Visibility helps to transforms the supply chain from a series of isolated steps into connected, transparent processes that help organizations respond quickly to operational challenges and market opportunities.

At a time when supply chains are global and markets are volatile, being able to see and respond to change isn’t just a competitive advantage; it’s a must-have for survival and growth. Trend-spotters are winning the supply chain management game with next generation cloud-based supply chain solutions, while companies throttled by disconnected legacy systems and analytics applications are falling behind quickly.

Without real-time data on inventory levels and supplier capabilities, for example, identifying potential gaps, adjusting sourcing strategies, and tweaking production plans is nothing more than a guessing game. And as we all witnessed during the pandemic, that guessing game can turn into a liability quickly when outside forces take over the supply chain.

Rewind the clock a bit and its clear why supply chains fell prey to the pandemic-driven disruptions. Most business models relied on local production until globalization took hold and organizations started thinking and acting “leaner” when it came to inventory. Concurrently, the patchwork of legacy software systems that most companies relied on became increasingly disconnected and disparate.

Getting Global Supply Chains Back on Track

When the pandemic turned supply chains on end, companies scrambled to reshore and gain better control over these vital networks. It wasn’t enough to just be lean; organizations also had to be resilient. The pendulum swung in the opposite direction as inventories were fattened up and more attention was paid to being able to fulfill orders (versus just keeping inventory costs minimized).

And so, the race was on to improve end-to-end supply chain visibility. However, for most organizations that end goal was out of reach. One of the root problems? Legacy systems that were put in place to support lean supply chains but lacked the flexibility to offer insights for changing demands and requirements due to increased complexity and shifts in global supply chains. These solutions are now ripe for modernization in a world where customers not only expect their orders fast, but they also want to track those orders every step of the way.

PartnerLinQ not only helps companies solve these fundamental problems, but we also help them achieve the visibility goals that were previously out of reach. It starts with a unified data repository that is harmonized for the specific enterprise, and that connects all the systems the company has in place — including those aging, legacy systems that would otherwise create drag in a business environment that demands agile and flexible supply chains.

Companies also need to know that their data is secure, safe, and kept confidential. They don’t want their data residing in a “public” system that’s shared with others. With PartnerLinQ, companies know that their data resides on a private platform and that it’s never treated as public data. This is an important consideration in a world where new cybersecurity threats emerge daily.

An Elastic, Cloud-Native Solution

Because PartnerLinQ is elastic and cloud-native, the infrastructure behind it is both resilient and reliable. It can scale to any level in performance and manage all types of data. That data is both connected and harmonized in a way that ensures near-real-time visibility for business users who need analytics, reports, and dashboards that support good decision-making.

We recently worked with a large transportation company that has about 20,000 trucks along with data scattered across numerous data lakes and stores. Getting reports and analytics for efficient decision-making was nearly impossible — and by the time data was made available, it was too late to do anything meaningful with it. After implementing PartnerLinQ’s platform, the company was able to consolidate and harmonize these data sources with a robust canonical data model. As a result, PartnerLinQ improved the company’s access to critical information for making better decisions with improved reporting and dashboards to enhance its overall supply chain visibility.

This is just one example of how PartnerLinQ’s cloud-based platform helps organizations improve the visibility and efficiency of their supply chains. All these improvements translate into top-line cost savings, better asset utilization, and improved bottom lines. By acting as a conduit between different systems and partners in the supply chain, PartnerLinQ creates a seamless information flow and a clear, reliable snapshot of activity that fosters faster reaction times across these vital networks.

Jawad Khan, CEO & Founder, PartnerLinQ Inc.

Jawad Khan is the founder and CEO of PartnerLinQ. As the innovative force behind PartnerLinQ, Jawad guides the company in reshaping digital connectivity and collaborative intelligence within the extensive supply chain sector. His leadership philosophy is deeply rooted in ensuring that supply chains are not merely reactive but strategically positioned to respond to perpetual shifts in business demands swiftly and efficiently.

Highly configurable technology platforms help companies achieve their visibility goals, collaborate with business partners, and eliminate manual work.  

Most legacy supply chain management platforms currently in place were installed decades ago. These monolithic systems served their purpose, but they haven’t kept up with the demands of the modern supply chain. They’re not configurable, they can’t integrate with third-party applications, and they require a lot of manual intervention. 

The challenges of using legacy systems don’t end there. Updating these platforms with the latest “bells and whistles” is expensive and, in many cases, not even possible. These solutions were built to do everything, which unfortunately means they don’t do any one thing very well.  

As the name suggests, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems may be good financial and operational management tools across a compant, but they weren’t designed to manage the increased complexities of modern global supply chains. That didn’t stop ERP platform solution providers from adding a range of capabilities or otherwise acquiring other solution sets — from transportation management systems (TMS) to warehouse management systems (WMS) to order management systems (OMS) — to their software suites.  

Customers, wanting all-in-one systems, often adopted those functionalities as they were introduced, never evaluating, or considering other options by assuming simplicity with one platform. However, this approach too often results in rigid IT infrastructures for which changing one requirement requires adjusting everything else, too.  

Breaking Down Supply Chain Visibility Barriers 

While cloud ERP systems in the last couple of years have increased, on-premises solutions are still dominant within many organizations. On-premise legacy systems also weren’t designed for external collaboration — something every company needs but not all have. Where a TMS may have been built to connect with external carriers and transportation providers, on-premise WMS was designed to manage what was happening within the four walls of the warehouse.  

The notion of external business partners being able to “see” one another’s inventory positions, and then use the data to help get customer orders delivered within two or three days, wasn’t available when most ERPs were being developed. This is just one visibility gap companies today deal with daily.  

The good news is that organizations can close these gaps and future-proof their supply chains with a highly configurable technology platform. PartnerLinQ helps companies establish a common data foundation incorporating a semantic layer for every industry (including specific products, hierarchies, and transportation routes).  

Once that foundation is established, we build out the platform with the customer’s unique needs in mind, using the technology already in place and the outside applications needed to get everyone working from the same playbook. By providing that critical connectivity layer, PartnerLinQ helps companies break through the barriers of their monolithic business systems and leverage the power of modern, advanced technology.  

Connectivity barriers don’t exist only within your four walls. For that reason, PartnerLinQ creates strong connections with all third parties you need to communicate and share data with, including your business partners, customers, and software applications. The ability to integrate with these entities is a critical step to gaining full end-to-end supply chain visibility and collaboration.  

Adaptable, Flexible Architecture

PartnerLinQ offers the architecture, tools, and data companies need to connect with all internal and external stakeholders. We also offer a no-code/low-code environment that vastly speeds up implementation times and lets each person within the supply chain configure, maintain, and optimize the connections on their own.  

As a cloud-native application, PartnerLinQ’s platform is vertically and horizontally scalable right out of the gate. The same can’t be said for many other supply chain integration platforms on the market today. With PartnerLinQ, you can scale from hundreds to millions of transactions per month without having to make changes to your system.  

A Supply Chain that Stands the Test of Time 

In this rapidly evolving business landscape, the right digital strategy is no longer a luxury — it’s a must-have. Organizations that fall behind in this area risk losing customers, market share and revenue to competitors investing in their digital strategies.  

Being tied to a monolithic software platform can impede your supply chain visibility, partner collaboration, and long-term growth prospects. With PartnerLinQ in your corner, you can get all your data into one, accessible place. You can adjust on the fly as your company grows. And you can develop a future-proof supply chain that withstands the test of time. 

To learn more about how PartnerLinQ can help you future-proof your B2B enterprise, contact our team today.

Ahmed Samnan Raza, CTO & Co-founder

Ahmed Raza leads a dynamic team dedicated to shaping a robust, next-generation SaaS platform catering to customers across diverse industries. With his firm belief in driving continuous innovation, Ahmed’s team is on a mission team to ensure that PartnerLinQ platform remains at the forefront of business technology evolution. With a wealth of experience, Ahmed previously served as the Vice President of Product Engineering at Visionet Systems, Inc. His journey with the PartnerLinQ began at its inception, and over his 18-year career, Ahmed has played a pivotal role in a wide array of digital transformation projects spanning various segments of the supply chain industry. This includes impactful contributions to sectors such as retail, consumer goods, apparel/footwear, transportation, and food & beverage, among others.

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.

Time is money in the fast-paced business-to-business (B2B) world. Each day a new B2B business partner isn’t onboarded and transacting with your company means one more day of lost sales and opportunities.  
Clunky, manual onboarding processes also keep new partners from tapping into the amazing new alliance they’ve formed. Instead, they watch from the sidelines as you jump through your onboarding hoops. 

“Fast partner connectivity is a predominant factor for growth in the B2B business landscape,” says Kerry Fogarty, SVP of Client Success at PartnerLinQ. “The faster you can get new partners up and running, the sooner you’ll be able to maximize the return on your partnership investment.” 

Why You Need a Frictionless Onboarding Process  

Complex, manual partner onboarding processes consume too many internal resources. They also delay time-to-market and force new B2B partners to “stand by” while you get your house in order. A smooth onboarding process, on the other hand, reduces administrative burden and lays the foundation for a strong, lasting partnership.  
By investing in tools that automate everything from data migration and training to user provisioning — all wrapped in a white glove service package — organizations can create a frictionless onboarding experience that benefits all parties.  
Consider these wins, achievable across the life of the partnership: 

• Improved efficiency.
• Faster time to market.
• Streamlined connectivity 
• Quicker communications
• Improved data exchange across partners.

Keeping the Data Flowing 

Because PartnerLinQ integrates directly with over 70 popular software applications like Microsoft, Dynamics, SAP, Salesforce, and Magento, all data can flow seamlessly across these platforms, giving companies a single, unified pool of data to work with.  
PartnerLinQ’s tailored service approach takes it one step further by managing communications across trading partners. “We provide a dedicated onboarding service agent who takes the burden off our customers’ in-house staff,” Fogarty explains. “By managing this on their behalf, we can target 100% of their training partners.” 

Throwing the Switches 

For a company that is replacing a legacy integration platform, PartnerLinQ manages the communication, scheduling, configuration, testing, and deployment for all existing and new trading partners.  

“We act on our customers’ behalf, letting their partners know about the platform switch and managing all of the related intricacies that go into it,” Fogarty says. “The day we go live, we throw switches and everything is up and running on our platform across the board. This significantly compresses the time-to-value.” 

Get Frictionless B2B Onboarding 

Streamlining integrations can have a significant impact on a company’s bottom line. Take this example: A transportation company spent about five years attempting to migrate 20% of its customer base to a new platform. What’s more, onboarding each new partner took more than 100 days apiece. 
By switching to PartnerLinQ, the company was able to speed up the integration considerably. It began onboarding anywhere from 50 to 100 trading partners twice a week in a multi-week cycle. The company can implement a new trading partner in five days or less. And it doubled the number of trading partners it works with because it’s no longer bogged down by manual, legacy processes. The company has gained significant market advantage and enjoys stronger business partnerships as a result. 

“As more companies take advantage of these types of seamless integrations, they can respond much more swiftly to market changes and shifting customer demands,” Fogarty says. “They can also keep up with and even get out in front of their competitors.” 

It’s Time To Build a Frictionless Journey 

A fast, seamless B2B partner onboarding experience helps organizations unlock the full potential of their partnerships right from the start. Isn’t it time you replaced your outdated onboarding methods with a frictionless journey that sets everyone up for success? 

To learn more about how PartnerLinQ can improve partner onboarding, reach out to our team today.

Kerry Fogarty, SVP, Client Success

Kerry Fogarty is a Senior IT executive with a proven track record in driving global IT initiatives and business value impact through technology adoption. With his extensive experience as a VP of Enterprise IT and the Office of the CIO in iconic brands like Liz Claiborne, Fifth and Pacific, Kate Spade, and Tapestry. Kerry brings a wealth of deep industry supply chain knowledge and expertise to the PartnerLinQ, Inc., leadership team. In his current role as SVP Client Success, he is dedicated to ensuring customer success through the deployment of PartnerLinQ, the industry’s premier supply-chain platform, complimenting it with toptier consulting and support services.

In recent years, organizations have faced a series of disruptions, impacting their operational continuity, resulting in lost sales, reduced revenues, and damage to brand reputation. This has heightened the importance for supply chain leaders to adeptly manage inherent risks by leveraging capabilities for accurate decision-making and utilizing data for improved planning.

The looming threats of shifting trade alliances, geopolitical conflicts, climate change effects on global logistics networks, and ongoing labor unrest weigh heavily on executive leaders’ minds. To tackle future uncertainties, logistics leaders are prioritizing resilient operations and flexible transportation solutions, aligning with diverse procurement strategies and meeting the demands of increasingly discerning customers.

According to IDC’s Global Supply Chain Survey 2023, business leaders, especially in transportation and logistics, prioritize improved visibility, agility, and increased collaboration. The impact of disruptions has prompted a notable focus on deploying advanced analytics to navigate changing conditions effectively.

Logistics service providers must also respond effectively to frequent and significant changes, while also balancing the push for resilient operations with the need to reduce and control costs. Economic conditions are driving concerns about higher and out-of-control costs, leading logistics teams to seek a competitive edge through efficiency gains.

Technological priorities for advancing supply chain digital maturity include artificial intelligence/machine learning, cloud platforms, and visibility platforms. Clean, timely visibility data is foundational for cultivating intelligence, enabling logistics providers to make informed, timely decisions and engage in scenario planning to drive optimal actions.

Continuous refinement of models to incorporate new data sources is also crucial for better business outcomes. Top priorities for logistics service providers include optimizing the supply chain to reduce costs and improving visibility across the end-to-end supply chain. Challenges such as generating efficiencies, facilitating better collaboration, and advancing sustainability drive the need for data-driven insights.

As organizations address inherent risks in global supply chains in 2024, the need for flexible transportation services with advanced intelligence becomes evermore crucial. Timely, informed, and consistent decision-making across complex logistics networks requires end-to-end visibility and collaboration. Logistics service providers play a critical role in achieving supply chain resilience, and platforms like PartnerLinQ enable them to deliver value, streamline operations, and contribute to long-term partnerships with customers. In a world where collaboration is essential, interconnected systems that provide insights from a single source of truth become highly valuable, paving the way for deeply integrated and resilient transportation operations aligned with customer supply chain strategies.

Learn more about PartnerLinQ and the ways of solving the supply chain challenges for both Transportation and Logistics Providers in our new IDC Spotlight Whitepaper.