In today’s rapidly changing retail landscape, the collaboration between retailers and their suppliers has become more critical than ever. This is particularly true for perishables, short product lifecycle merchandise, and a broader range of products. However, these same products also drive traffic, revenue, and margin for retailers, making it imperative for retailers to find a way to offer a wide choice to customers while managing the risks associated with these products.

The COVID crisis forced retailers and CPGs to limit the variety of products to manage supply chain disruptions. As the situation has improved, the race is now to provide customers with a broad selection of products.

This blog outlines everything you need to know about collaborative retail planning and why it’s important for your business growth.

But First, You Need to Know the Cost of Poor Collaboration

The cost of poor collaboration between retailers and their suppliers can be significantly high and manifest in various ways. One of the most significant risks associated with poor collaboration is markdowns or write-offs for perishable items; this can be costly. When retailers and suppliers fail to work together to manage inventory levels, they can end up with excess perishable items they cannot sell before their expiration date. This can result in markdowns, reduced margins, and a negative perception of the brand and product.

Out-of-stock situations can also result from poor collaboration, as retailers and suppliers need to communicate more effectively about inventory levels and demand forecasts. When a product is out of stock, customers may shop elsewhere, resulting in a loss of sales and reduced customer loyalty.

Another challenge associated with poor collaboration is a poor return on inventory investment, which can be especially challenging for retailers during the COVID crisis. Retailers need to track key supply chain metrics like Gross Margin Return on Inventory (GMROI) to understand how well their inventory investments perform. In response to supply chain disruptions, many retailers increased safety stock parameters to ensure that staples like rice and pasta were always available to customers. This has reduced inventory turnover, which can negatively impact the return on capital employed.

Finally, poor collaboration can result in failed promotions, where retailers and suppliers fail to coordinate effectively on promotional pricing, timing, and marketing. This can result in a lack of interest from customers and missed sales opportunities.

So, what is Collaborative Retail Planning?

By definition, “Collaborative retail planning” is a strategic approach that involves retailers and suppliers working together to optimize the entire supply chain. This approach requires significant communication, transparency, and trust between retailers and suppliers. This process allows retailers to make more informed decisions and plan for demand more accurately. It involves sharing critical data between retailers and suppliers, such as sales trends, inventory levels, and marketing strategies. By doing so, both parties can identify areas to improve the supply chain, reduce costs, and increase efficiency.

Collaborative retail planning has been a hot topic in the industry for years, with early conversations dating back to the early 2000s. However, until recently, planning systems have struggled to support meaningful collaboration between retailers and their partners. This has resulted in many legacy systems being unable to meet modern supply chain demands.

Fortunately, advances in supply chain solutions have made it possible for retailers and CPG companies to collaborate effectively and gain end-to-end supply chain visibility. The key to this collaboration is a data-sharing routine that provides real-time visibility into supply and demand signals, allowing both parties to mitigate the bullwhip effect and prevent unexpected changes.

L’Oréal is an excellent example of a company that uses collaborative innovation to its advantage. The annual “Cherry Pack” exhibition offers suppliers a preview of the consumer trends L’Oréal would be working on and asks them to develop packaging solutions in harmony with these trends. The trust-based forum created during the exhibition enabled suppliers to present ideas and products still in development, ultimately accelerating packaging innovation.

Why Should You Care About It?

Effective collaboration between retailers and supply chain partners offers numerous benefits, including the ability to align business objectives, anticipate and prevent potential problems, improve planning accuracy, increase operational efficiency, and reduce inventory throughout the supply chain. According to a McKinsey study, companies that collaborate effectively with their supply chain partners regularly outperform their industry peers, with 2x higher growth and 4.9% more in EBIT.

One of the primary benefits of collaborative retail planning is improved accuracy in demand forecasting. By involving all stakeholders in the planning process, companies can access a wider range of data and insights, leading to more accurate demand forecasting. This can help to reduce overstocking, minimize waste, and increase customer satisfaction. In addition, companies can identify trends and patterns that may not be visible when working in silos, leading to more informed decision-making. 

Another critical advantage of collaborative retail planning is a reduced risk of stockouts. Companies can ensure that products are delivered on time and in the right quantities by working closely with suppliers and logistics providers. This reduces the risk of stockouts, which can negatively impact customer satisfaction and the bottom line. By leveraging collaborative retail planning, companies can have better visibility and control of the entire supply chain ecosystem, from production to delivery, and proactively address any issues. 

Collaborative retail planning helps to increase efficiency by reducing the need for multiple, separate plans. This can increase efficiency, cost savings and improve supplier and retailer relations. When all stakeholders work together towards a common goal, they can identify areas to streamline operations and eliminate redundancies. This can lead to better communication, faster decision-making, and a more efficient supply chain.

Overall, collaborative retail planning is essential for any retailer looking to improve their supply chain. By working closely with their suppliers and partners, retailers can reduce costs, improve forecasting accuracy, and build stronger relationships. This approach can help retailers stay competitive, increase profits, and provide better customer value.

What’s Next?

Collaborating between retailers and their suppliers is essential for managing the risks associated with perishables, short product lifecycle merchandise, and a broad range of products. Retailers must work closely with their suppliers to manage inventory levels, communicate effectively about demand forecasts, and ordinate promotions to meet their customers’ needs and drive revenue and margin growth. By doing so, retailers can stay ahead of the competition and succeed in today’s dynamic retail environment.

PartnerLinQ is a robust supply chain transformation cloud-native platform that helps bring multi-enterprise collaboration with network visualization, intelligent planning and forecasting, and actionable insights. Join PartnerLinQ with Forrester on this upcoming webinar to explore more about collaborative retail planning and how it can help bring supply chain resilience. 

While the Great Disruption had a huge impact on health and daily lives, it also significantly influenced businesses. The largest business disruption in history left in its wake layers of adverse economic and supply chain conditions. Almost overnight, businesses the world over needed to ensure safety while simultaneously protecting their businesses and livelihoods, the latter of which remains under stress from residual disruption.

Businesses have been focusing on quick responses to mobility changes and handling crises, but now, supply chain leaders are shifting their attention to rebuilding for long-term success in the post-disruptive world. They are creating a solid foundation for recovery in the new normal.

Fissures in Manufacturing

The effects of supply chain disruptions have been keenly felt by everyone and by most accounts we are all players in a global supply chain whether directly involved in supply chain activities or not, and the impact of supply chain disruptions manifested in many different ways.

Manufacturing, for instance, is one of those industries, which faced maximum adversity from supply chain disruption . Even today, global manufacturers are facing increasing cost pressures due to shortages in the global workplace due to the initial pandemic outbreak, shutdowns, and reopening. At the same time, they are facing shortages of raw materials, ingredients, components, and packaging.

Excess demand as a result of the global supply chain disruption, continues to impact finished goods with some still hard to find, impacting costs further still. A recent study has revealed that the skills gap in US manufacturing will culminate in 2.1 million unfilled jobs by 2030 and cost the country a staggering $1 trillion. Shortages in the workforce and increasing demand are signs that the disruption exposed a fundamental flaw in the production methodologies that dominated the past 100+ years— lean manufacturing, a process founded in the production of interchangeable parts.

When batch production techniques went “The Toyota Way,” lean manufacturing moved from concept to production and on to rival to batch production methods of years past. The lean approach was well suited to a rapidly growing global economy by doing away with excess inventories and decreasing warehousing expense.  It incentivized diversification and product innovation and boosted shareholder value.

Lean manufacturing rested on an assumption of a settled economy where irregular disruption is impossible, rules always fixed and the sun always shining. The technology evolution in the 90 years since the Japanese automaker decried batch production localized setbacks in lean supply chains kept lean technologies malleable.  The unforeseen supply chain disruption caused an unparalleled interruption of markets, factories, and products. The mandated lockdowns added shipping times and created shortages in labor in all areas of production and transportation. The pursuit of success through “lean” coupled with an unprecedented disruption acutely hurt manufacturing businesses worldwide.

Empty Tables to Empty Plates

There was some realization of hope as restaurants started reopening gradually following the ‘Great Disruption’. Relaxed restrictions meant some businesses were able to restart their takeout business or convert dining services during continuing lockdowns. Following the disruption there was a slight upturn in some geographies, unfortunately for most of us, some of our favorite spots will never return.

Long-standing supply chain pressures continue to affect the recovery phase, like many recoveries, supply chain pressures affect manufacturers, dealers, and consumers. A Reuters report found as many as nine restaurant firms and fast-food chains, including Wendy’s, Subway, and Chipotle  continue dealing with shortages of key ingredients from time to time. The ingredient shortage is indicative of the larger pressures inflicted by the disruption on global supply chains and particularly in transportation resulting in widespread product unavailability. In the absence of visibility and transparency across supply chains, industry insiders expected bottlenecks and shortages to last well into 2022, and they have.

Empty Stores to Empty Shelves

In retail, e-commerce has become a rising star with few retailers immune to stock shortages, supply channel breakdowns, and dramatic changes in consumer behavior, there has been an unprecedented scramble to shore up web store integration. A dichotomy has been observed among retailers, the first group brings in supplies from a wider supplier base, whereas the second group has more specific product requirements, such as department stores, and thus, find it more difficult to move sourcing of supply.  Initially coupled with varying degrees of lockdowns, the separation of the first and second type of e-commerce retail widened at first and became acute in fashion retailing where goods are contracted months ahead of time accounting for both changing styles and transportation.  

During this period Macy’s reported a 14.5% drop in inventory from Q2 2019 due to difficulty obtaining products. The cost of shipping goods quickly became much more expensive, leading to conversion to air freight for luxury goods. Dollar Tree, a US-based discount variety chain found difficulties with freight expenses and supply chain shortages with $185-200 million in freight costs anticipated for the 2021 season even announcing a departure from the pricing model that made their name synonymous with their business strategy. Mitigation of such a variety of factors in a complex web of supply chain activities even now has been difficult and particularly so when coupled with razor-thin margins and a complicated supply chain.

The Road Not Taken

What was once a routine, methodical industry has become chaotic; the supply chain disruption significantly affected transportation and logistics. Increased labor shortages and simultaneous increases in demand and fuel have driven transportation costs up significantly. Globalization has created a neatly demarcated system with production facilities on one side of the planet and consumers in developed markets on the other side. Transportation serves a key role particularly in western societies.

Shipping containers contribute to conundrum, with nearly 25 million in use worldwide, shippers and carriers have container availability and procurement written into their annual agreements, which have strict provisions for non-stop service and/or a minimum number of trips per week. Today, logistics managers negotiate for ship space in the spot market, where daily rates for containers are at the mercy of freight agents and carriers. Even within national borders, companies face hurdles in clearing houses and in dealing with excess demand.  Legacy solutions designed to overcome these obstacles have failed to deliver relief.

Staying Ahead of the Curve – The Value Proposition

PartnerLinQ Multi-Tennant Cloud Platform

A hybrid cloud architecture that ensures local systems can handle even the largest volumes of transactions per month

Simplified IT Infrastructure

PartnerLinQ integrates seamlessly with legacy systems and Multiple Cloud architectures.

Enhanced visibility to Address Pain Points

Real-time insights are key to deliver consistent value to consumer and partners at every touchpoint.

Integration at the Speed of Business

PartnerLinQ simplifies the partner on boarding process through its Common Processing Workflow; complemented by the Business Rule Manager, an entire migration process involving thousands of partners are regularly integrated in months and not years.

About PartnerLinQ

PartnerLinQ is a highly scalable GCP cloud-native multi-tenant multi-geography B2B API & EDI hyper-scalable high SaaS performance platform that integrates natively with partner ecosystem & e-commerce channels with native solution for meeting B2B API & EDI challenges.  Reimagine control, visibility, and transparency across your global supply chain and e-commerce. Unify channels, boost loyalty, gain complete visibility, and accelerate order fulfillment. Manage global supply chains, material planning, package sourcing, and omnichannel retail, drive growth powered by cutting-edge technologies and unlock valuable insights with Visionet products.

About Visionet

Visionet creates value-driven digital transformation tools like PartnerLinQ that digitize business imperatives and scale the highest summits.  Time-tested products for CPG & Retail, Apparel & Footwear, Banking & Financial Services, Insurance, Pharmaceutical, Food & Beverage, manufacturing & Distribution.  

Industry Application

PartnerLinQ creates value-driven digital transformation that digitize business imperatives and scale the highest summits with time-tested products for CPG & Retail, Apparel & Footwear, Banking & Financial Services, Insurance, Pharmaceutical, Food & Beverage, manufacturing & distribution.

Enterprise Connectivity at the Speed of Business

PartnerLinQ is the result of Visionet’s decades long industry expertise and technology leadership. Hosted on the Google Cloud Platform, PartnerLinQ is an innovative, process-centric, easy-to-use B2B API & EDI platform solution that enables API-led, cloud native integrations.  A simplified B2B communication engine that includes EDI, AS2, SFTP and real-time APIs, PartnerLinQ is a fully integrated platform and easily handles both standard and proprietary file-based formats including custom integrations. PartnerLinQ is well suited for retail, e-commerce, wholesale, transportation, 3PL, as well as distribution, digital and analog partner ecosystems helping your team achieve operational efficiency and gain real-time visibility.

Advanced Technology Leadership

The PartnerLinQ & Visionet teams share more than 34 years of experience in providing industry-focused technology, consulting, and development of innovative solutions that drive global supply chain transformation from the factory floor to the consumer’s doorstep. They share vision and a technology practice that includes leveraging the Google Cloud Platform to build, test, deploy, and manage large-scale enterprise solutions for its clients so when the leadership set out to build PartnerLinQ, it made perfect sense to build, test, deploy, and manage the PartnerLinQ integration platform from within the Google Cloud Platform.

The global supply chains are becoming more volatile than ever. Customer expectations are shifting, triggering modern technology adoption for many enterprises. Difficulties in onboarding trading partners further add to the struggle. What are the possible types of EDI solutions to address the matter of exchanging EDI transactions holistically, and do these various types of EDI solutions include other things, such as different types of EDI Transactions? 

An effective Electronic Data Interchange Solution simplifies the exchange of electronic documents among partners through system and app integrations and cultivates collaboration via EDI and non-EDI exchange. As a result, the solution packages and delivers visibility, control, and optimization. In simple terms, it’s a feature-packed solution that enables intelligent decision-making in real-time. While these EDI technology solutions are critical to driving tangible business outcomes, particularly in recent years, the decision process is complex at the same time. This is why parties investigating Electronic Data Interchange Solutions must have a relatively deep understanding of the different types of EDI solutions before investing.

Identifying the Best Electronic Data Interchange System

The best way to develop a sound understanding is to start right from the beginning. EDI solution providers are organizations that offer EDI software and services to companies looking for data exchange services, in short, a solution to assist with the transportation, transformation, and integration of trade. EDI systems, from this perspective, help you seamlessly exchange business documents between your partners by leveraging an EDI solution which could be on-premises or cloud-based. Some are provided as managed, while others are self-service. The solution ensures completeness, data validity, and security.

Before we proceed, it is critical to understand the types of EDI solution providers in the market so that you can identify the best electronic data interchange system.

Types of EDI Solution Providers

There are five types of EDI solution providers offering one or more types of EDI solutions. In addition to services, they also differ in terms of industries and the business size they cater to. Take a look at these to identify which type will work best for your enterprise.

1. EDI Broker

An EDI broker typically provides a comprehensive set of EDI solutions. They offer value-added network (VAN) connections and, at the same time, help companies connect to particular trading partners or networks.  EDI brokers typically do not have their own network; instead, they serve in the capacity of an outsourced EDI staff, typically focusing on one or several industries. They provide everything from data entry to data translation services, ensuring that your EDI documents are transformed from your core systems to that of your partners while adhering to customer requirements and guidelines for various standards. 

An EDI broker ensures that any company and startup, in particular, can easily share EDI documents with their partners without investing a great deal or compromising security. EDI brokers most often assist when a trading partner lacks EDI software of their own, and a few EDI brokers even support non-EDI formats. EDI brokers are typically engaged with the market where revenue is at the lower end of the industry spectrum and are ideal for small companies and startups.  Eventually, these users reach a point where the brokered solution can no longer serve their needs. If your business involves complex integrations hybrid EDI scenarios, EDI brokers may fit your business. If your business is already involved with a brokered type of EDI solution and you are not getting the needed services, you may have outgrown your present solution.

2. Fully Managed Service Provider

Fully Managed service providers offer end-to-end EDI software and/or services just beyond the scope of an EDI broker. They may offer software or cloud-based services and help you translate EDI messages in multiple formats and transform and transfer your data. Their services may be an overreach for some as they are also involved in partner mapping, ERP integration, error handling, and resolutions. 

If you are looking to outsource your entire EDI function and invest your resources in other tasks, this might be a suitable choice for you. If you want to invest in EDI, EDI talent, and do some things yourself, while these service providers may help you achieve your goals, they can also inhibit your growth. While fully managed services work well for many SMEs (Small to medium enterprises), some of the drawbacks of a fully managed service include limited control and visibility. This can lead to unexpected costs and challenges to upgrading to a new ERP, MRP, CRM, WMS, CMS, or TMS.

3. VAN Providers

VAN providers have been around since the inception of EDI. VANs provide secure, outsourced networks that connect organizations with their trading partners across the globe. A value-added network (VAN) can help you securely send and share data with your partners and provide an outsourced network enabling seamless connections between global trading partners. Large enterprises can leverage this type of network to securely transmit documents from their EDI mailbox to a particular trading partner’s EDI mailbox through a service like a post office, but electronically. By enabling a secure network, they simplify communication between cloud-based EDI providers or internal networks using pre-connected connections with trading partners.  

Some EDI VAN providers also offer supplemental services like data backup and recovery, document mapping, compliance, and performance tracking, and have grown largely through acquisition. If your partners are spread across the globe, and you lack needed network capabilities, a VAN service may be helpful to your business. However, VANs were initially developed for large companies and may be costly if your data exchange volume is high or may cause difficulties if your partner’s messaging format varies from yours. While VANs have long claimed to have a competitive advantage by way of their networks, the supply chain today is full of complexities, something that cannot possibly be resolved by way of a single network.

4. EDI AS2 Providers

Breaking away from the traditional VAN providers are the AS2 Providers.  EDI AS2 (Applicability Statement 2) providers allow for the secure transmission of various types of data, such as EDI and XML, over the internet using HTTP and TCP/IP. AS2 can also be used to transmit images and complete PDF documents, something a traditional VAN is unprepared to do. Among these variations today associated with conventional EDI, these AS2 services are widely used to ensure seamless integration with trading partners, allowing you to handle any file format.  

AS2 providers are typically an addition to a VAN, managed service provider, or brokered EDI relationship. AS2 services require message disposition/delivery notifications that acknowledge the reception after the electronic message (document or data) transmits to the sender via AS2 protocol. One of the stated benefits of using AS2 over FTP is the message delivery notification or MDN.  Although some may argue that the MDN replaces the Functional Acknowledgement (997), the message delivery notification (MDN) used in AS2 only indicates a message received. In contrast, the Functional Acknowledgement (997) also confirms the delivery of a document, any formatting errors, or data loss.

Enterprises can leverage MDNs using in-house IT resources or through a cloud-based vendor to determine if a partner is struggling to keep up with transaction volumes and adjust accordingly. If you are looking for an EDI solution that ensures an end-to-end process and helps you securely send unlimited data while being kind to your partners and easy on your pockets, AS2 has proven to be a worthwhile investment.

5. Complete EDI Solution/Providers

A complete EDI solution/provider is the type of EDI solution provider that develops, implements and maintains EDI software for your business and businesses like yours. This is the type of EDI solution capable of bringing to bear many or all of the solutions described above by catering to your core business and enabling seamless connectivity visibility, onboarding, and training. A type of EDI solution that provides an EDI platform, EDI solutions, connectivity and interoperability by delivering, for example, a VAN and an AS2 solution from within the core of the product or platform.  

Enterprises employing such EDI tools can use their own EDI experts to manage day-to-day activities efficiently. Even activities such as error tracking, handling, and alerting can also be automated with a complete EDI solution.  This EDI solution considers integration with one or more platforms or systems, once relegated to custom code as ‘out of the box’, in other words, included with the platform. This EDI solution provider also tends to keep their solutions up to date and improve upon them by regularly updating these platforms, their customers’ instances and keeping their users informed.  

Complete EDI Solutions/Providers also include and deliver training to ensure that your EDI experts stay current with the latest technologies and can use them to deliver critical or time-sensitive transactions across your partners and networks efficiently and without errors. If you are looking for or are expecting to have or maintain complete control and visibility over your entire set of B2B, B2C messaging and/or your API/EDI practice, then a Complete EDI Solution/Provider might be a good fit for you.

PartnerLinQ by Visionet: Enterprise Connectivity at the Speed of Business

PartnerLinQ is an innovative, cloud-native platform that delivers supply chain visibility and resilience by simplifying trading partner connectivity and interoperability. PartnerLinQ’s native app ecosystem adds business context to the traditional integration, minimizing disruption by increasing set-up velocity and improving implementation speed resulting in overall efficiency gains between 30 and 500%.  

PartnerLinQ comes completely preconfigured and installed with capabilities for intelligent hyper-automation, multi-channel integration, and real-time analytics while allowing your team to take control if that’s what they want to do.  It seamlessly connects multi-tier supply chain networks, channels, and marketplaces with your core ERP, MRP, CRM, WMS, CMS, or TMS, delivering unified connectivity to a global client base. PartnerLinQ connects with more than 77 Commerce Platforms, Market Places, B2B Portals, Social Channels, enterprise-level systems and shipping solutions today, so you are ready for today and the future.

– Integration at the Speed of Business

PartnerLinQ simplifies the partner onboarding process through its Common Processing Workflow. Complemented by the Business Rule Manager, an entire migration process involving more than 1,000 partners and customers can be completed in weeks rather than months or years. 

– Scale in Transaction Volume

The PartnerLinQ platform scales automatically from transactions number in the hundreds to more than 60 million transactions. It is available in PartnerLinQ’s Azure-based hybrid cloud architecture and in the Google Cloud Platform, managing more than 8,000,000 transactions per day – nearly twice any required capacity.

– Simplified IT Infrastructure

It integrates seamlessly with your core ERP, MRP, CRM, WMS, CMS, TMS, or legacy systems, as well as Commerce Platforms, Market Places, B2B Portals, Social Channels, enterprise-level systems and shipping solutions to ensure that you are better positioned to drive even greater efficiencies with cooperative technologies, that provide real-time updates and actionable insights.

– Enhanced Visibility to Address Pain Points

Real-time insights are critical for today’s supply chain executives, and PartnerLinQ delivers consistent customer value at every touchpoint. PartnerLinQ’s biggest success comes with its ability to turn falling service ratings into top scores with the biggest clients by providing greater visibility into the operations and the ability to consistently deliver on service-level commitments.

For more information, visit our website.

Raw materials are not only the building blocks of any product we consume but also the starting point. From consumer electronics to food products, manufacturers are involved in procuring, shipping, and storing massive volumes of raw material every day. This makes ensuring adequate supply and efficient management of raw materials critical for all companies involved in the production of goods. Moreover, raw materials are often an investment that affects cash flow as raw material costs have soared in recent months.  Listed as an asset on a company’s balance sheet, soaring costs often mean increased value even during a decline in sales.

Over the last few decades, product companies have been expanding their sourcing networks for cost optimization, looking to strike the best deals in terms of material and logistics costs. This, in turn, has led to increasingly complex supply chains for raw materials filled with single producers of raw goods and strategic partnerships. However, following the disruptions brought about by COVID-19, manufacturers face increasing “cost pressures”, primarily due to shortages in the global workforce. At the same time, they are facing a scarcity of raw materials and, in particular, ingredients. This has led to increased complexities in the supply chains.

Such complexities can easily disturb the delicate balance between supply and demand if not effectively managed. Overstocks, understocks, and product quality and compliance issues can add even more complexities to transportation and warehousing and disrupt the production process. Many smaller producers lack adequate cash flows and reserve capacity to recover from these challenges despite higher company value.

Issues to Address

Working with our clients, many of them are product companies, we have identified the following key issues impacting the supply chain of their raw materials:

– Cost

A raw material supply chain incurs several layers of cost related to energy, transportation and communication, logistics, labor, and even the adoption of newer technologies. While controlling operating costs is often a continuous challenge, a company cost management model can often be short-term and functionally focused. Therefore, optimizing supply chain costs demands greater insight. Through insight, companies can develop analysis models that align with their business values, functional outcomes, and long-term business valuation.

– Visibility

Traceability and transparency are essential in minimizing raw material safety and compliance issues, and visibility is the first step in that process. Companies need the ability to trace materials from the point of manufacture through their entire journey to the point of delivery. Whether inbound or outbound transactions and product flow, it is no longer ‘safe’ to use an age-old “one up / one down” methodology for tracking trade goods. Additionally, consumers are becoming increasingly curious about where their ingredients come from. So, accurate and real-time information from every node across the network can help enhance your brand value and increase customer loyalty. On the other hand, a lack of visibility exposes a company to undue risk and expenses.

– Communication

Fragmented information and a lack of communication leave parties in the supply network without visibility into each other’s actions, leading to inefficiency. A trade relationship lacking collaboration will surely escalate supply chain problems, particularly as markets and raw material networks expand.

Many challenges in supply chain management and raw material partner networks are traceable to outdated systems and processes that depend on traditional paper tracking, manual inspection, and black box integrations lacking adequate reporting systems. Although short linear supply chains can be optimized using spreadsheets or siloed software, modern material partner networks are more complex, involving complicated business relations. Such network complexities include packaging and process materials, which are better served by integrated supply chain solutions that avoid mass customization.

Digital Solutions to Manage Risk

As the ‘Great Disruption’ continues, markets remain volatile. Fluctuating material prices and logistical disruptions due to lockdowns continue to affect the global supply of raw materials. Also, quarantine requirements continue to affect the manufacture of raw materials and finished goods. This raises the urgency for industry leaders to take a more innovative approach to raw material supply chain management. It comprises improvements in forecasting, flexibility, transparency, and increased visibility to capitalize on the new normal.

Industry leaders need to use such forecasts effectively to plan and minimize the impact of volatilities in day-to-day operations. Additionally, leverage a solution that drives down costs and provides a competitive edge via end-to-end supply chain visibility, gaining more stability. 

Modern supply chain solutions can go a long way in formalizing and optimizing raw materials inventory and management.

Key Data Management Capabilities for Inventory Control

A supply chain solution that seamlessly integrates with data management technologies makes a business more efficient and less vulnerable to uncertainty. Advanced data management helps you to optimize inventory control through the following key capabilities:

– Functional Collaboration:

Maintains a consistent flow of information and insights across raw material partner networks, concerned departments, and business functions within the organization.

– Centralized Data Management:

Removes the need to maintain multiple integrations, bringing historical data, open orders, and shipping and invoice data into one unified digital connectivity, integration platform, and transaction processing model.

– Advanced Analytics:

Generate reporting based on real-time transaction processing to enable real-time and data-driven decision-making.

– Forecasting:

Combines data contained by the unified digital connectivity and integration platform and transaction processing model with improvements in visibility to reduce inventory spikes and shortages.

– Financial Planning:

Delivers visibility to your team so they may allocate funds to functions like procurement, processing, and production in time to ensure the quality and timely delivery of your products.

Although supply chain leaders understand the need for streamlined processes related to raw material management, they have had to rely on historical data or educated guesses to forecast future raw material demand for too long. However, data-driven forecasting resulting from functional collaboration and a unified digital platform eliminates waste, improves efficiency, and ensures the on-time delivery of quality products while reducing overall inventory costs.

That’s not all. Organizations with such a data-driven, analytical approach to collaboration can stay more informed while keeping an eye on raw material inventory and gaining significant competitive and cost advantages.

PartnerLinQ by Visionet: Digital Agility at the Speed of Business

PartnerLinQ is a hosted integration platform for EDI, B2B, and API integration; and is the flagship product of Visionet’s industry expertise and technology leadership. The PartnerLinQ team at Visionet has 25 years of experience providing industry-focused technology, consulting, and innovative solutions that drive global supply chain transformation from the factory to the end consumer.

PartnerLinQ is an innovative, process-centric, easy-to-use EDI solution that enables API-led, cloud-native integrations. It includes a simplified B2B communication engine that combines EDI, AS2, SFTP, and real-time APIs and easily handles proprietary file-based formats and custom integrations. With its overarching capabilities, PartnerLinQ is well suited for retail, e-commerce, wholesale, transportation, 3PL, distribution, and digital and analog partner ecosystems, helping your team achieve operational efficiency and gain real-time visibility.

Visionet, a Microsoft Gold Partner, leverages Microsoft Azure for the PartnerLinQ platform.  The PartnerLinQ platform can process thousands of transactions simultaneously across a variety of transfer protocols. Moreover, it transforms X12, XML, Flat Files, CSV, IDocs, and custom formats and can integrate them into more than 74 ERP, WMS, and TMS systems.

Along with its job scheduling and batch job capabilities, PartnerLinQ’s ability to manage increased transaction volume means the entirety of the business workflow is much easier to manage than the black box integrations of yesteryear. Additionally, by optimizing its business rules engine, an extensive library, and ERP integration, PartnerLinQ enables easy partner onboarding, simplified configuration, and access to visual data mappings.

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 2023.

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.

According to statistics, the global EDI software market size is estimated to reach a whopping $4.04 billion by 2029, compared to $1.88 billion in 2022.

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 timeconsuming 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.

What is EDI- Electronic Data Interchange Solution?

EDI is a simple electronic format that replaces paper-based documents and is used for intercompany communication in the standard form. Information sharing might occur within an organization or with third-party organizations or business partners.

The EDI solutions focus on providing quick and accurate data interchange and using existing EDI solutions that can help optimize your supply chain operations.

EDI Solution: Why is it needed? 

There are several supply-chain issues that you might face as a business owner. These include inaccuracies in calculation and unwanted system delays. There’s also a chance of business transactions that may be paper-dependent.

More companies have increased digital platform use, and the demand for instant information has increased. The transactions done manually may only sometimes be ideal to meet this requirement. Fortunately, EDI can help you here.

EDI Solution vs. Non-EDI Solution

Understanding the difference between EDI and Non-EDI solutions can impact how your business operates and scales. Here’s a comprehensive understanding of the fundamental differences between the two.

Speed of the Process Cycle

The process order cycle is tiring and can impact your business’s overall efficiency. The process might involve multiple departments of the company. The efficiency of these systems determines how much time it takes for supplier payments. Therefore, a shorter and more efficient order system is the key to long-term business success.

A stand-alone EDI or a non-integrated one doesn’t operate according to the ERP system. Therefore, there’s higher manual-handling involved compared to an integrated EDI. It contributes to a lengthy purchase cycle and makes it more challenging. On the contrary, the integrated EDI connects your ERP systems (internally) and automates the purchase cycle.

Responsiveness of the System

Today, multiple internal and external business parties stay connected for commerce-related tasks. The link has made communication transparent and increased the process’s complexity. Fortunately, an integrated EDI can adjust to this complexity.

The separate EDI may not operate appropriately with ERP systems, which makes it challenging to maintain buying and selling speeds. The integrated ERP has excellent responsiveness and can handle multiple trading partners and payments simultaneously with minimal human interference.

Process Accuracy

The accuracy of procedures determines the long-term survival and profit of companies. A simple error in this calculation can negatively affect the third-party and external processes within your business. It will impact your vendor relationship and business reputation in the industry.

A stand-alone EDI may not be the best choice in these circumstances because there’s a higher possibility of errors. Apart from that, there may not be proper communication with the other ERP applications. This miscommunication can lead to substantial data loss.

The integrated EDIs can substantially increase the accuracy of the process used in the purchase. The integrated EDI systems can manage the systems and form proper communication with other ERP processes without a problem.

Process and Staff Productivity

Process efficiency impacts the productivity of the staff and directly impacts the business profit margin. EDI software is the best-suited option for businesses that wish to improve team and process efficiency for maximum ROI.

The stand-alone EDIs require training to monitor the purchase process and supervise the complete steps. The other EDIs automate and integrate the systems, allowing the teams to focus on significant tasks.

Thus, integrated EDI can boost the overall efficiency and productivity of the process and the team involved in the business. Moreover, the higher volume of purchase orders in a non-integrated EDI is much less than the integrated one.

Processing Costs

The purchase order business requires a lot of expenses, impacting the profit potential of the business model. It is true that some of these expenses must remain the same, as you cannot reduce or change them. However, with improvements and efficiency, you can change processing costs.

For instance, the right EDI system can cut labor costs by avoiding the supervision of teams. It also allows business owners to reduce the payment cycles and complete vendor payments on time.

Thus, this little EDI system change saves the business from facing chargebacks. Moreover, it lets them avail special discounts by vendors on an early payment. The stand-alone EDI may not consistently have the same efficient results.

Implementation

The time required by a business for the implementation process and the procedure complexity or challenge determines the cost of implementation. A well-crafted business process involves planning and addressing issues and prerequisites for formal implementations.

The integrated EDI software can connect to multiple internal and external applications and optimize the process. However, this option may be challenging to incorporate into your business.

Thus, you may need more time and resources to implement the integrated EDIs over non-integrated EDI ones.

EDI Service Providers: How to Decide?

The EDI technology may have more costs and need more time for incorporation, but it can offer benefits in the long term. Business owners may not get these benefits with the non-integrated EDI technology.

The integrated EDI is more flexible and can be scaled to match your organizational growth.

How can Electronic Data Interchange Providers help?

Integrated EDI solutions increase the efficiency and productivity of your business. They offer the best alternatives for better data sharing and management.

They can also help improve processing costs, increase staff productivity, and offer greater process accuracy. With the inclusion of integrated EDI systems, your business is likely to grow, better and faster.

If you are dealing with problems in supply chain management, a professional services provider can help you optimize the overall experience. PartnerLinQ could be the answer to your problems. PartnerLinQ has been serving the supply chain industry for many years and can give you valuable insights into everything about supply chain.

The Key Elements of Making Your Supply Chain Ecosystem More Resilient

Global disruptions have caused supply chains to undergo extensive and unprecedented changes. Since the onset of the pandemic, Gartner’s research shows that only 21 percent of supply network leaders believe their process is highly resilient. In addition, McKinsey & Company found that the majority of companies that experienced issues through the COVID-19 crisis are now ramping up their use of modern digital tools, such as advanced analytics.

From shortages in both products and people, traditional business models are left to face the new challenges spurred on by the pandemic. To combat these issues, businesses must bring their strategies into the digital age where cutting-edge technology and tools are available to streamline operations, create heightened visibility and ignite execution speed.

Through digital advancements, companies have transparency into each link in their supply ecosystem and can minimize risks by analyzing data in real-time. Overall, the modern process allows organizations to gain a holistic view while monitoring each component in the chain. In fact, the modern network is shifting from a supply chain to a supply web of interconnected elements versus a single linear system.

Resilient modern logistics management serves as the driving force of business growth through end-to-end integration, clear visibility, and speed of execution.

Integration

Expanding partnerships is critical for businesses to improve their operations and maximize productivity. Businesses gain a competitive edge through intensified collaboration with suppliers and customers while addressing the disconnect, which is primarily attributed to ineffective or outdated technology. Leveraging partnerships with software solution providers is essential to acquiring up-to-date tools, from hybrid cloud applications to artificial intelligence (AI) solutions.

With a tech solution that supports a unified digital supply chain, businesses are set to scale and prepared with better resilience and agility tools to set them up for success in the face of disruptions. Improving integration will lower costs, reduce waste, improve customer experience, and provide a comprehensive view of the business to guide improvements and changes thoughtfully.

Visibility

To remain agile and predictive during network disruptions, businesses must maintain full visibility and move away from outdated legacy operations that do not provide end-to-end visibility. This has become a common top priority, as 70 percent of companies are focusing on improving logistics visibility, and 80 percent strive to be more agile, according to International Data Corporation’s 2020 Global Supply Chain Survey. With intelligence capabilities to assess what is happening in real-time, companies can respond quickly to findings. Achieving complete visibility requires a hyper-automated solution.

PartnerLinQ by Visionet offers a proprietary supply chain solution that allows complete transparency, error handling, automation, and analytics. With a modern day, fully visible digital connectivity solution, companies can reduce costs and streamline operations. When businesses remove the need to make manual transaction adjustments, they can rely on automation that brings ease and visibility to the entire ecosystem.

Speed

Speed of execution is crucial for business leaders to remain agile and adaptive to changing market conditions while upholding sustainable business practices. Investing in the appropriate technologies for a modern-day logistics strategy is key, but it’s vital to implement these updates fast enough to be prepared for disruptions. With supply network disruptions consistently occurring, businesses must make a rapid digital transformation through resilient tools and platforms to ensure efficiencies.

Cross-enterprise digitization is imperative as goods are continually moving along the chain faster than the information on them. From design to manufacturing, data must flow in real time to continue the overall flow of the supply ecosystem. With zero-latency visibility and integrated systems, companies can meet the speed of execution standards. Essentially, each aspect works together to create a successful process.

True digital transformation is necessary to cultivate fully integrated, visible, and quickly executed modern-day supply chains. With a number of disruptive challenges, it’s crucial that businesses rely on third-party, end-to-end cloud solutions to improve integration for long-term success. While the buzzwords of digitization and transformation are becoming commonplace in business logistics discussions, the uniting factor is time. Cracks in supply operations, outdated systems, and recovering from disruptions are all common challenges that cost businesses valuable time.

To discover the latest expertise and practical tips on how top organizations are achieving a more agile, seamlessly integrated system, please watch this insightful session on Building Your Supply Chain Network. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rhrGf7oZEw 

Join Ahmed Raza, Vice President – Head of Product Engineering and Strategy of PartnerLinQ by Visionet, and featured speaker George Lawrie, Vice President and Principal Analyst of Forrester, to learn more about the dynamics of the modern-day network and the related challenges.

If you’re unable to attend the live webinar, follow this link to schedule a demonstration of how PartnerLinQ can help your organization achieve complete visibility.

Identifying and Mitigating Supply Chain Pain Points

Supply chain disruptions are inevitable. Eventually, a problem will arise that threatens to create costly delays and unhappy customers. Fortunately, it is possible to take steps to ensure goods move along even the most complex global supply chains without interruption. Gaining this ability to pre-mitigate issues before they arise requires identifying and constantly monitoring common supply chain pain points for any red flags.

Perfect order rate, a measurement of a company’s ability to fulfill orders on time and free of errors, is one important KPI to consider when measuring the viability of supply chain management. It accounts for variables such as when an order leaves the warehouse, whether it contains the correct quantity and quality of items, whether the customer receives it on time, and if there are any issues involving returns or payment. Although it’s simple math: subtract the failed orders from the perfect orders, but in reality, several factors can make measurement difficult. The customer may not provide feedback, so the company doesn’t learn about a failed order until after the customer files an official complaint or makes a return. Another common challenge is a lack of data sharing among supply chain partners, which hinders supply chain visibility.

Other KPIs to monitor include:

• Cash-to-cash time cycle measures the time between when the company pays its suppliers and when it receives money from its customers. It examines three key factors: days of inventory (DOI), days of payables (DOP), and days of receivables (DOR) to determine the amount of cash the company requires to fund its day-to-day business operations.
• Supply chain cycle time determines how long it will take for a supply chain to fulfill an order if it runs out of stock by measuring the total time to produce, package, and deliver the product. The shorter the time, the more agile, flexible, and resilient the supply chain becomes.
• Inventory turnover is based onhow many times the company sells its entire inventory within a specific period (e.g., per month, quarter, or year). The lower the number, the weaker the sales and revenue generation.

One of the most common factors that negatively affect these and other supply chain health KPIs is a lack of data that companies need to achieve complete real-time visibility over their entire supply chain. Consider the hypothetical example of a single shipment that must pass through more than 2000 interactions with suppliers and partners as it moves from source to final destination because a single blind spot can inevitably lead to unexpected disruptions. These can range from a supplier filing for bankruptcy or a dockworker strike to natural occurrences like weather-related events or, as the world learned the hard way, a global pandemic to geopolitical events.

Data empowers supply chain visibility. Without it, an organization cannot gather accurate insights into its global operations and be proactive in identifying and addressing problems before they turn into  severe disruptions. That’s why ARC Advisory Group predicts rising demand for technologies that enable companies to identify and respond quickly to supply chain issues and foster tighter collaboration with supply chain partners.

Businesses can utilize digital supply chain connectivity with solutions like PartnerLinQ by Visionet to gain full supply chain visibility. PartnerLinQ’s innovative capabilities, including intelligent automation, multi-channel integration, and real-time analytics seamlessly connect multi-tier supply chain networks and channels, marketplaces, and core systems worldwide to deliver unified connectivity. To learn more about how PartnerLinQ can help your organization achieve complete supply chain visibility, please visit our website.

Keeping a Check on the Growing Complexity of Your Supply Chain

The Coronavirus pandemic is not unique in its ability to severely disrupt the world’s supply chains. The time is now for chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) and supply chain executives to prepare for future events like trade disputes, cyberattacks, natural disasters, and global health emergencies. That begins with gaining full visibility over their supply chains, although that’s easier said than done given how complex supply chains have become.

The increasing complexity of supply chains is not a short-lived trend that will disappear once the world recovers from the pandemic. According to Gartner, supply chains have always been complex — with thousands of suppliers, partners, and products spanning a footprint that includes hundreds of sites and markets. Put simply, complexity keeps growing — supply chains add but rarely subtract it. 

Understanding the Future of Supply Chain

More than 50 percent of supply chain leaders Gartner surveyed expect complexity to increase over the next five years in most aspects of the operating model (e.g., equipment, projects changing design, business models, business partners), wreaking havoc on costs, risk, reliability, service level, customer satisfaction, and the ability to implement change. 

CSCOs face the constant threat of major supply chain disruptions as their companies adjust (or overhaul) their pre-pandemic business models and continue adding new suppliers, intermediaries, and sales channels to their B2B value chains. Achieving full supply chain visibility will enable them to proactively identify and mitigate potential disruptions.

Increasing visibility begins by improving communications among all transportation service and logistics providers (TSLs). For starters, transaction formats vary among partners and transactions; there is a wide array of variations across ocean freight, intermodal rail transportation, 3PL breakbulk operations, truckload and LTL carriers, warehouse operations, and ‘last mile.’ Truckload and LTL may appear similar, but they are far from aligned. Ocean, rail, and intermodal transportation are just as disparate, and there are huge differences between 3PL, 4PL, and direct-to-consumer (D2C), yet they often work together. However, since enterprise-level systems in these transportation service areas are just as specialized, collaboration on a common platform is untenable. 

TSLs who use multiple electronic data interchange (EDI) solutions are particularly vulnerable. Multiple EDI solutions mean more complications, more upgrades, and more interruptions. It also means spending less time concentrating on the tasks that are currently being performed and more time and resources on applications, cross-training, and “backup” planning in order to maintain consistent outcomes and increase productivity. The flow of event information across various partnerships becomes uneven and collaboration is challenging. The result is a tedious and seldom integrated partner-to-partner relationship that is too dependent on human intervention.

Perhaps nowhere is the impact of these issues more evident than on the rows of empty supermarket shelves. The baby formula shortage making news headlines is just the latest example of the many necessities like meat, eggs, dairy, and paper products that have been in short supply for more than two years. Constrained warehousing and severe driver/trucking shortages have manufacturers struggling to meet demand, which drives up costs, particularly for retailers who lack supply chain visibility and resiliency. 

Increased Visibility in Action

For example, a leading American baking company that has provided its signature line of flours to retailers, commercial bakeries, and food service companies, recognized the threat the pandemic represented to its vast network of farmers, millers, and distribution partners. It implemented PartnerLinQ to process transactions faster and more efficiently and gain the ability to identify, troubleshoot, and resolve any errors that could disrupt communications and operations.

PartnerLinQ by Visionet is a digital supply chain connectivity solution with a host of innovative capabilities that seamlessly connect multi-tier supply chain networks, channels, marketplaces, and core systems worldwide to deliver unified connectivity for the future. With capabilities for intelligent automation, multi-channel integration, and real-time analytics, PartnerLinQ is the epitome of Visionet’s mission to meet the essentiality of connectivity, visibility, transparency, and resilience in today’s supply chains worldwide.

Additionally, PartnerLinQ’s detailed reporting capabilities allow the company to track key performance indicator (KPI) metrics and other data and better understand transaction messages, message types, and performance volumes.

Today, the company can handle hundreds of thousands of transactions per day – nearly double the required capacity and is much better positioned to drive even greater efficiencies and adapt to the unexpected with cooperative technologies that provide real-time updates and actionable insights.

Further Insight into Future-Ready Solutions

Next month, CSCOs and supply chain executives from all over the world will convene in Orlando, Fla., for Gartner® Supply Chain Symposium/Xpo™ 2022 – the year’s largest event dedicated to helping supply chain leaders prepare for disruption, enable digital transformation and build sustainability as a competitive advantage. On Monday, June 6, Ahmed Raza, Vice President – Head of Product Engineering and Strategy at PartnerLinQ by Visionet, will lead a presentation on how to identify and understand growing supply chain challenges and outline effective and proven strategies that can help any business keep their growing supply chains in check while providing end-to-end visibility and complete control.

Attendees are invited to visit our booth (Booth # 109) and speak with our executive team about exciting new trends and solutions. In addition, we hope you’ll join us for a special 45-minute roundtable discussion on Tuesday, June 7 with Deepak Das, Senior Vice President – Digital Transformation at Visionet, on “Achieving Complete Visibility of a Supply Chain.”

Whether or not you plan to attend the Gartner event, you can follow this link to download our whitepaper, “Supply chain visibility: An imperative for transportation service providers” and contact us to schedule a demonstration of how PartnerLinQ can help your organization achieve full supply chain visibility.

How to Achieve Complete Visibility of Your Global Supply Chain

If you feel like your company faces an unending series of supply chain disruptions, you’re not alone. 68% of supply chain executives Gartner surveyed report that they have been constantly responding to high-impact disruptions over the last three years — and most of them did not have time to recover before the next disruptive event hit them.

Achieving end-to-end visibility over your company’s supply chain must be a top priority for 2022. Success requires gaining the ability to capture and analyze data in real-time to execute decisions more quickly and effectively.

Translation: stop running supply chain operations on legacy solutions, disparate siloed systems, and outdated business processes like updating spreadsheets. Ingesting real-time operational data from the supply chain ecosystem will significantly improve planning and decision-making processes and execution and make a company more agile and better able to adapt when the next inevitable disruption strikes.

“In 2022 and beyond, chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) must update their vision to account for ongoing and unimagined disruption to global networks, operating models, and stakeholder demands,” says Simon Bailey, senior director analyst at Gartner. “Some of these disruptions are externally driven — such as material shortages, climate-driven disruption, or labor scarcity. Others are driven by the organization’s own digital transformation plans.”

The story of how a $110 million company and secure storage industry leader succeeded in achieving this level of visibility over its complex global supply chain can serve as a lesson to any company striving to improve supply chain resiliency.

The company manufactures a wide range of products from small, portable security cases to large fire and waterproof safes under various brands. A comprehensive analysis of its supply chain revealed that it needed deeper and more automated integration with its trading partners and end-to-end transaction visibility.

Despite operating in a modern Microsoft Dynamics 365 environment, their supply chain solution was not fully integrated with the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system or with the growing direct-to-consumer delivery business, which had grown significantly since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. This forced reliance on several manual processes for collecting and analyzing data, such as orders, invoices, and advanced ship notices (ASNs). The entire direct-to-consumer business lacked visibility, and the electronic data interchange (EDI) solution could not facilitate real-time data sharing. There was no real-time visibility, control, error handling, automation, or analytical capacity.

The company decided to implement PartnerLinQ by Visionet, a digital supply chain connectivity solution with innovative capabilities, including intelligent automation, multi-channel integration, and real-time analytics that seamlessly connect multi-tier supply chain networks and channels, marketplaces, and core systems worldwide to deliver unified connectivity.

A critical factor in selecting PartnerLinQ was that it delivers a proprietary supply chain app ecosystem with EDI, B2B, and API management solution for Dynamics 365 that address the need for visibility, control, error handling, automation, and analytics. The PartnerLinQ platform was able to provide the hyper-automation that the company required, beginning with the direct integration of purchase orders into Dynamics 365. This integration was followed by the implementation of an internet draft security standard (or AS2), which was designed to enable business transactions to move securely over the internet and enable the quick transmission of process data.

PartnerLinQ helped the company achieve complete visibility over its supply chain, significantly reducing costs and streamlining its operations by automating processes, enabling business rules, and the rapid transmission of order-to-cash transaction processing through API and EDI.  PartnerLinQ’s innovative, process-centric approach to automation eliminated the need to make transaction adjustments manually. Tracking document counts, invoices, audits, and overall document lifecycles, became much easier and more visible than ever before. To learn more, follow this link to download the complete case study.

Overcoming the many current and emerging supply chain challenges companies worldwide now face will be top of mind for the hundreds of supply chain executives who will gather in Orlando, Fla., June 6-8 for Gartner® Supply Chain Symposium/Xpo™ 2022 – the year’s largest event dedicated to helping supply chain executives mitigate risk and navigate uncertainty in an increasingly dynamic and challenging environment.

We will be among these industry leaders attending this important event. We’re excited to meet with you in person at our booth (Booth #109) to brief you on how our exciting new solutions can help you improve supply chain resilience and overcome any future disruptions.

Additionally, two of our senior executives will lead interactive educational sessions during the Gartner event:

• Monday, June 6: Ahmed Raza, Vice President – Head of Product Engineering and Strategy at PartnerLinQ by Visionet, will deliver a presentation on identifying and understanding growing supply chain challenges and outline strategies for overcoming them.
• Tuesday, June 7: Deepak Das, Senior Vice President – Digital Transformation at Visionet, will lead a special 45-minute roundtable discussion on “Achieving Complete Visibility of a Supply Chain.”

If you do not plan to make the trip to Orlando, follow this link to schedule a demonstration of how PartnerLinQ can help your organization achieve complete supply chain visibility on a day and time that works best for you.