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"For more than 30 years, companies that have joined the Sage family have assisted small and midsized businesses with a wide range of business management applications and services."
Source : Sage
Software
Overcoming Barriers to Collaboration with Trading Partners
Collaboration is also known as :
Collaboration,
Collaborative Software,
Web Based Collaboration,
Engineering Collaboration,
Project Collaboration,
Web Office Collaboration,
White Papers about Collaboration,
Online Collaboration,
Issues and Approaches to Collaboration,
Collaboration Challenge Workshop,
Collaboration Tools,
Document Collaboration,
Collaboration Diagram,
Collaboration Quotes,
Collaboration Agreement,
Collaboration Platform,
Adaptable Collaboration that Improves,
Collaboration Solutions,
Marketing Collaborative Solutions,
Collaboration Technologies,
Real World Collaboration Strategy,
Scientific Collaboration Seeks,
Corporate Collaboration,
Online Group Collaboration Tools,
Free Collaboration Tools,
Collaboration Provides Capabilities,
Speed Up Work Processes,
On-demand Team Collaboration Platform,
Collaborative Process,
Collaboration to Facilitate the Development,
External Collaboration Toolkit,
Range of Collaborative Final,
Collaboration Network.
In these days of increasing pressure on companies to become more efficient
and reduce the bottom line, improved communication with suppliers, partners
and customers through easy-to-use collaboration tools can dramatically
optimize business processes, increase responsiveness and enable new levels
of achievement throughout the enterprise. As a matter of fact, a recent
survey of over 500 midsize enterprises by the Aberdeen Group ' sponsored
by Sage ' reveals that providing higher visibility to business processes across
functions and departments has become a priority for 56% of midsize
companies, while a record 26% set as a priority action to link their global
operations to improve interoperability and collaboration.
That"s why CIOs are increasingly turning to Web-based ERP systems that ' in
addition to integrating all business processes and data into one coherent
system ' would support multiple communication standards such as XML,
UDDI, WSDL and SOAP, integrate Web 2.0 tools for users such as portals,
mashups and peer-to-peer networking applications, and simplify the designing
and publishing of Web Services to interact with third-party applications over
the Internet. Their goal is to offer users more seamless integration and easier
access to data, both internally and externally. They see connectivity '
associated with easy-to-use Web tools ' as a way of addressing time-to-market
concerns and the need to access people, information and other resources
quickly and easily at any moment in time.
Companies know how critical it is to improve collaboration
with business partners in order to compete in the global
marketplace, but few have successfully streamlined
communications with them. Despite the availability of Web-
based tools, they suffer through delays and errors caused by
reliance on phone calls, faxes or e-mails and the lack of inter-
operability between software applications. What"s the reason
for this? Trading partners have been slow to adopt the
technology when they don"t see the benefits for themselves.
Providing higher
visibility to business
processes across
functions and
departments has
become a priority
for 56% of midsize
companies, while
a record 26% set
as a priority action
to link their
global operations
to improve
interoperability and
collaboration.
Partner Acceptance is Critical
Traditionally, suppliers have resisted investing in technology
and making changes within their organizations to foster
collaboration because they perceive the efforts benefit only
the manufacturers. Sure, electronic collaboration with
partners, suppliers and customers will help manufacturers
manage end-to-end processes in a more efficient and cost-
effective way. But, business partners will also benefit in the
form of increased reactivity from the manufacturer and
reduced paper-based processes.
For example, a manufacturer can authorize a
supplier under contract or blank order to
connect to its system remotely and be
automatically informed of a reorder
requirement triggered by a low stock alert.
Exchanging purchase orders and invoices electronically
speeds up business processes and enables both the
business partner and the manufacturer to better
manage their supply chain with more accurate data and
make better cash management decisions.
Also, suppliers can monitor vendor-managed inventory
more effectively if they have electronic access to
inventory stock levels. Instead of waiting for orders to
come in, real-time information from the manufacturer"s
enterprise system can alert the supplier when it"s time
to restock and help its staff adopt a pro-active behavior.
Additionally, by participating in reverse auctions
through the manufacturer"s vendor portal, suppliers can
be sure they"re not missing lucrative opportunities to
sell more product and grow their business.
Finally, the vendor portal can provide suppliers with key
performance information they may not otherwise
receive from the manufacturer. Since business is
exchanged electronically, data can be automatically
analyzed according to pre-determined KPIs (key
performance indicators) related to delivery, price and
quality. Suppliers have a clear picture of their
performance and can make adjustments to improve
their ratings and increase their chances of gaining more
business in the future.
Trading partner reluctance to connect electronically can
be so considerable that collaborative efforts can easily
fail, leaving few companies to achieve any significant
advantages. Effectively communicating the above
benefits and involving partners in the process of
establishing the right tools will help breakdown barriers
to collaboration. This "win/win" scenario provides the
incentive for suppliers to make the process and
technology changes that will ensure success for all
parties.
Key Components: Control and Visibility
To be successful, collaboration must also include
control and visibility, which can be achieved through the
use of automated workflow functions found in today"s
leading web-based ERP systems.
In trying to effectively manage business processes,
many challenges arise from offline manual tasks such
as notification, investigation, authorization and follow
up. Automated workflow controls the flow of
information within and outside a business based on
company-specific work practices and procedures for
handling important and exceptional events.
For example, messages can be routed to customers
and suppliers, alerting them immediately to information
such as the contents of a particular shipment or
potential delivery delays. These messages can improve
inventory management performance, increase delivery
accuracy and enhance visibility across the demand and
supply network.
While managing the workflow makes it easier to control
and administer standard processes through the
necessary steps both internally and externally, an ERP
system offering automated workflow functionality will
immediately reflect any updates in the system
database. Because the data is updated in real time,
partners have accurate information to more efficiently
and proactively provide their goods and services.
Security Fears
Even when partners understand the benefits available
to them through electronic collaboration, they may still
be reluctant to participate due to security concerns.
Both manufacturers and their trading partners need to
protect their strategic assets, and they require the
highest level of security.
Setting up a secured connection that meets both
parties" standards is possible if properly addressed.
Not only should user passwords be managed carefully,
with various restrictions, such as limiting the number of
days a password is valid, allowing a defined period of
inactivity before automatic disconnection, etc. Security
should also be managed at the system level to restrict
access to functions, actions, on-screen fields and data,
by user, group of users or profile. More importantly, all
transactions should be traced at the user level, and
modifications to sensitive data should trigger alerts and
additional requests for approval before being
processed.
Effective Communication Tools
To be effective, collaboration has to be made simple.
Intuitive tools accelerate user acceptance and can,
therefore, maximize the results. These tools can be a
secret weapon to bring people together, enhance
communication and share knowledge.
Today"s leading ERP vendors offer web-based systems
that incorporate Web 2.0 tools such as portals, RSS
feeds, wikis, blogs and mashups. A recent Forrester
report found that enterprise Web 2.0 is offering
substantial business value around collaboration and
productivity, and it"s high on the priority list for many
businesses. A McKinsey & Co. global survey of 2,847 IT
executives found that 80% of respondents were either
using or planning to use Web 2.0 services in the near
future. Of those currently using Web 2.0, 70% were
using it to interface with customers, 51% to interface
with suppliers and partners and 75% to manage
collaboration internally.
While Web 1.0 focused on single-users accessing and
clicking around the Internet, Web 2.0 goes beyond
collaboration by enabling immediate interaction with
other people. For example, a sales manager can use a
mashup to pull together sales data from a variety of
internal and external sources, create a portal page, then
contact colleagues online and do a group analysis of the
data via the portal. Or, a financial manager can also
arrange to get a pop-up on his desktop RSS reader every
time a customer makes a big payment, or goes into
credit-hold status.
Successful Collaboration can be Achieved
To meet the increasing demands of today"s market,
companies must implement collaborative supply chain
solutions that streamline business processes with their
trading partners. With real-time visibility and control of
supply chain execution to all parties, while addressing
supplier issues head on, collaboration can succeed.
Manufacturers can implement effective supplier
collaboration processes that orchestrate "win/win"
outcomes with suppliers, enabling significant advances
in reducing costs, enhancing quality and accelerating
operations that help ensure they win today"s productivity
battles.