Cloud computing software is changing the way wholesale and retail businesses operate. Are you on board?

Each year, forecasters, futurists and trend-watchers attempt to predict the ‘next big thing’ in business.

Sometimes they are right, and sometimes they are way off but this year, the ‘next big thing’ that could change your business is actually already here, already available and already working for many organisations.

Cloud-based computing and business ‘gamification’ are being successfully adopted by a range of businesses and organisations looking to embrace a new, more productive way of working. By taking old-school business processes like picking and packing orders from paper order forms, and transforming this process into a highly efficient, tech-based one, businesses and their employees are seeing real benefits.

In the past, many companies have avoided making any changes to their supply chain management systems, and this makes sense (or made sense).  A core element of any wholesale or retail business, why change a ‘system’ that appears to be working fine? The answer to this is that while your warehouse management and mode of picking and packing may be working for now, you may be missing out on the tangible benefits that cloud computing offers.

Surely you would be interested in hearing more, and implementing this magical scheme that will improve your bottom line and boost productivity?

Well, by simply updating your old, supply chain management to a cloud-based operating system you can tap into some of the emerging, technological trends that are delivering tangible benefits to businesses, large and small. So what does this switch mean?

By swapping your paper order system to data collected and kept within the cloud, and accessed via iPads or other tablets, you are making your business more agile, and more able to cope with change. Employees use tablets to pick and pack orders, using the most current data to complete orders. This data is kept within ‘the cloud’, and can be accessed by managers from anywhere – from their desktop in the office, to their iPad while on the road.

Nucleus Logic has created a nifty, platform that works alongside your current operating system. With the ability to merge seamlessly with Quickbooks, Saasu, Xero, MYOB, Magento and WordPress, integrating Nucleus Logic into your current system is remarkably easy.

With employees packing orders off an iPad which holds real time data, there is less chance of confusion, less double handling and more ability to adapt to changes in orders. But the benefits don’t stop there. Reporting also becomes easier and more accurate when using cloud-based data. At the touch of a button, managers are able to access reports based on the most recent sales data, giving managers a quicker, more accurate view of profitability, capacity and turnover.

Make no mistake – this trend isn’t a flash in the pan. It’s already here, making real differences to real businesses, and it’s here to stay.