Table A.13: Technology sophistication in Retail - Inventory

||**Handwritten Record**<br>**Keeping**|**Computer Databases**<br>**with**<br>**Manual**<br>**Up-**<br>**dates**|**Warehouse Manage-**<br>**ment System**|**Automated**<br>**Inven-**<br>**tory Control**|**Automated**<br>**Storage**<br>**and**<br>**Retrieval**<br>**Sys-**<br>**tems (AS/RS)**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Functionality**|Basic manual entry and<br>tracking<br>of<br>inventory<br>data.|Basic inventory tracking<br>and data management<br>with manual data entry<br>and updates.|Comprehensive<br>inven-<br>tory management, order<br>fulfllment,<br>warehouse<br>operations, and supply<br>chain optimization.|Advanced<br>inventory<br>control<br>using<br>RFID<br>for real-time tracking,<br>CAO<br>for<br>automated<br>order<br>replenishment,<br>and VMI for vendor-<br>managed<br>inventory<br>solutions.|Fully<br>automated<br>sys-<br>tems<br>for<br>high-density<br>storage, retrieval, and<br>inventory management.|
|**Integration**|No integration|Limited integration ca-<br>pabilities, primarily re-<br>quiring manual data im-<br>port/export.|Integrates<br>with<br>ERP,<br>TMS, and other busi-<br>ness systems for end-to-<br>end visibility and con-<br>trol.|Integrates with supply<br>chain systems,<br>WMS,<br>and ERP systems for<br>seamless data fow and<br>inventory optimization.|Seamlessly<br>integrates<br>with WMS, ERP, and<br>other business systems<br>to<br>provide<br>real-time<br>data and analytics.|
|**Automation**|No automation|Minimal<br>automation,<br>mainly<br>through<br>for-<br>mulas<br>and<br>templates,<br>with signifcant manual<br>efort needed.|Ofers<br>signifcant<br>au-<br>tomation for inventory<br>tracking, order process-<br>ing, and warehouse op-<br>erations<br>but<br>requires<br>some manual oversight.|High level of automa-<br>tion<br>with<br>real-time<br>tracking,<br>automated<br>updates,<br>and<br>reduced<br>manual intervention.|Provides<br>the<br>highest<br>level<br>of<br>automation,<br>handling<br>storage<br>and<br>retrieval<br>tasks<br>autonomously<br>with<br>minimal human inter-<br>vention.|
|**Rank**|5|4|3|2|1|
|**Reason for Ranking**|Lowest<br>sophistication<br>due to the absence of<br>automation<br>and<br>inte-<br>gration, relying entirely<br>on manual processes.|Lower<br>sophistication<br>due to limited automa-<br>tion<br>and<br>integration,<br>with signifcant manual<br>data entry required.|Moderate sophistication<br>with strong functional-<br>ity and integration, but<br>with some manual over-<br>sight required for opera-<br>tions.|High sophistication due<br>to<br>advanced<br>real-time<br>tracking, automated in-<br>ventory<br>control,<br>and<br>strong integration with<br>supply chain systems.|Highest<br>sophistication<br>due to full automation,<br>seamless<br>integration,<br>and advanced function-<br>ality<br>in<br>high-density<br>storage and retrieval.|
|**Technology**<br>**Exam-**<br>**ples**|Ledger<br>Books,<br>Paper<br>Forms, Manual Logs|Microsoft<br>Access,<br>Google Sheets, Quick-<br>Books|SAP<br>EWM,<br>Oracle<br>WMS,<br>Manhattan<br>WMS|Zebra<br>Technologies,<br>Blue<br>Yonder,<br>IBM<br>Sterling|Swisslog,<br>Dematic,<br>Honeywell Intelligrated|
|**Cost**|Minimal|$160/year<br>(Ofce),<br>Free<br>to<br>$12/month,<br>$25/month|Custom pricing|Custom pricing|Custom pricing|
|**Launch Year**|n/a|1983 - 2006|1990 - 2005|1969 - 2000|1900 - 2001|
|**ChatGPT ranking**|1|2|3.5|4|5|
|**Estimated time in a**<br>**task**|40 hours|20 hours|10 hours|4 hours|2 hours|

Source: The table draws upon various sources of information including desk research, and websites of companies like Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, SAP, Oracle, Zebra Tech, IBM, SwissLog, Dematic, and Honeywell Integrated. *CHATGPT estimates the time for conducting a full inventory count, following similar characteristics of a given firm. The prompt for these estimates and CHATGPT ranking is available in the appendix.