
WBSRocks: Business Growth with Enterprise Software and Digital Transformation
WBSRocks podcast features in-depth conversations on customer experience, digital transformation, supply chain, eCommerce, industry 4.0, and enterprise software categories such as CRM, ERP, or analytics suites. The purpose of the show is to help CFOs, COOs, CEOs, and business owners with their daily commercial, operational, or financial challenges by taking a deep dive into business cases and processes, technology strategy and architecture, transformation initiatives, and business models. The show also offers an independent analysis of technology trends, various enterprise software vendors and solutions, and their mergers and acquisitions. Subscribe today to stay on top of digital transformation trends!
Latest episodes

Aug 28, 2023 • 34min
WBSP515: Grow Your Business by Learning Conversion Rate Optimization Techniques w/ Eric Even Haim
Send us a textThere are several techniques for conversion rate optimization. But unless you test, it’s hard to know what may perform. Also, the conversion techniques could have nuances based on the platform. What may work on Shopify may not work on BigCommerce. So which are the conversion rate techniques that are most effective on the Shopify platform?In today's episode, our guest, Eric Even Haim, discusses conversion rate optimization stories and techniques. He also discusses the differences between the marketing and pricing strategies for a SaaS business from a Marchant business. Finally, he discusses the nuances of conversion techniques with Shopify using different platforms.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs.rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Aug 21, 2023 • 58min
WBSP514: Grow Your Business by Understanding SAP EWM's Capabilities, an Objective Panel Discussion
Send us a textRunning warehouse operations for an enterprise isn't easy. Most people talk about the complexity of SAP. But when you are heavy lifting at that level, you need firepower besides layers of data objects. You get traceability because of these objects. But that also makes implementation extremely challenging. Also, when you are over $1B in revenue with warehouse and retail operations, you need to figure out how you would decouple your architecture. If you have an embedded WMS with an ERP, it might be too bloated to move at the same speed as they process their transactions. This is where SAP EWM shines.In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to conduct an independent review of SAP EWM capabilities. We covered many grounds, including their unique capabilities with embedded and decentralized architecture for their EWM solution, along with the difference between WM and EWM solutions. Finally, we covered several other concepts, such as how the solution evolved from a text-based bin field to having over eight layers just for the bin management functionality and a lot more for other business objects.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs. rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Aug 14, 2023 • 42min
WBSP513: Grow Your Business by Learning the Importance of Streamlining Physical Processes for Warehouse Transformation w/ Gary Newbury
Send us a textYou get bad results faster by automating broken processes. And warehouse is a classic example where thinking through your physical processes and aligning the physical and digital layout is important. But most digital consultants, not experts in products or retail operations, miss the intel that is critical for safety and warehouse efficiency. They might put a product at a location where it might not be safe for warehouse workers or might feel like a cart before a horse. And that’s where you need a ton of expertise managing warehouses for the respective industry for digital implementation to be effective.In today's episode, our guest, Gary Newbury, discusses the importance of streamlining the physical process for the effective digital transformation of a warehouse. He also discusses why understanding the product type while designing a warehouse layout is critical for operational efficiency and safety. Finally, he discusses several stories where implementing digital processes without thinking through physical processes resulted in warehouse disruptions. For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs.rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Aug 7, 2023 • 55min
WBSP512: Grow Your Business by Understanding Trimble TMS' Capabilities, an Objective Panel Discussion
Send us a textThe problem with software applications and concepts is that what TMS means to you may be very different from what TMS means to me. Each TMS solution is designed from the perspective of a very specific business model, transactions, and micro-industries. Even among the same TMS vendor, there might be several TMS applications that they might carry targeted for very specific use cases. Also, a TMS designed for international operations is very different from local truckload-centric operations. So where does Trimble stand in its capabilities?In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to conduct an independent review of Trimble TMS capabilities. We covered many grounds, including the depth of the transportation companies and why features such as dispatch scheduling might be completely different for trucking companies than for other companies needing similar supply chain capabilities. We also covered how different TMS solutions could be when we analyze the business model of freight forwards vs transportation companies.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs. rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Jul 31, 2023 • 43min
WBSP511: Grow Your Business by Learning the Importance of eCommerce Guided Search w/ Lamees Butt
Send us a textThe tech stack of eCommerce has grown so much that you require several middlewares, with the middle being different for each of them. Also, the middle keep shifting as time advances, and as a result, the architecture changes accordingly. Guided selling has been one area in which it is hard to pinpoint where it would fit in the architecture, although it plays a crucial role in providing tailored experiences for users who might not know what they are looking for. Also, let’s admit that the search experience is completely broken, with the number of product categories and options available for the consumers, making the experience confusing.In today's episode, our guest, Lamees Butt, discusses the importance of guided search and how that provides a cutting-edge digital commerce experience. She also discusses several stories about the Zoovo platform and how that resulted in the eCommerce experience for B2B companies. Finally, she discusses the difference between several technologies, such as PIM, ERP, modern search platforms, and middleware.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs.rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Jul 24, 2023 • 49min
WBSP510: Grow Your Business by Understanding Descartes' TMS Capabilities, an Objective Panel Discussion
Send us a textWhere do you draw the line whether the enterprise software companies are the information processing, communication, or industry data repository platform? Also, is the role of TMS to provide you with the best rates, manage the external supply chain, act as a control tower, or full-blown ERP for freight forwarders? Well, the reason why these platforms look so confusing is that what's TMS for a manufacturer could be very different from a TMS for a freight forwarder. So where does Descartes stand in its capabilities? And how does it compare with other Supply Chain solutions out there?In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to conduct an independent review of Descartes' TMS capabilities. We covered many grounds, including the depth of functionality for a pure-play TMS system, as well as how the ERP needs of freight forwarders are completely different. We also covered why TMS platforms are more of a data platform along with the operational capabilities to manage the external supply chain or maybe internal for 3PL companies.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs. rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Jul 17, 2023 • 47min
WBSP509: Grow Your Business by Learning the Importance of Architecture in Designing Commerce Solutions w/ Indrit Selimi
Send us a textArchitecture is a bureaucratic term. At least, that’s what business users might feel, as it comes across as more of an IT boilerplate. And business users are not off as most technical and IT professionals end up using too much IT and technical boilerplate with architecture that it might not make any sense to the business users. However, having good architecture is like having a plan for your journey. No plan means a lot of wandering around and taking too much time to get to a destination. So regardless of your preferences for the architecture, it’s not optional.In today's episode, our guest, Indrit Selimi, discusses the importance of architecture in designing commerce solutions. He also discusses white architecture may be perceived as more of a technical term, but having an architecture is critical regardless of the term you use. Finally, he discusses the difference between several different commerce solutions in the market and their differences, such as headless, monolith, and suite-centric commerce solutions.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs.rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Jul 11, 2023 • 57min
WBSP508: Grow Your Business by Understanding Korber/HighJump' Capabilities, an Objective Panel Discussion
Send us a textWMS and supply chain systems come in various shapes and sizes. And there are very few systems in the market that could catch up with the speed of the cloud ERP vendors. While NetSuite and Acumatica both had native capabilities for WMS, they both relied on High Jump for advanced WMS capabilities. While High Jump succeeded in being a default choice for a WMS solution, the game has been completely changed since its acquisition by Korber. And now Korber can provide similar capabilities as Manhattan or Blue Yonder. Korber also has some unique layers, such as managing DSD and last mile, as well as transportation spend management. So where do High Jump and Korber stand in their capabilities?In today's episode, we invited a panel of industry experts for a live discussion on LinkedIn to conduct an independent review of Korber/HighJump capabilities. We covered many grounds, including their unique strength in the cloud native market, and how they rule the mid-market, especially in the NetSuite and Acumatica ecosystems. We also covered their other strengths, such as being comparable to larger solutions such as Blue Yonder or Manhattan in the large category space and having unique capabilities such as DSD or freight spend management.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs. rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Jul 10, 2023 • 46min
WBSP507: Grow Your Business by Learning the Importance of Connecting the Dots for the Supply Chain Function w/ John Hantzis
Send us a textThere are two types of chaos. You have a manageable chaos that can be planned easily. And then you have organized chaos that requires you to shift gears all the time as the planning variables change. If there is one function that can challenge any planning model, it would be logistics. There are so many variables, such as labor, traffic, third-party carriers, geopolitical conditions, and macroeconomic factors. As a logistics executive, you not only need to make sure that you have timely delivery, but you also need to do it in a cost-effective manner.In today's episode, our guest, John Hantzis, discusses why connecting the dots among strategy, operations, and execution is critical for the Supply Chain function. He also discusses why communication and collaboration are key, even among the same supply chain function covering different regions, to find operational synergies. Finally, he discussed why ops is all about shifting the gears on the fly and describes concepts such as cross-docking, FTZ, reclassification of tariff codes, moving supply chain due to geopolitical issues and a lot more.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs.rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.

Jul 5, 2023 • 56min
WBSP506: Grow Your Business by Learning the Top KPIs for Pickers, a Live Interview w/ a Panel of Experts
Send us a textThe picking function is all about KPIs. The larger the facility, the more fine-tuned your picking process needs to be. More errors during picking mean inferior customer experience and slower operations. Picking proceses might also vary based on the product type and industry. The manufacturing may have different picking processes from retail or distribution. So which are the KPIs most relevant for picking operations and pickers?In today's episode, we invited a panel of cross-functional experts for a live interview on LinkedIn who brings significant expertise to discuss the Top KPIs for Pickers. We discussed nuances of the picking function, including the performance incentives, issues due to warehouse integration, and picking efficiencies gained by modern picking strategies. We also discussed the pros and cons of real time vs batch connection and how that might impact picking KPIs and efficiencies, as well as how politics and biases may influence the architecture, leading to issues and variances in the warehouse function.For more information on growth strategies for SMBs using ERP and digital transformation, visit our community at wbs.rocks or elevatiq.com. To ensure that you never miss an episode of the WBS podcast, subscribe on your favorite podcasting platform.