B2B Technology Landscape – Evolving to Meet Market Demand

With growing rapidity, the B2B technology landscape is evolving to support digital transformation, converging business models, and the nonstop demands of e-commerce requirements.  B2B customers want service and support and are fueled by expectations that burn hot in B2C.

Aberdeen Group reports that the ability of companies to keep pace is magnified by the growing complexity of broader and deeper supply chains, which in turn are driving changes in the B2B technology landscape.

The Aberdeen report “B2B Technology Landscape – Evolving with the Times to Meet Market Demand” finds that the pressures facing companies prioritizing their technology needs include:

  • Rising supply chain management costs
  • Increased demand volatility
  • Customer mandates for faster, more accurate, and more unique fulfillment
  • The growing complexity of global operations
Supply chains are depending on intermodal transportation.

Global operations add complexity.

According to Aberdeen, best-in-class companies are meeting these challenge by embracing digital transformation.  Aberdeen research finds that the number of electronic orders received is virtually the same for the best-in-class and all others.  Among other factors, what separates best-in-class from the rest is automation, which is significantly higher (46% more likely) for best-in-class companies.  For example:

  • 81% of best-in-class companies utilize AP and invoice process automation, compared to 35% of the rest
  • 70% of best-in-class companies utilize automated reconciliation between incoming payments and outstanding outlays, compared to 48% of the rest
  • 58% of best-in-class companies utilize bots to perform repetitive rules-based processes, compared to 18% of the rest
  • 56% of best-in-class companies utilize partially or fully automate contract management, compared to 33% of the rest

The advantages are compelling.  Best-in-class companies have cut their cash-to-cash cycle to 39 days, compared to 59 days for all others.  More significantly, best-in-class companies have gross margins of 35%, compared to 23% of all others.

As Aberdeen points out, the pressure to “digitally transform” increases the demand for speed and responsiveness of transaction processes. Best-in-class companies are significantly ahead in their automation for accounts payable and accounts receivable as a sign of digitalization.

Read the Aberdeen report.