experience , as a consequence of greater visibility . “ Equally , the cloud doesn ’ t have to mean multiple tenants .
There are businesses that want the cloud but on a soletenant basis , on a different platform or within a controlled industry environment . The cloud takes on different variations depending on where and how a business operates , and on its expectations .”
Indeed , the team at Sage is acutely aware that different businesses have different requirements . It is unique in the marketplace , offering multi-tenant software as a service by means of its best-in-breed , cloud finance software product , Sage Intacct , but also boasts bespoke products , such as Sage X3 , its intuitive , tailored business solution . With a focus on small- to medium-sized manufacturers , customers can deploy what works best for their business .
Looking to the future , Rob identifies the prospective trends likely to affect the manufacturing sector . “ From a technology perspective , artificial intelligence and machine learning will play a significant part . Depending on product type , additive manufacturing may feature more heavily too . The cloud is and will continue to remain incredibly important . Companies are also going to start to look at the net effect of collecting data and getting the most out of it as they can , and particularly , in terms of the interconnectivity of supply chains . “ From a legislative point of view , electronic invoicing is being adopted in a number of geographies around the world . France , Spain , Germany ; they are all introducing electronic invoicing in the next 18- to-24 months , so , it ’ s absolutely critical that the UK follows suit for manufacturers to still be able to sell overseas . Solutions that support electronic invoicing requirements in Europe will be essential .
Consumer confidence
“ Equally , supply chain disruption is not going away any time soon . Historically , businesses have been focused on being as lean as possible , but now ’ s the time to add back a little bit of fat . As such , businesses are looking to adopt just-in-case inventory . How they manage the impact of increased inventory and holding costs with cash flow is going to be incredibly important and will require tough decisions .
“ I was talking to an automotive manufacturer recently , who made the decision to remove certain features from one of its 2023 models as a result of the semi-conductor shortage . While the plan is to reintroduce the features , for now , the product cost remains the same . As a consequence , consumers are going to have to be savvier . Manufacturers will also need to be more open going forward . Communication will be increasingly important , and cyber security and data protection will also be key to customer confidence ,” he highlights . “ There is an interesting trend ,” he continues , “ where some UK
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