12 months. This includes account takeover attacks and fraudulent account openings. Majority of the respondents in India feel they are sacrificing privacy for convenience in today’s unpredictable threat landscape.

“The Asia Pacific edition of Experian’s Identity and Fraud 2019 Report highlights the need for adoption of a secure and convenient platform by businesses” said Sathya Kalyanasundaram, Country Managing Director, Experian India. “While companies continue to innovate on new solutions that enhance the customer experience, there needs to be a focus on reducing the customer’s risk exposure by securing the data and information they currently access.”

While existing security methods used by organisations are still more traditional in nature, report findings revealed that 64% of Indians favoured the new technologies and advanced authentication solutions. In India, more than 40% of the consumers surveyed encounter advanced authentication methods regularly, which is the highest in APAC.

Transparency is another key determinant in building mutual trust. The report found that 65% of the Indian consumers expect full transparency from businesses around how their personal information is used. In line with this trend, Government agencies in India such as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), are constantly working towards consumer’s online security in a proactive manner. RBI has been diligently putting measures in place to ensure digital transactions in India that are protected through the implementation of Know Your Customer (KYC). Regulatory bodies have also upheld consumer protection by holding several large industry players liable for the unauthorised use of personal data.

Experian’s identity and fraud business comprises of nearly 300 fraud experts around the world working to protect people’s identities and fight fraud for businesses across multiple sectors, including financial services, telecommunications, retail/e commerce, insurance, government, and healthcare.

To Strengthen e-Commerce Business, Flipkart Opens 2nd Data Centre in Hyderabad

Flipkart, the country’s largest e-commerce entity, announced the launch of a data centre in the city, besides investment in the state (Telangana) to strengthen its technology infrastructure.

This is Flipkart's second data centre in the country, the first being in Mumbai. It says the new one (built in partnershop with CtrlS) is part of one of the largest cloud deployments in the country, to strengthen its growing marketplace e-commerce business.

"In our growing e-commerce business, data centres play a critical role. We recognise the tremendous opportunity for sustained data-driven transformation in India and are pleased by the support we have received from the state government," said its chief corporate affairs officer, Rajneesh Kumar.

Flipkart had built its own data centre infrastructure much earlier, to store and manage the enormous data that gets generated from online sales, involving customers and sellers. It has developed its own technology tools, without having to depend on the cloud platforms of larger players like Micrsosoft or AWS for its data storage requirements or analytics.

Hyderabad is considered, after Mumbai, the most secure place for data storage and business continuity plans by many companies, which usually keep their data in separate locations to cope with any extreme eventuality. The BSE stock exchange's second data server, for instance, is also in Hyderabad.

Flipkart's technology prowess was publicly hailed last week by Walmart chief executive Doug McMillon (the US retailing giant bought majority control in Flipkart last year) during his visit to the company's Bengaluru headquarters. Among other things, he'd said Walmart would try to use some of Flipkart's superior technology tools across the former's facilities.

Flipkart refused to divulge details of the data centre, citing security requirements. The Hyderabad facility is expected to enhance the company's overall preparedness for large-scale operations, adding to the technology capabilities in its cloud platform software.

"Telangana was the first state to come out with a dedicated policy on data centres. To see such encouraging results come out is very satisfying for all of us. We welcome Flipkart and its team," said Jayesh Ranjan, the state government's principal secretary, information technology.

Suryoday Small Finance Bank Commences Operations in Bangalore with Launches of Jayanagar Branch

Suryoday Small Finance Bank (SSFB), one of the fastest growing small finance banks announced the commencement of its banking operations in Bangalore by launching its first bank branch today. The branch was inaugurated by Shri G. K Mahantesh , President of Cricket Association for the Blind in India ( CABI ) & World Blind Cricket ( WBC ) at SSFB, GVS Complex, No 329, 10th A Main, 3rd Block Jayanagar, Opp. To Cosmopolitan club, Bangalore: 560011 .

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Baskar Babu – MD & CEO, Suryoday Small Finance Bank said, “Suryoday Small Finance Bank is focused on ensuring financial inclusion of the un-banked and under-banked through innovative banking practices. We are happy to start our banking operations today with our first bank branch in Bangalore. With the launch of this branch we look to further strengthen our existing presence in Karnataka state which is a strong forte for the bank and we will offer one the most competitive interest rates on deposits to our customers because of our robust business model with low operating costs”.

He further added  “We have completed 2 years of operations as a Small Finance Bank and we plan to continue building a healthy book and generate wealth for our customers.  In this financial year, the focus will be to deliver not just excellent customer experience but to create delight factors for all the segments we cater to, through technological initiatives and innovations”

Suryoday Small Finance bank offers one of the most competitive deposit rates in the industry. Currently, a savings account can get an interest rate of up to 7.25%, whereas, on fixed deposits, the customer can earn up to 9% interest rate. For senior citizens, the interest rate offered is 9.5% for 950 days term. The interest on savings account is credited every month.