One of the top challenges supply chain executives list in any survey is lack of visibility. Whether it is the status of orders, location of shipments or quantity of inventory, managers struggle to have the latest information about goods in the supply chain. The lack of visibility contributes to a significant amount of inefficiency and waste. Assuming the worst, most organizations stock buffer inventories to overcompensate for any potential supply shortages they may be unaware of. The result is that more inventory than necessary is in the supply chain tying up working capital and inflating corporate balance sheets.