Increased supplier competition and retailer expectations are forcing many SMBs to demonstrate greater agility and collaboration in the way they do business

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- As small and medium businesses (SMB) in the manufacturing and wholesale distribution industries continue to grow in stature and significance, many of these organizations find themselves under increasing pressure from large retailers to offer the right products and reduce out-of-stocks on the shelves.

Retailers expect continuous improvements in service level and shelf productivity without increasing costs. Some retailers also expect these organizations to extend services such as managing inventory replenishments or planograms on their behalf. This can be a significant challenge for SMBs not only from an organizational mindset and skill set perspective, but also from process and the capability to manage a more complex supply chain.

The good news is these are not uncharted waters; SMBs can leverage the best practices and lessons learned by companies in their respective industries. Many industry leaders have successfully enhanced their supply chains to respond quickly to customer demand, provide value-added services to their retail partners and enhance profitability as they continue to grow. In many instances, best practices employed by these industry leaders can be adopted by smaller, growth-oriented companies in the same field.

The challenge is to make the right supply chain investment decision that can deliver the highest ROI for their respective industry, and can be delivered with low risk and relatively quick time-to-value. SMBs cannot afford to take on a large, multi-year implementation project that may not deliver value upon its completion.

To help SMBs rapidly enhance their supply chains and achieve their business objectives with relatively low implementation risks, JDA^® Software Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS), The Supply Chain Company^® offers the following guidelines:

• Assess where you can make a large impact to your supply chain — and your customers — to deliver the highest ROI in the quickest amount of time, and then build a roadmap for continuous improvement based on that foundation. The assessment must be developed collaboratively among stakeholders and the desired outcomes must be agreed upon by key decision-makers in the company.
• Select a supply chain partner that has the proven track record, best practices and implementation methodology to deliver the ROI and subsequent roadmap of continuous improvements. Your supply chain partner should advise and guide you throughout your implementation — not just sell you the technology and manual — until ROI is achieved.
• Choose a solution that is scalable and adaptable. SMBs will ultimately change and grow both functionally and from a market perspective, making it important to choose a solution capable of growing with your business. Do not make the mistake of choosing a small solution because you are a small business.
• Consider a cloud-based solution that offers alternatives to traditional implementations to mitigate risk and accelerate value delivery. JDA recommends that SMBs focus on enhancing business processes and the productivity of their supply chains, not on the technology sophistication required to support them.

“JDA has helped many small and medium businesses transform their supply chains to be more agile and efficient as they continue to grow,” said Danny Halim, vice president, industry strategy, JDA Software. “Our proven methodology begins with a supply chain assessment and provides a low-risk, speed-to-value approach that balances a company’s expansion strategies with the speed at which their business is growing.”

To learn more about JDA solutions for SMBs, including JDA Supply Chain Now™, the company’s’ low-risk, speed-to-value approach to help companies optimize their supply chains establish a foundation for growth, please visit http://www.jda.com/scnow.

Tweet this: .@JDASoftware offer supply chain strategies for midsize manufacturers and wholesale distributors. http://jda.com/smb

About JDA Software Group, Inc.

JDA^® Software Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS), The Supply Chain Company^®, is the leading provider of innovative supply chain management, merchandising and pricing excellence solutions worldwide. JDA empowers more than 6,000 companies of all sizes to make optimal decisions that improve profitability and achieve real results in the discrete and process manufacturing, wholesale distribution, transportation, retail and services industries. With an integrated solutions offering that spans the entire supply chain from materials to the consumer, JDA leverages the powerful heritage and knowledge capital of acquired market leaders including i2 Technologies^®, Manugistics^®, E3^®, Intactix^® and Arthur^®. JDA’s multiple service options, delivered via the JDA^® Private Cloud, provide customers with flexible configurations, rapid time-to-value, lower total cost of ownership and 24/7 functional and technical support and expertise. To learn more, visit www.jda.com or e-mail info@jda.com.

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This press release contains forward-looking statements that are made in reliance upon the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are generally accompanied by words such as “can,” “will,” “ensure,” “help,” “enable” and “expect” and other words with forward-looking connotations. In this press release, such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, comments that JDA’s solutions can provide certain benefits to small and medium businesses. The occurrence of future events may involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to: (a) our solutions may not perform exactly as we anticipate; (b) there may be implementation and integration problems associated with our solutions; and (c) other risks detailed from time to time in the “Risk Factors” section of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Additional information relating to the uncertainty affecting our business is contained in our filings with the SEC. As a result of these and other risks, actual results may differ materially from those predicted. JDA is not under any obligation to (and expressly disclaims any such obligation to) update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

“JDA” is a trademark or registered trademark of JDA Software Group, Inc. Any trade, product or service name referenced in this document using the name “JDA” is a trademark and/or property of JDA Software Group, Inc.

CONTACT:

JDA Software Group, Inc.
JDA Investor Relations Contact:
Mike Burnett, 480-308-3392
GVP, Treasury and Investor Relations
mike.burnett@jda.com
JDA Public Relations Contact:
Stephen Phillips, 469-357-4826
Public Relations Manager
Stephen.Phillips@jda.com

KEYWORDS:   United States  North America  Arizona

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:   Technology  Data Management  Supply Chain Management  Software  Transport  Manufacturing  Logistics/Supply Chain Management  Engineering  Other Manufacturing  Retail

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