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What to Look for During A WMS Software Demo

Optimizing your supply chain with warehouse management system (WMS) software that seamlessly integrates with your ERP can sometimes be a challenge. You should have the ability to easily tailor your WMS to your specific business needs without needing to customize the core software. Unfortunately, it’s not always so simple. You either get companies that sell “out of the box” solutions that can’t be modified at all, or you get customizable solutions that are so custom that upgrades can’t be made without significant redevelopment of the original version. If you’ve already been through most of the WMS selection process, the final stages likely involve the software demo. This is where you get to see the system in action and try the tools on your own. How can you make sure your evaluation of the WMS software won’t lead to problems down the road?

CHOOSING THE RIGHT WMS MATTERS

While there may be headaches involved, choosing the right WMS has tremendous long-term benefits for your supply chain:

  • With all of your data located in one place, you’ll be able to find out exactly what is coming in and going out of your warehouses at any time without having to manage huge stacks of paper orders. 
  • You’ll receive real-time feedback from your warehouse floor to help you identify your top performers, reduce your overall headcount and, ultimately, save time and money through reduced labor costs. 
  • Inventory management and control improves as you end up with fewer stock shortages and less stock obsolescence.
  • Optimized distribution allows you to provide quicker turnaround times for your customers and be more strategic about warehouse management.

WMS SOFTWARE DEMO CHECKLIST

Here are some tips for when it’s time for you to demo the WMS features and a few things that should be on your WMS software demo checklist:

  1. Create a shortlist of vendors who meet all of your business requirements and functionality fit criteria before scheduling system demos.
  2. Put together a team of stakeholders from each department of your business and each stage of your supply chain who will be most involved in the day-to-day use of the WMS software who can participate in the demo evaluation. These individuals could include executives, IT personnel and members of your warehouse staff. They should know what questions to ask and what information to gather during the demo. 
  3. Have an agenda before going into a demo. The agenda should include a list of questions and specific processes you’d like to cover, and it should assign time limits for you and your team to try out the most relevant aspects of the software and ask your questions. Good questions to ask could include:
    1. Does the WMS integrate with your ERP and other external software or systems you may be using?
    2. How much customization is required before the software can be implemented and integrated?
    3. How many hours were invested into developing the WMS? 
    4. What is the implementation methodology and how long will the implementation take?
    5. What do support contracts entail?
    6. How is risk managed throughout the implementation process?
  4. Make sure the software demo is actually live as opposed to a simple slideshow presentation.
  5. Save the pricing conversation for later on down the line as you get closer to making a selection.

DEMOING DATASCOPE WMS

Built specifically for the global SYSPRO ERP market, our plug-and-play warehouse management software is strictly version controlled. New versions are developed in 2 weekly sprints using the Agile methodology, SCRUM, and released with wizard-based upgrades approximately every 8 weeks. DATASCOPE WMS contains a range of tailoring tools that allow your company to install the core software solution and then integrate tailored solutions without compromising the core software. This is done through our E.Net API layer, VB scripting and various automation triggers.

We have consultants available to provide high-level advice on layout changes that you can implement in order to improve warehouse flow. We also provide ongoing client support which is how we’ve been able to build a loyal client base in virtually all distribution and manufacturing industries who can attest to the superiority of our software.

To see DATASCOPE WMS in action, feel free to check out the webinar portion of our site where we have detailed demonstrations of many of our most popular WMS modules, including cycle countingtransportation management system (TMS), wave release and MSN grocery checkout. Even if you don’t have a strong internal knowledge of how a WMS should be set up or function, we’ll support you every step of the way as you learn more about the system and how to make it more suitable for your business requirements. Schedule your demo today!

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