Electronic Data Interchange Decoupled

Over 95% of all Electronic Business Transactions take place using EDI.

Implementing a new ERP system usually requires a new EDI module.

Picture yourself in the Indianapolis 500 driving the wining car on the final lap when all of the sudden your engine starts to shutter. The crew radios you to pull over into the pit stop and when you do your worst fear is discovered. You need to replace the engine. Game over…

EDI transition is an arduous task that can make or break any company. EDI is one of the KEY modules that needs to be thoroughly thought out at the beginning of the design phase. A “decoupled” approach can seamlessly change any ERP without the disruption of your Electronic Business Transactions.

The top 3 challenges for EDI Implementation:

1. B2B Integration
   The customer onboarding process is quite intense from the mappings to the required documents. The vendor standards manuals are constantly changing to meet the new requirements of the trading partners. You’re not just trying to hit one moving target, you’re trying to hit all the trading partners in a very short time. Also, If you have the need to change your sender/receiver id than you will have to go back to “testing” mode and start all over.
   
   
2. Tightly coupled
   There are so many connections from ERP to EDI it is like being tethered down and no room to move. These connections are like a spider web. “Coupling, combine’s the contradictory concepts of connection and autonomy.”
   
   
3. Lack of visibility
   How do I trace the problem back to a specific step without having to receive the document again? This can be one of the most frustrating tasks for an EDI manager. Why go back to the beginning if I can go back to where the problem occurred and fix from the specific step.

The ability to see the risks ahead will better prepare and overcome most challenges and align for a successful implementation.

Strategy, Tactics and Execution…

Now that the strategy is established with key risks, the tactics are clearly defined:

• Align business rules by customer for all aspects of pick, pack and ship
• Remove all unnecessary steps from previous EDI module
• Establish the SLA with the EDI software support team
• Build an alliance with the EDI trading partner support team
• Train, Train, and more training
• The “customer rules” can be aligned and setup one time with Partner Link and you can change ERP seamlessly without any disruption.
• The “Decoupled” approach aligns the EDI module autonomous from the ERP
• No need to change the EDI module when implementing a new ERP
• Cloud scalability

Once all of the pieces of the puzzle are in place the EDI will flow naturally. A reoccurring task is to update the vendor standards manuals for any changes that may take place over the course of time such as routing guides DC and Store additions or closings.

The execution of the EDI solution aligned with the required business rules will allow your EDI process to run smoothly along with KPI’s to alert with detailed information.

You are now prepared to win the EDI race with precision and accuracy.

Author’s Profile:

David Nocero
David is responsible for designing Visionet’s Supply Chain & WMS collaborative transformation approaches that optimize the architecture across the customer business requirements & constraints and current state technology platforms. David has been the business and technical leader on many EDI, PLM, ECOM, ERP, WMS and POS Global Supply Chain implementations over his 20+ year’s career. He has been responsible for all business and technical matters related to design, development, deployment and sustainment of many renowned companies.

Source: https://www.visionetsystems.com/blog/electronic-data-interchange-decoupled

Does your EDI solution have you tethered down?

The definition of neurosis according to Carl Jung – “the inability to tolerate ambiguity”

Jung was way ahead of current EDI standards with his theory but he did predate a simple solution to all of the ambiguity of Electronic Data Interchange with allowing all rules and workflow to be ‘Decoupled’ and therefore independent from any ERP.

Typical EDI challenges:

• Tedious customer onboarding process
• Tight coupling with ERP systems
• Lack of Visibility
• Chargebacks
• Transaction Volume
• Customization for non EDI partners
• Training & Operational Support

Partner Link© is an EDI solution created by Visionet Systems that allows the rules and workflows to be independent from any ERP. With prebuilt maps and EDI transaction sets, all management and sync sets are done with one command center that distributes your unified commerce easy, fast and accurate.

Visionet’s Partner Link© Solution:

• EDI sub System should be ‘Decoupled’ and ‘Independent’ form the ERP
• System should be highly ‘Responsive’
• EDI works with many formats (EDI & Non EDI)
• EDI document processing should be ‘Traceable’ and allow ‘restart’ from any step in the process
• Cloud Scalability
• Fast and Easy setup
• Link to any VAN
• Managed upgrades

For more information, please email david.nocero@visionetsystems.com.
Visit website at – www.visionetsystems.com.

Author’s Profile:

David Nocero
David is responsible for designing Visionet’s Supply Chain & WMS collaborative transformation approaches that optimize the architecture across the customer business requirements & constraints and current state technology platforms. David has been the business and technical leader on many EDI, PLM, ECOM, ERP, WMS and POS Global Supply Chain implementations over his 20+ year’s career. He has been responsible for all business and technical matters related to design, development, deployment and sustainment of many renowned companies.

Source: https://www.visionetsystems.com/blog/edi-solution-tethered

TEAR DOWN THOSE SILOS

One of the greatest documentaries in the apparel industry from the past ten years is the HBO special titled “Schmatta: Rags to Riches To Rags.”

It outlines domestic production in the apparel industry in and around the NYC area. The stats were astounding with a staggering 95% (1965) production done domestically and 5% (2009) done overseas. Today apparel production has done a total 180 with a handful of vertically integrated manufacturers in the USA.

The supply chain shift from domestic to one of many import workflows is a “standard carton X Factory from Vendor to cross dock DC to the Customer.” The touch points are decreased using algorithms with a focus on getting the goods out the door before the cancel date.

Lower prices triggered the paradigm shift of production with higher quality. A logical move for any business- get it cheaper, faster and better. This did create a logistical nightmare for shipping and receiving goods up until recently when “cloud technology” allowed production and logistics managers to enhance communication via supply chain. The organization “silo” is the number 1 disconnect in Global Supply Chain.

Global supply chain software such as Visionet’s EdgeAX applies those same algorithms in a workflow environment that streamlines the business process using Vendor Portals that connects to the ERP. The Silo risk is eliminated with Power BI (Business Intelligence)

Also, a unified commerce solution is provided that allows the corporation to break down the SILOS and plan the first response to mission critical deliveries! (Imagine online banking ease of use for Global Supply Chain Communication)

This simple approach is achieved with Visionet’s EDGE AX Version 7 solution. It simplifies lead times and communicates with calendars that align with departments such as merchandising and logistics.

So if we are improving opportunity time and touch points while breaking down the silos, the bottom line is significantly increased with the shift in technology. Very simple solution!

BIG DATA WILL ONLY GET BIGGER… so what is your BIG DATA PLAN?

Wayne Gretzky puts this best- “Skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.”
TEAR DOWN THOSE SILOS WITH EDGE AX V7 and get to where you need to be…

For more information, email at David.Nocero@visionetsystems.com or call (609) 452-0700
Visit website at - www.visionetsystems.com
For more product details – Please visit www.edgeax.com

Author’s Profile:

David Nocero
VP Global Supply Chain and WMS, Visionet Systems
LinkedIn Page - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dnocero

David is responsible for designing Visionet’s Supply Chain & WMS collaborative transformation approaches that optimize the architecture across the customer business requirements & constraints and current state technology platforms. David has been the business and technical leader on many EDI, PLM, ECOM, ERP, WMS and POS Global Supply Chain implementations over his 20+ year’s career. He has been responsible for all business and technical matters related to design, development, deployment and sustainment of many renowned companies.

Source: https://www.visionetsystems.com/blog/tear-down-those-silos/

Introducing Dynamics AX7, codename "Rainier", a.k.a. Microsoft Dynamics AX

Last weekend, Microsoft made available the CTP 8 release for public preview and thanks to which, everyone with partner source or customer source can deploy Microsoft Dynamic AX on Azure.

ERP as a service

With the release of Microsoft Dynamics AX7, clients can now opt for ERP as a service. With Microsoft’s very scalable service model, clients will not have to invest into the hardware now and can drastically reduce their total costs of ownership and save in costs of replacement. ERP-as-a-service option provides clients to rent server machines on Azure and release them after the completion of implementation.

New web-based client:

The new HTML5 based client has enabled Dynamics AX to become accessible on any machine from anywhere and having to install client application on client computer has become a thing of past. The common web-based client enables different users operating from various locations to access various AX modules with similar look and feel. Its adaptive design allows it to run smoothly on Android, iOS, and Windows mobile platforms as well.

Mobile access:

New HTML5 based client is accessible on all mobile and smart phone devices and has become more mobile focused. In the later releases, Microsoft plans to offer out-of-the-box mobile application which will support all major mobile and smart phone clients such as iOS, Android, and Windows with look-and-feel similar to the web client. With business owners needing to make decisions on the go, the real-time access to data is becoming the next big thing. This functionality will enable owners and users of critical business data to be access from anywhere at any time, on any device.

New Dynamics AX7 web based interface is designed so beautifully for mobile and smart phone devices that users can access and perform day to day entries without having to depend upon mouse and keyboard.

Cloud Based or on-premise deployment:

Dynamics AX7 or Microsoft Dynamics AX is initially released for cloud only and the On-premise version will be available within 6 month of the initial release. On-premise version will run on Azure Pack, Window server technology, without any difference in terms of functionality when compared to the cloud based version. This On-premise deployment will allow an organization to run and use ERP on a private cloud. There will also be a hybrid model available where organization can use and run some modules on cloud while keeping the rest on private cloud.

Subscription-Based Licensing:

Microsoft now offers subscription-based licensing for Dynamics AX7. This licensing model will allow organizations to increase or decrease the number of their users, as per their need, and will not require them to purchase a preset number of licensing as part of the package, as we being done previously.

User Experience:

Instead of traditional windows based client, Dynamics AX7 offers state of the art contest based web interface. Titled picture based welcome page allows user to perform to perform general tasks, make quick decision if and when required, and perform actions based on these decisions.

Fast backup and Installment on Azure:

Thanks for Azure’s robust functionality, a fully-functional production environment can be built less than 90 minutes. In addition, environment can be backed up more quickly as compared to the traditional on-premise deployment and hardware upgrade just a restart away – soon as you reconfigure your hardware requirements and hit restart, it is upgraded.

Reference: road map Image is taken from
http://msdynamicsworld.com/story/microsoft-dynamics-ax-7-will-launch-azure-first-promises-better-upgrade-experience

For more about Microsoft Dynamics AX services:
https://www.visionetsystems.com/microsoft-dynamics-ax

Source: https://www.visionetsystems.com/blog/introducing-dynamics-ax-7-aka-microsoft-dynamics-ax

EdgeAX CommerceLink for Microsoft Dynamics AX

Overview

With the exponential growth of eCommerce and the growing tech-savvy (always on) customer, the retail landscape is changing. It presents Retailers with a challenge of providing customers with a seamless shopping experience across all channels in order to manage inventory, streamline order processing, update orders and provide great customer service. To achieve this, the Retailers have to provide a seamless integration between their eCommerce platform (be it Demandware or Magento) and Microsoft Dynamics AX ERP.

EdgeAX CommerceLink is a powerful tool that integrates Microsoft Dynamics® AX 2012 R3 with leading eCommerce platforms like Demandware® and Magento®.

Key Features

• The connector lets you keep Dynamics AX as your center to manage customers, product information and merchandising, and then publishes it on the eCommerce store.
• It provides your customers with the flexibility to shop anywhere at any time (online), but retain the ability to go into a store and pick up or return an item.
• The connector allows you to safely and securely integrate data in real time as well as in flexible scheduled batches through secure data formats without losing data.

Depending upon the type of data, the seamless integration can take place in scheduled batches on configured frequencies, using publishing interface in AX or real time.

Business Benefits

With this integration, Retailers are able to centrally manage channel and catalogue to streamline and automate complex business processes: order fulfillment, shipping and payment, etc., by transferring data between Dynamics AX and eCommerce systems in real time. When a customer places an order online, the fulfillment and order tracking processes directly in Dynamics AX thereby, reducing the dependency on factors limiting their growth. This allows businesses to focus on other growth opportunities like acquiring new customers, serving new markets, and increasing opportunities.

Operational Benefits

It eliminates the need for manual data entry processes to sync information between the two systems. With integration, Retailers reduce their dependency on these manual processes to reduced costs and improved efficiency. It also enables businesses to better manage their inventory and product information. As with eCommerce and Dynamics ERP integration, they have to maintain this information in only one system and any updates are automatically synced to the other, and automating the returns process – inventory update and refunds.

Informed Decision Making

This integration helps the Retailers see all their data (customer, product, inventory, order, etc.) at a single location while the same information is also present in the other systems, which enables them to run advanced analytics. This reporting leads to benefits like improved forecasting; better understanding of customers and data backed marketing efforts.

While integration only syncs information between these systems, the EdgeAX CommerceLink for Microsoft Dynamics AX enables your business to provide your customers with a great customer experience, consistently across all channels. It also enables you to capture a 360-degree customer view for their business, all at one place.

For more information, Contact us today to schedule a demo.

Visionet Systems, Inc. equips Dutch LLC, a leading diverse fashion firm, with its Microsoft Dynamics AX Integrated Transformation

Cranbury, NJ, February 26, 2016 – Visionet Systems, Inc., a full-service IT solutions company, announced the successful, rapid implementation of a state-of-the-art Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R3 integrated solution for Dutch, LLC. The integrated platform allows Dutch to efficiently and seamlessly fulfill customer requests for its luxury brands by providing a universal Omni channel operating model. The solution facilitates flexibility and agility in all of Dutch, LLC channels for the Joie, Equipment, and Current/Elliott brands. Along with the Microsoft Retail platform, Visionet provided their proprietary retail framework, EdgeAX, to accelerate and enhance the Dutch LLC business intelligence capabilities, Tablet POS, as well as a connecting bridge to the brand’s commerce engines. In addition to the successful deployment of Omni channel work processes, the following modules were deployed in record time: Finance, Retail Back Office, Operations and Ecommerce Order Warehouse Fulfillment.

Being a Microsoft partner with deep expertise in the fashion apparel and retail verticals, Visionet was uniquely positioned to deliver the complete solution for Dutch, LLC. The platform, along with Visionet’s EdgeAX accelerators, was implemented in ten months from project inception. Since going live, customers of the Dutch LLC brands are now more empowered to identify and purchase the company’s products seamlessly - online, in stores, and across the United States. Moreover, Dutch LLC now has complete 360 degree insight to support the unique needs of its customers through real time inventory visibility, across all shopping channels, while empowering the brands to provide a seamless shopping experience for their clientele. The scalable cloud based infrastructure will support their future company growth strategies and requires only minimal overhead to maintain. This will result in a significant long term cost savings for Dutch, LLC.

“This Omni channel solution is helping us to exceed the ever-evolving expectations and needs of our customers by providing them with an enhanced, brand-right experience across all channels,” said Michael Saunders, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Dutch, LLC. “This solution provides a cost effective platform to facilitate our expansion and growth across all channels.”

“This cutting edge, integrated solution deployed on Microsoft Azure Cloud will provide Dutch, LLC the required capabilities to provide its customers with enhanced and personalized shopping experiences. The entire solution deployment in Microsoft Azure Cloud will allow Dutch IT to be more responsive and agile in order to support the global expansion of the business,” said Jawad Khan, Executive Vice President for Professional Services, Visionet.

Visionet, a preferred Microsoft Partner, has a long track record of successfully delivering projects for multi-channel apparel companies. Those interested in learning more about this state-of-the-art solution can schedule a demonstration and/or an interview by contacting Brandon Rael, VP Retail Professional Services, at 609-452-0700 (Brandon.Rael@visionetsystems.com).

Is Your Accounting Software the best fit for today’s business?

Businesses need more record of financial data as they grow. For (SMBs) it’s even harder to keep track of everything. The days of manual calculations and checking off payments with a pen in the general ledger book are gone. Modern business is about saving time and reducing common data errors and so comes the need for inventory management, bookkeeping etc.

In order to take advantage of the latest innovations from cloud computing to mobile to social connectivity, you need a complete enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution besides an accounting software that hinders your overall business profitability, efficiency, and growth.

You are sure to find several vendors that offer improved inventory management, financial reporting, budgeting capabilities, during your evaluation process. But do they offer a unified solution that delivers a complete vision for your business? A modern enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution offers the following capabilities:

• Collaboration, integrated business intelligence, and communication
• A user experience that inspires your people and your customers and blends personal and work computing
• Access to make your people productive anytime
• Flexible cloud or on-premises deployment options that won’t hold your data hostage.
• Affordable pricing models to reduce or eliminate up-front capital expenditures.

As the business grows and changes, you need a flexible solution. Our business solution is simple to use, quick to deploy and have the power to support your growth ambition. This makes it easy to create realistic forecasts, make in-depth financial insights and accurate revenue reports which are simply not possible from your basic accounting software.

Flexible deployment models—on-premises or in the cloud—let you make the decision on what’s best for your business, and get up and running without losing any historical data. Our business solution offers online or traditional desktop access enabling productivity on the devices people use often. It can reduce risk and cost while enabling you to manage multiple entry-level systems and free up IT resources to focus on business growth.

Take greater control of managing your finances and take the chaos out of month end close – this way you would be confident that all your financial facts are intact.

So it’s you who needs to plan ahead, and identify new opportunities to achieve the strategic objectives of your business. If your basic accounting software is holding you back then you need to visit the Visionet website to take a test drive and learn how enterprise resource planning (ERP) can take your businesses to new heights.

Source: https://www.visionetsystems.com/blog/accounting-software-best-fit-todays-business/