1Research Scholar, Central University of Pondicherry
2Research Scholar, University of Mysore
Online published on 12 May, 2017.
The Indian retail industry is at a critical stage of evolution. The industry is undergoing a metamorphosis and interesting outcomes may be witnessed in the future. The share of organized retail in India's total retail trade is a miniscule. The Global Research Development Index (GRDI) has rated India as the hottest destination for foreign investments in the retail sector.
One of the biggest challenges that retailers face is the debilitating impact of the bullwhip effect (BWE). BWE refers to the exaggeration and over amplification of consumer demand as one moves up the supply chain. It must be noted that the base level of demand is less important to retail operations compared to fluctuations in demand.
Internet of Things is a network of physical objects that can communicate to each other through sensor technology and the Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication. IoT is a game changer for the retail industry that affords greater insights and tools for business transformation. When integrated with big data, business analytics and cloud computing, IoT has the potential to overcome the BWE, which is the biggest meltdown, factor in the retail world.
This paper seeks to understand the impact of IoT in mitigating the effects of the bullwhip effect.
Internet of Things, Bullwhip effect, supply chain, big data and analytics
