The role of electronic inventory control system in the competitiveness of e-retailers in South Africa

Abstract

Despite the advances made in relevant technology, some e-retail organisations are still struggling to improve their inventory control performance due to a limited application of such technology, a lack of relevant skills and inadequate supply chain management policies. In the e-retail industry, an inventory control system influences the competitive advantage such as customer services, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty of e-retailers. This study therefore aimed to explore the competitiveness of electronic inventory control systems (EICS) of e-retailers. To achieve the study’s objective, four research questions (i) What EICS does an e-retailer use to be competitive? (ii) How does the use of the EICS help the e-retailer to improve e-Retail inventory management? (iii) How does the use of the EICS help the e-retailer to improve e-retail order management? (iv) How does the use of the EICS help the e-retailer to achieve competitiveness? were explored by revealing the role that EICS played in e-retailers’ gaining a competitive advantage. An e-retailer in South Africa was selected for a case study. The research findings have revealed that ERP (LOCAD, NetSuite) WAERlinx are EICS used for managing and controlling inventory. Besides, with the implemented EICS the organisation can oversee inventory stock cycle transaction, perform a transparent inter-branch transfer and security control through a bar-code scanner, similarly, an improved inventory management performance. Also, order management is automatically processed and allocated, equally a faster customer demand execution and timely delivery based on customer location. Lastly, the vital competitive advantages achieve through EICS implemented to include high customer satisfaction as a result of faster system services rendered than previously. Likewise, a rise customer service efficiency and higher rates of customer loyalty because of the facts the company has fulfilled the promises made to their customers effectively and through many benefits such as improved customer service, delivery time frame period from the EICS. The research was qualitative, adopting an interpretive approach to meet the research objectives. Interviews were conducted to gather data. The main outcome of the research was the generation of a general framework comprising a set of guidelines for e-retailers to follow in order to enhance their competitiveness. All data collected during the study was treated confidentially and in line with the ethical principles of the University.