ECommerce is on the rise. Buyers want access to everything from the comfort of their laptop or phone, and customer journeys that span multiple channels have become the new norm. Because of these and other complexities, success in digital commerce depends heavily on a smoothly functioning supply chain.

Successful online retailers are adopting electronic data interchange (EDI) solutions so they can efficiently exchange purchase orders, delivery notes, invoices, and other documents with manufacturers and suppliers in their global supply chain using a single digital platform. EDI systems can enhance your eCommerce experience in several different ways:

Fewer stockouts

Few things annoy your shoppers more than their desired product being out of stock. Even if your suppliers are completely reliable, you might forget to place replenishment orders in time.

Modern EDI solutions that integrate with your ERP and WMS software let you simplify or even automate your replenishment cycle by either notifying you or immediately placing orders with your suppliers whenever stock levels fall below a specified threshold. As a result, your customers are far less likely to experience stock-outs, which helps you maintain high customer satisfaction.

Fewer order fulfillment errors

Incorrectly keyed information can lead to your customers receiving the wrong product. They might be shipped the correct product in the wrong quantity, or if you’ve made a mistake in their delivery information, they won’t receive their order at all! Any of these errors will almost certainly lead to very irate customers and maybe even negative publicity.

EDI minimizes manual entry. You (and your supplier) won’t have to decipher someone’s messy handwriting, hunt down an email that contains order information, or risk making a mistake while rekeying an order from one program into another. More accurate order information reduces the risk of fulfillment delays, angry customers, and loss of business.

Personalization and direct shipping

More and more businesses are harnessing digital supply chain technology and consumer analytics to offer their customers made-to-order products. With real-time vendor communication solutions, retailers can keep their supply chain agile and minimize logistics and inventory costs by sending customized product orders to manufacturers so they can produce and send items directly to your customers.

You don’t need to offer product personalization services to take advantage of EDI in this way. Even if your products are mass-produced, the ability to instantly send delivery information to suppliers is a great way to drastically shorten order fulfillment times, minimize warehousing and inventory spend, and keep your customers happy.

Real-time special order availability

Some online retailers allow their customers to place special orders for items they don’t usually keep in inventory. However, most of these retailers don’t have an up-to-the-minute record of their suppliers’ stock levels or delivery times, which means their online store doesn’t tell their customers how soon they’ll receive these items. More often than not, customers decide to look elsewhere for the item they wanted, and the retailer misses out on a sale.

EDI integration can give your customers real-time information about special order availability and wait times. Even if you don’t keep a particular item in stock, your online store can use EDI to instantly consult your supplier’s records, determine the item’s estimated delivery time, and place an order.

Conclusion

Your customers value timely replenishment, quick and accurate fulfillment, and end-to-end visibility, and digital technologies like EDI that allow you to effortlessly deliver this value represent a real competitive advantage. To learn more about how digital B2B communication drives growth and reduces customer churn, please register for our December 13 webinar, Live Demo of PartnerLinQ for Dynamics 365 FO in Retail.

The cooperative advantage of EDI integration

Following transportation and transformation, integration is the final step in the EDI process. While transportation provides a pathway for business data and transformation converts the data into a format that the recipient’s system can consume or otherwise accommodate, integration brings the transformed data into the internal or host system. The end-to-end process is always a cooperative affair. This cooperation between endpoint applications enables data transfer between them, improving relationships through seamless coordination across systems, departments, trading partners, transportation networks, and even beyond boundaries.

A good line of communication within your own business functions and with other businesses is essential for success. It brings parties together by promoting a sense of partnership and shared responsibility. When done properly, EDI integration brings about cooperative opportunities that benefit all of the parties involved.

It’s important for trading partners to understand that EDI isn’t new; in fact, it’s one of the older methods of communication between trading partners. Because of its age, it benefits from wide use and acceptance. Newer versions of EDI are far more intertwined with today’s technologies, fully embracing technology standards well beyond X12. This includes XML, JSON, SOAP, and APIs, not to mention making use of technologies such as AS2, SFTP, and innumerable partner-managed connections.

EDI implementation won’t take you head and shoulders above your competitors; rather, it serves as a sign of business maturity, advancing growth within the businesses that have chosen to implement or redeploy EDI software, solutions, and services in recent years. Where EDI was once only found in industries like apparel, grocery, and retail, interest in EDI has seen a resurgence in industries like third-party logistics, food service, wholesale trade, healthcare, and the construction of gas and water utilities.

Using EDI for transportation and supply chains across business footings leads to inventory optimization and direct-to-consumer success, driving businesses ever forward. The transportation industry, which has a historical EDI footprint, is expanding its use of EDI into the area of transportation planning. EDI integration with eCommerce gateways and shipment management tools improves supply chain efficiency, reduces time to market, and improves both visibility and customer service. The email confirmation for your recent online order didn’t show up in your email box by accident. It crossed paths across modern EDI technologies between the time that you completed your order and your phone notified you that “you’ve got mail”.

Recently, there has been a rise in traceability concerns with products – from romaine lettuce to over-the counter medications – resulting in brand impacts on well-renowned companies like Tylenol and Chipotle. A more modern approach and use of EDI technologies can have a significant impact on these areas of commerce. Responding to the ever-present threat to business success, food service and healthcare organizations are expanding their EDI use with a new emphasis on supply chain traceability. FMCG and pharmaceutical companies are now using EDI to trace food from farm to table and the chain of custody in the drug supply chain.

Many business owners assume that EDI integration requires a massively disruptive and costly overhaul of their business processes; as a result, they miss out on the cooperative benefits that EDI offers. The truth is that EDI isn’t disruptive at all and certainly not in the way a trading partner might expect. Rather, EDI complements the business process. Adopting a modern approach to EDI leads to changes that not only reduce manual effort and free up more time to automate other parts of your business. It also helps reduce time to market and improves supply chain efficiency, visibility, and customer satisfaction.

GS1 (formerly the Uniform Code Council) funded a study in 1998 that led to the creation of the General Business Model. The model, enlightening for its time and a predecessor of things to come, identified key buyer-seller relationships and (perhaps unintentionally) key EDI transactions involved in a typical buy-sell relationship. The General Business Model identified four main buyer-seller interactions:

• Information sharing (EDI 832 Transaction Set – Price/Sales Catalog)
• Ordering (EDI 850 Purchase Order)
• Delivery (EDI 856 Advance Ship Notice (ASN))
• Payment (EDI 810 Invoice Transaction)

While a strategic advantage may remain the most common reason for implementing or redeploying EDI, a more compelling case has been made by way of this discussion. So let’s look at the cooperative advantage that EDI integration provides to suppliers and buyers.

Impact on suppliers

Studies (such as of Gromley’s) show minimal to no staff reduction after EDI implementation. While this may appear counterintuitive, the results of implementation provide valuable insights into the inner workings of business.

One study conducted in 8 major companies found that none of the customer service coordinators or clerical workers received higher salaries or promotions because of their EDI experience. Interestingly, even though EDI automated many manual tasks, an equal number of tasks were added to customer service roles.

One might therefore infer that in addition to reducing manual tasks, EDI integration also helped organizations reschedule backlog work items. In other words, EDI integration helped companies make work efforts more manageable, extending beyond the backlog and in to areas such as customer service improvements and cost savings across departments. Thereby, the initial benefit was spread throughout the organization.

Impact on buyers

Simply put, EDI integration saves buyers time and money. EDI provides buyers timelier product ordering, shipment, and delivery information. This increased knowledge results in a better understanding of their suppliers’ and supply chain operations, encouraging an increased level of cooperation and trust between the buyer and its suppliers. This understanding, cooperation, and trust helps both parties to reduce inventories, improve materials management, and increase productivity gains, further improving efficiency and driving cost savings across the buying organization.

Garnering the Cooperative Advantage with EDI

Information sharing

Today, opportunities in EDI extend well beyond order, deliver, and pay. Looking for more opportunities for cooperation begins with looking for opportunity within. Whereas most initial EDI integration improves processes, encouraging teams to become more involved in the EDI process can yield even better results, particularly when redeploying an EDI strategy. Encouraging individuals across the organization now equipped with new EDI knowledge and elevating their responsibilities will increase EDI integration opportunities across the organization.

Business process improvements

EDI integration helps streamline your business operations by increasing order and invoice accuracy, reducing late or incorrect shipments, and avoiding excess inventory. EDI also offers distinct advantages when companies begin to dig deeper into their processing, forecasting, and production schedules, and presents further opportunities to grow their business with the EDI practice without expanding the workforce, becoming a strategic ally in that mission.

Increased responsiveness

Relationship responsiveness goes a long way with your customer base and should be viewed as a bread-and-butter part of the business and a necessary investment in a better business future. EDI integration, when properly managed, results in an increased business awareness among customers and stakeholders, often accompanied by increased requests from within the organization to boost those interactions. Responsiveness to these business requests, the result of a newfound understanding, relies on modern integration techniques, which puts your next EDI integration steps ahead of competitive opportunities.

When you complete your initial EDI integration or redeployment, take a moment to recognize and speak with your teams and talk about their successes and accomplishments. Only then will you begin to hear their desire to look and move forward. The right EDI partner will help you with this and ensure that you have plans for your organization’s future and its future with EDI. For expert advice on your EDI integration needs, get in touch with the PartnerLinQ team today.

We all agree to the fact that in today’s fast-paced, interconnected business environment, seamless data exchange is critical to staying competitive. For organizations who handle vast amounts of transactions, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) has been an important method for automating communications between business partners. It is instrumental in reducing errors, accelerating transaction time, and eliminating manual processes. This, in turn, makes it indispensable for industries.

Having said that, not all EDI solutions are created equal. EDI Value-Added Networks (VANs) play an important role in ensuring that these electronic documents are securely transmitted between businesses.

In this blog, we’ll look at the leading EDI VAN providers, with a special focus on why PartnerLinQ has emerged as a market leader in EDI services.

Understanding EDI VAN providers

Even before we dive into why PartnerLinQ is a market leader, it’s essential to understand what EDI VAN providers do. It is a centralized hub that allows organizations to exchange EDI documents with multiple trading partners. Services such as document routing, data validation, and compliance monitoring are offered by VAN providers. In this way, it makes sure that the business-critical data flows smoothly, and accurately across different organizations.

Some of the leading EDI VAN providers in the market include:

IBM Sterling B2B Collaboration: IBM Sterling has been a top choice for large enterprises needing EDI solutions as it is known for its security and compliance.

OpenText Trading Grid: OpenText is a cloud-based B2B integration platform that provides global trading partner connectivity.

TrueCommerce: It offers a scalable solution for small-to-mid-sized businesses, with easy-to-use EDI tools.

Why PartnerLinQ leads the EDI VAN market?

Even though all the above players offer strong services, PartnerLinQ has emerged as a leading player by solving key challenges faced by business when managing EDI systems.

Here is why PartnerLinQ has emerged as one of the leaders when it comes to leading the EDI VAN market.

1. Comprehensive EDI solutions for modern businesses

The biggest USP of PartnerLinQ is that it offers a cutting-edge platform that integrates traditional EDI with modern data exchange solutions. This feature of PartnerLinQ makes it the organization of choice for companies that need both legacy support and forward-looking capabilities.

PartnerLinQ, unlike other VAN providers, incorporates APIs and real-time data exchange, enabling businesses to meet the needs of modern supply chains.

PartnerLinQ ensures businesses can operate efficiently and remain agile, even in the face of shifting market demands.

2. Cloud-native, scalable architecture

Traditional EDI VANs rely on on-premises infrastructure. However, as PartnerLinQ is built on a cloud-native architecture, it not only reduces the need for costly hardware and complex maintenance, but it also makes it scalable. PartnerLinQ ensures that updates are rolled out continuously, without disrupting daily operations.

3. Real-time visibility and tracking

Lack of visibility into data flows is one of the biggest challenges that businesses face when using EDI. Even now, a lot of VAN solutions use outdated batch processing. It has a tendency of leaving businesses in the dark about transaction statuses.

With PartnerLinQ’s real-time visibility and tracking features, businesses can monitor document exchanges in real time. This, in turn, empowers decision-makers to respond proactively to issues, preventing delays.

4. End-to-end supply chain connectivity

EDI systems are often siloed. However, PartnerLinQ integrates EDI with other supply chain management tools, ensuring connectivity across the entire supply chain. With PartnerLinQ, businesses can connect with suppliers, distributors, and third-party logistics providers (3PLs) on a single platform.

Conclusion: Why PartnerLinQ is a market leader

In today’s business world, where changing market conditions and customer demands are important, PartnerLinQ stands out as a next-generation EDI VAN provider. With its cloud-native architecture, and analytics, PartnerLinQ provides businesses with a comprehensive solution.

If you're looking to enhance supply chain operations, PartnerLinQ is your EDI provider of choice.

Many businesses struggle to take their data management and exchange processes to the next level. They may be using an outdated Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) solution, or they may not be using EDI at all. 

If your business needs better data management, you may want to consider finding an EDI service provider. Here is an introduction to EDI and 10 considerations when looking for EDI service providers in 2025.

Overview of EDI implementation

In an increasingly digitized world, businesses must also change how they operate. Many companies are now turning to EDI to manage their workflows better.

The global EDI software market size is estimated to reach a whopping $4.04 billion by 2029, compared to $2.88 billion in 2024.

What is EDI? 

EDI is the electronic interchange of business information following a standard format. It’s generally used to streamline transactions between companies. This process was once done using paper documents that had to be mailed back and forth, however, EDI now enables businesses to exchange data electronically and quickly.

What is the difference between EDI and non-EDI?

While EDI refers to the process of electronically exchanging business data in a pre-defined format between systems, non-EDI is the traditional way of exchanging information without any pre-defined format. This would include using paper documents or even emailing attachments back and forth. Non-EDI can be very time consuming and expensive due to mailing costs. Non-EDI formats can include: Fixed length flat files, Variable length flat files, Binary files, to name a few.

Benefits of EDI software to a business’s supply chain 

EDI can be powerful to the business supply chain, automating and speeding up processes that would traditionally be done manually or through ineffective processes. Various organizations, including retailers, manufacturers, and distributors, can use EDI software to automate processes and improve data accuracy. It can maximize efficiency, improve overall experience, minimize errors throughout the supply chain, and provide the following key benefits:

• Order management: If your business wants the most efficient way to fulfill orders, EDI is the solution. EDI can automate the process of orders being placed with suppliers and keep up with customer demands. This way, businesses have a way to quickly and easily place orders with suppliers.
• Inventory management: EDI can also help businesses keep track of inventory levels. By integrating with your company’s accounting software, you can get real-time updates on what needs to be restocked. This helps avoid stock-outs and keeps the supply chain running smoothly.
• Shipping and logistics: One of the major benefits of EDI is its ability to streamline shipping and logistics. In tandem with a company’s shipping software, businesses can automatically generate labels and track shipments. 

Top 10 Considerations for Selecting Your EDI Service Provider

To ensure your business is ready for the new year, you’ll want an efficient and reliable EDI service provider. Here are a few considerations to keep in mind when selecting one:

1. What kind of integration is there? Do they support all formats?

A good place to start is to make sure the provider can integrate with all the software you’re using. Finding an EDI service provider that uses an Application Programming Interface (API) for integration is recommended to make it easier to connect with your existing systems. 

Integrated solutions are important because they can automate processes and make it easier to manage data. 

2. Are they industry-agnostic?

Your EDI provider should not be specific to any one industry. This is because your business might branch out into new markets and you don’t want to change providers. An agnostic provider will also be able to give you a more objective perspective on how best to use EDI in your business and cater to your unique needs. 

3. What deployment models do they use?

There are three main deployment models for EDI: on-premise, cloud-based, and hybrid. On-premise means the EDI software is installed and managed on your company’s servers. Cloud-based solutions are hosted by the provider and accessed through the internet. 

Hybrid deployments use a combination of both on-premise and cloud-based resources. The best option for you will depend on your company’s size and needs, budget, and IT infrastructure.

4. How long do they take to implement EDI?

Time to implementation is important, as you don’t want your business to be disrupted for too long. A good provider can give you a timeline for implementation and stick to it. As EDI can be difficult to set up, it’s important to ensure your provider has a good track record with other clients. 

5. Do they have an industry understanding in which you operate? 

You should ensure that the provider you choose has a good understanding of your industry and your company’s specific needs. This way, they can help you select the best EDI software for your business and ensure a smooth transition to using it. 

For example, your provider should be familiar with HIPAA compliance if you’re in the healthcare industry. Or, if you’re in the retail industry, your provider should know about EDI for e-commerce. 

6. Do they have a technological understanding?

You’ll also want to make sure that your provider has a good understanding of the technology you’re using. They should be able to support you and help you troubleshoot any issues you may have. 

Additionally, they should be up-to-date on the latest EDI software and standards so that you can be confident your business is using the best possible solution. 

7. Is it a secure platform? 

EDI data is often sensitive, so it’s important to ensure that your provider has a secure platform. Also, 80% of all cyber breaches happen in the supply chain, and 72% of companies don’t have full visibility into their supply chains. The platform should comply with industry security standards like HIPAA and PCI DSS.

8. Is the solution user-friendly? 

One of the most important things to consider when choosing an EDI service provider is whether or not their solution is user-friendly. After all, you don’t want your employees to waste time figuring out how to use the software. 

A good EDI service provider will offer a solution that is easy to use and comes with training and support so your employees can be up and running quickly.

9. Is the solution scalable?

As your business grows, you’ll want an EDI solution that can scale with you. A good EDI provider will offer a scalable solution so that you can add on features and functionality as needed. This way, you won’t have to switch providers down the road when your business expands.

10. What is the reputation of the partner and support? 

Finally, select an EDI service provider with a good reputation. You can check online reviews and talk to other businesses in your industry to see what they recommend. Additionally, you’ll want to ensure the provider offers good customer support if you have any problems using their software. 

Why choose PartnerLinQ?

As you browse EDI service providers that can offer all of these things, you’ll want to keep PartnerLinQ in mind. We’re a leading provider of EDI solutions and have over 25 years of experience helping businesses with their data exchange needs. With PartnerLinQ, our digital platform for communication with EDI and non-EDI partners, you can take full control of your supply chain.

If you’re ready to take your business to the next level, request a demo today and learn more about PartnerLinQ and how it can help you transform your supply chain ecosystem.

Improving your supply chain efficiency with ERP-integrated EDI

In an environment of ever-changing consumer demand, your retail or manufacturing business needs to leverage every competitive advantage it has at its disposal. Modern global businesses rely on electronic data interchange (EDI) solutions to maximize operational efficiency and maintain market competitiveness.

Businesses use EDI technology to innovate on operational strategy, enhance supply chain management, and improve operational performance. Most large manufacturers and retailers coordinate their operations via EDI, from sending and receiving purchase orders and invoices to advance ship notices (ASNs) and product transfer reports.

So becoming an EDI-capable organization signals to potential trading partners that you are a trustworthy party that uses standards-based supply chain practices, and helps you unlock the door to global trade. However, EDI’s primary advantage lies in the vast improvements in operational efficiency it offers over paper-based processes.

Even though EDI promotes uniformity through the use of communication standards, not all EDI solutions are created equal. Many older EDI systems only use one EDI format and don’t support any modern, non-EDI communication standards. Many of these legacy systems (and even some newer “web EDI” solutions) require users to manually key in information, and may even require them to manually initiate and end the EDI transfer!

Advantages of EDI ERP Integration on a Modern Supply Chain Connectivity Solution

These methods, while better than using paper documents and a courier service, are ancient relics from the 20th century. If your organization still uses this kind of software, you should make it a priority to have it replaced with a supply chain connectivity solution that integrates directly with your ERP software. Here are three ways that an ERP-integrated EDI solution significantly improves efficiency:

Minimal Manual Entry

Direct EDI ERP integration means that you’ll hardly ever need to manually type information to send it to a vendor (or type received information back into your ERP system).

Since all information on your products, pricing, inventory, sales transactions, customers, and deliveries are already stored in your ERP system, you’ll usually be able to select the information you want to send with a few clicks. Then, depending on your operating procedures, you can either transmit that information to the appropriate trading partner right away or add it to a scheduled batch transfer.

More advanced EDI solutions will also confirm that the ERP information that you’re about to send complies with your trading partners’ internal policies for those specific document types. This is definitely much quicker and more convenient than consulting a separate compliance checklist for each vendor every time you transmit information.

By reducing its dependence on manual entry, your organization will spend less time managing information transfers, correcting transcription errors, and running damage control due to the errors you failed to catch in time. You’ll also improve supplier relationships and save a surprising amount of money on EDI chargebacks caused by noncompliant information transfers.

Rapid Partner Onboarding

A well-designed supply chain connectivity solution also improves efficiency by speeding up the onboarding of new trading partners. Instead of requiring days of configuration, modern EDI systems use intelligent field-mapping techniques to automatically reconcile your partners’ data and document formats with your own. The sooner you complete the onboarding process, the sooner you experience the benefits of a digital supply chain connectivity solution.

Agile Decision-Making

A seamless EDI ERP integration also allows you to start using advanced, ERP-integrated analytics tools to gain a better understanding of your trading partners. In the same way that your ERP system’s dynamic dashboards and advanced reporting capabilities provide actionable insights about your organization’s internal processes, they will also begin providing clear, easy-to-understand intelligence on how each of your vendors is performing.

Now you can anticipate and adapt to supply-side changes more quickly. Decision-makers will have access to the information they need to respond to emerging opportunities and challenges in real time.

Industry-leading EDI solution providers like PartnerLinQ provide end-to-end ERP-integrated solutions that drive efficiency by minimizing manual entry, expediting partner onboarding, and enhancing decision-making agility. Contact Us to request a demo.

Why do Most EDI Practices Struggle to Onboard New Trading Partners 

Clearly one of the biggest challenges businesses have with successfully executing an EDI integration strategy is the onboarding of new trading partners. This challenge appears regardless of network or affiliation and whether the solution is an everything-to-everyone VAN or a simple service.  

The fact is that most Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) solutions including those recommended by a partner, an ERP provider, or a marketplace are still onboarding trading partners the same way as they’ve been doing for years; and if nothing changes in the practice, then nothing changes in the process and the same issues persist. 

Why is that? 

Many initiate the painful and often disappointing cycle of partner onboarding with their legacy product driven by internal needs. EDI service providers, in many instances, possess multiple legacy products and a pressing need to market an updated product or service subscription. The initial internal conflict within the service organization makes these providers slow to respond to requests for new trading partner requests  

Additionally, they are often less inclined to deviate from established procedures, hindering much-needed changes to their practices. It is worth noting that at this stage, the practice is inundated with new and inexperienced resources. This poses challenges in adapting to evolving demands and adopting innovative approaches within the dynamic landscape of EDI.  

Moreover, change is one of those necessary ingredients for survival in an ever-changing world, which includes newer ways of doing things even with legacy products. Much like fashion, change never goes out of style, and without integrating change into legacy or even antiquated platforms or practices, businesses simply cannot respond to modern EDI integration requirements that are needed in the market today. 

Much of this change starts with the ongoing challenge of partner onboarding. The complexity of onboarding new trading partners begins with the EDI solution and how that solution has enabled change from the point where the solution team first encounters that next trading partner. Then there is the issue that companies leveraging EDI with their business partners cause based on a reluctance to provide precise directions by way of EDI specification documentation or samples in a sort of public forum.  

Maybe companies do not know what their trading partner profile looks like or how to demonstrate it or just maybe they have never gotten around to producing or updating their specification document. In any case, keeping important EDI information behind a firewall and away from public view until the point where the opportunity to connect has arrived is certainly counterintuitive to making business work. Whatever happened to giving a partner a heads up? 

Don’t Make Enabling Your Partner Hard: Two Recent War Stories

Here are two recent customer examples that demonstrate how businesses are making it harder than it should be; the first example is an internationally recognized mid-market meal-kit foodservice provider and the second, two well-known fashion and apparel dynasties.  

Pay Attention to Details  

Let us begin with the first with one, an internationally known publicly traded mid-sized foodservice provider. In this example the food service provider’s business partner contacted PartnerLinQ asking how they could connect with them via EDI. As experts in the space, we naturally understood both the transactions and the steps needed to enable the EDI connection, so we set out on the path outlined by our customer’s business partner, which according to their web site, was to contact their EDI solution provider via a posted email address. So, we did just that.  

Four weeks and dozens of emails later PartnerLinQ escalated the latency to our request to the business partner’s sales team, requesting a personal contact to get the ball rolling. During this process we also had to wait for the specification and sample documents to be forwarded to us to confirm, since there were no postings or even publicly displayed documents of any sort, not even an email address. Due to this oversight both our customer, the foodservice provider, and their business partner would not gain any benefit from using EDI for yet another month, further delaying any ROI that could be derived. 

Making it Easier to do Business 

The second example is a well-known German shoe manufacturer, who produces and sells a particular brand of sandals and custom casual shoes known the world over. The problem arose when their business partner, a global footwear company that is home to a diverse portfolio of loved and admired brands and ferocious about fit, encountered an unexpected EDI connection issue more than a year after they switched their EDI systems to a new provider. 

The business partner’s new EDI solution provider in this case was reluctant to fix the problem, even to the point of near refusal in remediating the connection issue. The reason provided was that the remedy fell outside of the classic remediation process. This same EDI solution provider doubled down on their refusal to fix the problem even after when one of the parties introduced options into conversation in an attempt to resolve the issue.  

This impacts my business…how do we fix it? 

While these examples do not necessarily represent how everyone approaches EDI onboarding, best practice stipulates that your team is always responsive to email even when text is not received as intended.  

After all, a global understanding of a ‘global standard’ is rather uncommon knowledge and EDI specifications no matter how precise they come are not proprietary. Many of the largest retailers and suppliers understand both, and make it their business to get connected, and in terms of specifications, make this information public. 

The second part of these stories and the reason for writing this blog post is to help you get over, under and around such obstacles. Keeping your eye on the goal is critical and recognizing obstacles so they can be avoided in the future comes in a close second.  

Things to Consider in selecting a business partner or EDI solution provider  

As you look into your EDI strategy for 2024, below is a list of those obstacles and what you can do to avoid them.  

1. When looking to engage with a new business partner, look at their EDI profile and where they keep their EDI specifications. If these instructions are not clear or you cannot even find them, ask the business partner for their EDI profile or EDI specifications before you start down the engagement path. For a great example of what a good EDI profile looks at Burlington or Macy’s profiles. Bottomline, if a prospective partner is giving you a hard time or is making it difficult to even get this information, you might want to consider putting another partner ahead of them. 
2. When dealing with a business partner whose point of contact is a solution provider causing delays rather than expediting integration, it is advisable to document the incident and the provider involved. This proactive measure is essential not only to address the immediate setback but also to safeguard against selecting them as your EDI solution. By doing so, you can effectively sidestep a significant obstacle on your journey toward achieving your goal. 
3. When you are talking to a new EDI solution provider, the first question they may ask you will be a good indication of what they do. So, if they ask about your volume and not your transactions or where you find issues, it is a good sign that they need to sell a subscription and are not as interested in solving your connectivity issues, or helping you grow your EDI practice as you might think. 
4. When engaging with an EDI solution provider, inquire about their methods for comprehending the unique operations of each trading partner. If their predominant responses revolve around ‘network’ or ‘history,’ it often signifies a dependence on legacy systems rather than fostering a dynamic culture of continuous improvement. For your EDI practice, which demands meticulous attention to detail at this stage of maturity, such a commitment to embracing change becomes crucial. 

Committed to Making it Easy  

These war stories represent just a glimpse into the myriad experiences we have encountered in our journey, each contributing to our ability to diagnose problems effectively and apply best practices. At PartnerLinQ, we are dedicated to simplifying complexities.  

We have been studying our EDI customers and competitors and recognize that digital agility between business partners is what most Multi Enterprise Collaboration Network customers want. Removing friction caused by multiple formats and connections is where we began. Beyond EDI, we’ve added an AS2 solution, an API Layer for Commerce Channel connections and included the ability to connect with a broad ecosystem of Commerce Platforms, Marketplaces, B2B Portals, Social Channels, Credit Cards, and Shipping Solutions  
We are committed to making it easy and if you would like to explore your options with a PartnerLinQ Expert, we are happy to help and there is no obligation. Contact us today! 

EDI is the most widely used structured electronic data exchange between organizations. However, not all EDI solutions are created equal. Instead of operating as stand-alone applications that require manual entry and their own maintenance regime, leading EDI platforms integrate seamlessly with ERP software and other business applications to eliminate manual rekeying and duplication of business information.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a powerful cloud-based ERP solution. A fully integrated EDI solution can extend this power by directly connecting your implementation of Dynamics 365 to your trading partners’ ERP systems. Decision makers need to choose an EDI solution that integrates rapidly with Dynamics 365 and takes full advantage of Dynamics 365’s analytics, workflows, and other productivity-enhancing capabilities.

In this blog post, we’ll consider several factors that are important for effectively integrating your EDI solution with Dynamics 365:

The advantage of native integration

Some EDI solutions are designed to natively integrate with Dynamics 365. If you choose the correct one of these solutions, you don’t have to worry about compatibility or security issues – everything just works. This is the best way to avoid compromises or complications during or after solution implementation.

Choose a reliable integration partner and platform

If you decide to implement an EDI solution that isn’t specifically designed to integrate with Dynamics 365, choose an integration partner that possesses in-depth experience with integrating EDI solutions with Microsoft platforms. Since Dynamics 365 runs on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform, your partner of choice should be familiar with Azure-compatible enterprise application integration (EAI) tools and methodologies. To minimize business risk and avoid future upgrade costs, the integration platform should be highly secure and scalable.

Onboarding new EDI trading partners

In addition to the many security and regulatory concerns associated with transmitting sensitive data between organizations, each business that you partner with usually has its own set of information policies and standards. While integrating your EDI solution with Dynamics 365, make sure that the integration provides enough flexibility to accommodate these partner requirements.

Eliminate manual processes

The ROI of automating EDI processes varies depending on the frequency and importance of your data exchanges with other organizations. If you send or receive just a few documents each month, a fully automatic solution might not deliver enough value to justify the cost of implementation.

While integrating your EDI platform with Dynamics 365 will automate many manual processes, some ancillary processes might continue to be performed manually. Before you go the extra mile and attempt to eliminate these additional steps, define your specific EDI integration goals and determine the value you expect from automating each manual process. This will give you a clear picture of what you stand to gain from end-to-end automation of supply chain communication.

Data accessibility and privacy

If there are regulations or internal policies that prevent you from storing some types of business information in the public cloud, you will have to take this into consideration while planning to integrate your EDI solution with Dynamics 365. Instead of simply using Dynamics 365 or Azure cloud storage, you might have to implement a hybrid solution. These requirements add cost and complexity, so you should be aware of them before you begin integration.

Conclusion

Organizations that prepare a complete roadmap of the EDI integration process are rewarded with faster time to value, lower implementation costs, fewer delays, and higher ROI. For more information on best practices for integrating EDI with Dynamics 365, contact PartnerLinQ for a complimentary consultation.

The holiday season is a time of opportunity and immense pressure, especially for businesses. With sales increasing by at least 30%, impatient consumers expect minimal wait time, partners look at filling immediate service requests, and burdened transportation and logistics cause delays. To top it all off, the employees need a vacation too!

The stakes are immense, with supply chains under stress due to surging demand, material shortages, and global disruptions. From warehouse operations to supply chain system management, skills gaps are affecting efficiency, causing delays, and ultimately impacting the bottom line. A recent survey by MHI revealed that 57% of supply chain executives cite hiring and retaining qualified workers as their biggest challenge—even surpassing material shortages and disruptions.

While technology can fill some of these gaps, it cannot do so alone. Combining innovative solutions and proactive workforce development is essential to alleviating holiday supply chain stress. That’s where PartnerLinQ comes in—a platform designed to transform your supply chain by integrating technology with your team’s capabilities.

Here are some serious facts:

What’s causing the holiday chaos?

1. Labor Shortages Across the Continuum

   • A U.S. Chamber of Commerce analysis found that even if every unemployed person with experience in durable goods manufacturing was employed, only 75% of vacant jobs could be filled.
   • Shortages in critical areas like logistics, warehouse management, and trucking exacerbate delays and inefficiencies.

2. Increased Pressure from Demand Spikes

   • The holiday season amplifies demand across industries, with retail, manufacturing, and distribution hit hardest.
   • Delays in port loading/unloading, stockouts, and shipping bottlenecks cascade downstream to retailers and customers.

3. Manual Processes

   • Despite increasing investment in automation, 70% of supply chain leaders still rely on manual processes, according to Capgemini. This reliance creates inefficiencies and hampers scalability.

Who helps clear the chaos?

PartnerLinQ streamlines supply chain operations, helping businesses like yours tackle holiday season challenges with ease. By simplifying the partner onboarding process through its Common Processing Workflow and exclusive "white glove" onboarding service, PartnerLinQ ensures rapid integration at the speed of business. With its intuitive Business Rule Manager, the platform facilitated the migration of over 1,000 partners and customers in just 12 weeks, demonstrating its swift and efficient integration capability.

Built on a scalable Azure-based hybrid cloud architecture, PartnerLinQ handles transaction volumes that ensure clients like a leading American transport and logistics company can process nearly 800,000 daily transactions—double their current requirements. This scalability empowers the company’s expanding carrier network without compromising performance. 

PartnerLinQ simplifies IT infrastructure by seamlessly integrating with legacy systems and new TMS platforms. It eliminates extra licensing and enables greater operational efficiency through real-time updates and actionable insights.

Enhanced visibility enables clients to deliver consistent customer value at every touchpoint. Armed with service-level improvements, accelerated onboarding, and a better customer experience, our clients confidently continue to meet their service-level commitments, ensuring a smooth and stress-free holiday supply chain operation.

This is what PartnerLinQ does:

• Mitigate Labor Shortages: Automate 60-80% of repetitive supply chain tasks to maximize workforce productivity.
• Improve Efficiency: Reduce operational delays by up to 30% with AI-driven optimization.
• Scalability: Handle surges in demand during the holiday season without compromising speed or quality.
• Resiliency: Proactively address disruptions, minimizing their impact on downstream operations.

Time to Enjoy: Include PartnerLinQ as Your Holiday Lifeline

The holiday season doesn’t have to be synonymous with supply chain headaches. PartnerLinQ offers a comprehensive solution to navigate labor shortages, demand spikes, and operational bottlenecks by combining advanced automation with workforce enablement.

As the MHI report highlights, 74% of supply chain executives are increasing technology investments, and PartnerLinQ ensures that every dollar spent delivers measurable ROI.

Have I got your attention yet? If not, see how we do it.

In football, a good team chemistry is key to gaining a winning advantage over the opposition. Your opponents, on the other hand, will pull out all the stops to stand in between your team and victory. In such a fast-paced game with continuous movement, the players are in a constant struggle to maintain balance between defence and attack. Communication and collaboration are critical, and separate the champions from mere contenders.

Similarly, the fast-paced business environment demands a lot of movement on and off the field. Just like a champion team, businesses rely on key players and a healthy supply chain. Across procurement, production, distribution, and sales, strong collaboration and clear communication help tackle changing market conditions, thus playing a key role in surpassing customer expectations.

As market complexities increase and customer needs and expectations change, so too does the frequency and severity of supply chain disruptions.

Causes Leading to Supply Chain Disruptions

Here are some causes of supply chain disruptions:

• Unexpected business interruptions
• Raw material and labor shortages
• Transportation network disruptions
• Natural or environmental disasters
• Geopolitical instability
• Telecommunication or electric infrastructure failures
• Cyber-attacks and other disruptions to IT infrastructure and services

The differences between local and global supply chain disruptions can no longer be measured in mere degrees. As your business, like thousands of others, is more interconnected and dependent on trading partners than ever before, global disruptions affect a wide range of business functions and require innovative solutions.

Disruptions Due to the Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc across world economies and the impact was felt by every business, both on the supply and demand side. Factory output slowed or stopped entirely, warehouses and transportation companies operated far below capacity or closed down, and productivity dipped, mirroring a shallow drop in consumer demand.

Some estimates indicated a 20% decline in consumer demand and recovery is expected to take months.

Below, we highlight a few examples of how different business teams were affected by the most recent global supply chain disruptions.

• Suppliers – You need carriers and trucks to get your products to the market. These carriers need to be integrated with your enterprise systems to receive messages such as load tenders. Suddenly your connection is disrupted and getting them re-connected takes time with your present EDI solution – time that you don’t have.
• Retailers – Your stores have been closed and you need 3PL providers to ship your products directly to customers. You have no experience with direct-to-consumer shipments and have no idea where to begin integrating. Everyone you talk to is an expert with their own solution.  But you need to sort this out and integrate several shipments with the factor of time working against you.
• Logistic Services – Your services are in high demand and customers are interested in doing business with you. Your team has been integrating customers one at a time for years without a problem. Now you face an onslaught of new customers. Your team is currently working from home and is unable to integrate them quickly enough.
• Food Service – Restaurants are closed for dine-in and your sales have been impaired. You know that orders are being distributed directly to customers through telephonic ordering and 3PLs. Going direct-to-consumer will work, but you need to get there first.

Consequences of Supply Chain Disruptions

Decrease in Profitability

Supply chain disruptions are more likely than ever to adversely affect the short- and long-term profitability of your business with losses in market share and sales. Are you prepared to capitalize on market demand outside of your normal business operations?

Loss of Productivity

Supply chain disruptions also negatively impact the productivity and utilization of assets. The firm may end up with excess inventory for some products and experience stock-outs and backorders for others. Equipment over-utilization and under-utilization is likely, which could lead to poor asset and inventory performance.

Retailers are taking the brunt of it. With numerous big retail companies closing down their stores, they are struggling to sell out overstocked inventories.  Are you ready to trade quickly with new partners?

Diminishing Customer Loyalty

When customers are unable to get what they want and when they want it, they will go elsewhere. This is exactly what you did when you changed shops to get the goods that you needed for your family. As an outcome, your loyalties may have changed. Different brands, different stores, and different locations have all become part of your normal routine.

Much the same can be said of your customers. Have you been able to provide them with the same level of products and services? Could you scale up to provide new goods and services and gain new customers? If not, what stopped you?

Increase in Costs

Disruptions can increase the costs associated with expediting, premium freight, obsolete inventory, additional transactions, storage and moving, selling, and penalties paid to the customer. Also, the loss of reputation and credibility associated with disruptions may require firms to increase their marketing expenses to reinstate their credibility and reputation. Additionally, raising capital can be more expensive as investors ask for a higher premium to lend to firms whose credibility and reputation is questionable.

Factors Exacerbating the Effects of Global Supply Chain Disruptions

Inefficient Communication

Supply chains change and so do trading partners. So as a product moves from origin to destination, it is increasingly important for all stakeholders to have a digital supply chain connectivity solution that knows where the product is and who has interacted with it.

It becomes increasingly difficult to stay on the same page without a well-planned communication channel. How else would businesses know that best practices and important policies are being followed?

Poor communication leads to untimely deliveries, or worse, deliveries that cannot be made. This leads to a slowdown in other activities, further impacting your customers and your business. The associated costs run far beyond poor customer experience and negative brand recognition and reputation.

Electronic communication through EDI is particularly efficient. Sending load tenders to your carriers faster than your competitor ensures getting your products to market and attending to tomorrow’s pickup. EDI processes automatically create, transform, and transmit transactions as they occur – this is far more efficient than old manual processes involving phone calls and emails, and a walk next door to accommodate.

Slow Response to Technology

In an age where you can order from Amazon, receive an instant response, and get a package the same day, are your processes taking all day? E2E visibility, transparency, and agility all add up to drive a lean and responsive supply stream.

Technological innovations like Big Data and Internet of Things are reported to be crucial to a company’s success story. Do you still rely on error-prone manual processes and is your business slow to respond to rapid technological advancements? Are you facing rising labor costs, retiring workers, older technologies, inefficient service delivery, and reduced transparency?

Consider the case of the frozen food industry in the US. Restocking of frozen food requires refrigerated transport containers called REFERs. When frozen food were flying off the shelves, retailers sought to restock them and in short order. The result was a shortage of refrigerated containers, which impacted the supply chains of other refrigerated products like milk, cheese, and meat. When there are no refrigerated containers available to bring the produce to markets, the supply chain is impacted and so are customers.

EDI is the Answer

Supply chain disruption means (1) you cannot operate at peak efficiency when you interact with your trading partners, and (2) you are unable to act quickly to seize an opportunity or overcome an obstacle when that time comes.

So how can EDI help your supply chain and boost recovery?

Think of it in terms of an off-season transfer by recruiting a new player for your team. A unified supply chain solution helps you address local disruptions as well as widespread ones like that following the COVID-19 outbreak. EDI provides visibility into what your customers want, what your suppliers have to offer, and where your goods are in the middle of uncertainty.

Exchanging business data with trading partners and organizations does not have to be expensive or technically challenging. Many EDI solutions charge by transaction, discouraging smaller partners from establishing critical lines of communication. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

If your current EDI solution fails to scale, has trouble with high volumes, or is becoming sluggish under peak loads, there is another way.

PartnerLinQ: A Unified Supply Chain Solution

PartnerLinQ’s digital supply chain connectivity solution helps you overcome all your challenges related to supply chain disruptions. With the following key features, it is the perfect tool for B2B communication for your EDI and non-EDI trading partners alike:

• Pre-installed and easy to use and maintain
• Simplifies onboarding process with easy configuration and business rules
• Supports robust, multi-user, ‘log in anywhere’ access
• Maintains a wide variety of standards and formats
• Increases throughput by scaling to thousands of transactions per hour
• Supports real-time error detection and ‘fix on the fly‘ remediation
• Provides built-in access to leverage various transport protocols
• Keeps users informed with a real-time dashboard and detailed reports
• Includes an AS2 solution

With PartnerLinQ, it’s all included; there’s nothing else to buy.

Conclusion

When your supply chain runs at peak efficiency, your business operates better and is more likely to overcome supply chain disruptions. An easy-to-use, easy-to-deploy, reliable, secure, and unified supply chain solution will help your supply chain prepare for the next disruption and make sure that you come out on top.

Discover PartnerLinQ and PartnerLinQ will help you discover the value of frictionless EDI. Talk with our experts and see it for yourself.