Modern platforms of the future are expected to create provisions for seamless and experiential integration of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

As the supply chain ecosystems are experiencing significant impact – new patterns of needs are emerging around the greater agility in reconfiguring value chains, ability to anticipate disruptions in logistics and demand fluctuations in time, and the need for heightened visibility to support the day operational decision making. Such capabilities can equip companies to promptly respond to changing market conditions, proactively manage supply chain disruptions risks and discover and avail the new emerging opportunities in time.

“Businesses must consider breaking free from the limitations of outdated technologies and boldly step into a future defined by innovation.”

In the wake of pandemic, uncertainties and disruptions have become the new normal. Businesses are grappling with the need to continually adapt to shifting priorities which are influenced by ongoing geopolitical and economic volatility. There is stark realization that businesses cannot solve the challenges of today and tomorrow by continuing to limit themselves with technologies of the past. This situation has underscored the importance of re-imagining transformative digital information technology delivered through innovative platforms like never before.

As a result, the role of the new generation of enterprise platforms is steadily increasing. With remote work now widely adopted as the standard across the global workforce, Software as a Service (SaaS) platforms serve as a centralized and accessible hub for supply chain management. Teams can collaborate seamlessly, access critical information remotely, and maintain operational efficiency regardless of physical location. This flexibility is crucial for businesses looking to build resilience in their supply chains and navigate the complexities of the post-COVID landscape.

The dynamic nature of innovative SaaS platforms ensures that businesses can quickly adapt to evolving customer demands, market trends, and regulatory changes. Whether it’s optimizing inventory levels, predicting demand fluctuations, or enhancing digital communication with buyers, suppliers and distributors, these platforms enable a holistic approach to agile supply chain management. The ability for such platforms to provide dynamic and agile access to information, coupled with advanced analytics and collaborative features, positions them as crucial enablers of success.

Supply chains that leverage these platforms can look forward to gaining a competitive edge by fostering resilience, adaptability, and enabling timely access to insights into their supply chain operations, ultimately improving their overall business outcomes in a rapidly changing business landscape.

Instead of behaving as the isolated capability tower within the enterprise technology landscape, modern platforms of future are expected to the create provision for seamless and experiential integration of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT) in SaaS platforms adding another layer of sophistication.

“We firmly believe that technology should serve as both an enabler and a game-changer, empowering businesses to operate, monitor, and act with unprecedented autonomy and agility.”

These technologies enable predictive analytics, proactive issue resolution, and the automation of routine tasks, further streamlining supply chain processes and enhancing overall efficiency.

However, in the realm of mergers and acquisitions within enterprise technologies, it’s common to witness platforms acquiring point solutions. While this expansion on paper promises enhanced features and functionalities and higher valuation multiples, these solutions often fall short when disparate technologies are patched together, leaving no assurance of seamless performance or positive customer experience.

At PartnerLinQ, we stand apart from this trend. Rooted in a tradition of solution engineering and professional consultancy in supply chain best practices, our foundation is built on decades of expertise and hands-on experience. Originally conceived by Visionet Systems, PartnerLinQ emerged as a cloud SaaS solution aimed at addressing the challenges of EDI and API supply chain connectivity. Over time, the platform has evolved to prioritize visibility enhancement and decision intelligence capabilities, catering to the evolving needs of the industry.

The resounding success of our platform has led to the establishment of PartnerLinQ as an independent entity in October 2023, extending its solutions beyond the clientele and consultancy practices of Visionet Systems. This unique blend of heritage and independence defines our approach, ensuring that PartnerLinQ continues to deliver cutting-edge solutions that drive transformative change in the supply chain landscape.

The acknowledgement of PartnerLinQ as a “Major Player” in the IDC MarketScape – Worldwide Multi-Enterprise Supply Chain Commerce Network 2023 Vendor Assessment by the International Data Corporation (IDC) represents a major milestone for our company. Playing a pivotal role in helping businesses assess and analyze the capabilities of supply chain management in this complex space, IDC’s recognition serves as a testament to our technological expertise, innovative approach, and forward-thinking vision, solidifying our position as a leading player in the industry.

At PartnerLinQ, we’ve conceived, engineered, and launched a groundbreaking platform built from the ground up. With a keen focus on the principles of organic growth and innovation, we firmly believe that technology should serve as both an enabler and a game-changer, empowering businesses to operate, monitor, and act with unprecedented autonomy and agility through seamless digitalization. As we strive to achieve continued success and sustainable value generation for our customers and prospects within the industry, the impact of analyst recognition becomes multifaceted, touching various aspects of our business trajectory. Moving forward, the PartnerLinQ team remains committed to actively engaging with IDC’s esteemed analyst team and wider analyst community, by integrating their innovative and forward-thinking ideas alongside the innovation we provide through the voice of our customers.
 

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.

Smarter B2B Integration: A Must-Have for Food & Beverages Supply Chain Networks

Consumer spending on food had been remarkably consistent in the US from 2016 to early 2020. As per McKinsey’s study, growth hovered around 4% annually, while total spend was almost evenly split between retail outlets like grocery stores and supermarkets and food service organizations like restaurants, fast-food locations, coffee venues, and school and office canteens. While the COVID-19 pandemic drastically impacted margins for almost all business segments, the food & beverages (F&B) segment rode the storm better than most. From $6196.15 billion in 2021, the industry is expected to reach $8163.61 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 7%.

Yet, March 2020 upended the distribution of consumer spend dramatically. Amid lockdowns and the perceived health risk in public places, people preferred staying and eating at home. Sales in groceries and supplies grew 29% compared to the previous year, while food service centres saw a corresponding dip of 27%. More cooking at home led to more staples sales, while consumers increasingly turned to comfort food to cope with heightening anxiety. Canned soup sales were up 200% year on year, frozen food 40%, potato chips 30%, and popcorn 48%.

Rebalancing Supplies to Address Changing Demand

Over the years, F&B distributors have been running a balanced and optimized supply chain where upstream orders come in based on the forecast of downstream orders going out. As a result, revenue margins were also largely dependent on a steady flow in both directions.

But with the rapid shift in consumer spend pattern brought about by the pandemic, the previously balanced system was completely upended. Downstream orders came to an abrupt halt with restaurants closed, but upstream orders kept coming in from the farms, food-service producers, and processors. This led to a clog in the logistical chain as well as shortages in storage space. As distributors cancelled incoming shipments from farmers, food products were stranded upstream, leading to food-security risks for the more vulnerable consumer segments.  

Food distributors have also been by quick-service and casual-dining outlets switching to takeout-only modes of service. Some have partially adapted by taking the online route and initiating delivery services. But those that do not supply to retail channels have had to completely overhaul their sales routes, making their supply chain transformation even more challenging.

Gearing Up for the ‘New Normal’

F&B distributors who managed to rebalance their supplies are now left with overcapacity in their storage facilities and distribution networks. But the pandemic has also taught them a very crucial lesson – about maintaining reliability in supply even at the cost of price. As consumers grow more comfortable with the ‘new normal’, they will continue to save trips to the store given the increased domestic responsibilities they have picked up. While panic buying has ceased, using digital will only continue to increase. Many buyers who preferred to shop offline before the pandemic are now using digital channels having realized the convenience that online ordering provides.

So F&B organizations are increasing production to maintain their presence on retail shelves, while others are scaling up their e-commerce presence. But dilemmas still remain about the means to address demand peaks and the future demand scenarios to prepare for. In addition, consumers need to be reassured, employees protected, and high quality supply maintained even at elevated costs.

For F&B participants from farm to shelf, it is imperative to come up with creative solutions and integrate their collaboration channels to ensure a reliable supply despite intermittent plant closures and demand disruptions.

Supply Chain Integration for Collaboration and Insights

A flexible and agile supply chain can help F&B companies effectively respond to these ongoing challenges. But they also need increased visibility and data from every node of their value chain to generate actionable insights. Lack of transparency exposes supply chains to unnecessary risk; this is exacerbated by using outdated systems or traditional paper tracking and manual inspections. Fragmented information and lack of communication leave parties in the supply network with little to no knowledge of each other’s actions. This leads to inefficiency and waste and generates mistrust among suppliers and their customers. And the problem gets much worse as organizations begin to expand their markets and partner networks.

Increased visibility will also go a long way in keeping operational costs in check. While simple supply chains can optimize costs using spreadsheets, more complex ones are better served by an integrated network solution that does not require customizations for each individual supplier. Modern B2B integration solutions make a business more efficient, more attractive to customers, and less vulnerable to competitive forces. They enable seamless connection to all your network partners, while deploying multiple supply chain solutions within a single implementation process.

Harnessing the Cloud: The Smarter Approach to B2B Integration

The complexities of the post-pandemic landscape are acting as a trigger as more and more industries feel the push to go digital. Only a cloud-based, integrated solution can provide the convenience, scalability, and reliability that food service organizations need for managing data exchange, workflow, and transactions.

Visionet’s PartnerLinQ ensures a simple and robust cloud deployment that minimizes infrastructure costs and enhances analytical reporting powered by Azure’s serverless, scalable event-processing engine. PartnerLinQ is designed to guarantee business success by quickly setting up connections with new partners, customers, and sales channels and seamlessly integrating with smart devices and appliances. It minimizes repetitive processes and works across all data formats and transaction protocols. With PartnerLinQ, F&B enterprises can automate end-to-end workflows, achieve elasticity and scale, and enjoy a hybrid architecture that also integrates with on-premise legacy systems.

As regulatory mandates demand faster and more extensive reporting, customers want more visibility into all aspects of a transaction, and new business models start being formulated, the need for simplified and end-to-end B2B integration becomes more urgent. F&B organizations can no longer afford to work in silos – a smarter B2B integration on cloud can quickly reduce their time-to-market, optimize costs with standard, industry-specific integration processes, and take an omnichannel approach to order fulfilment.

The cooperative advantage of EDI integration

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Impact on suppliers

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

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

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

Impact on buyers

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

Garnering the Cooperative Advantage with EDI

Information sharing

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

Business process improvements

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

Increased responsiveness

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

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

Businesses turn to EDI solutions because EDI has proven to improve business efficiency and reduce costs. Compared to manual business processes, EDI helps reduce costs and inefficiencies up to 35%.

Businesses from Amazon to Zappos use EDI to take advantage of these benefits. In 2018, annual EDI transactions numbered over 20 billion. Combining EDI solutions with real-time APIs enhances partner communication even further, particularly for omnichannel operations with a large number of daily transactions.

In this blog post, we’ll talk about how implementing an EDI solution can streamline your business operations.

Procurement

EDI was initially used in the procurement process to simplify paperwork. The procurement process involves four major documentation stages: purchase order generation, purchase order acknowledgement, making changes in the purchase order, and acknowledging those changes.

Traditionally, these processes were done by posting mail (or sending an email) to the recipient manually. Using EDI, these processes are automated. Retailers can send their suppliers an electronic purchase order and their suppliers can then respond with a confirmation record within seconds. Changes in purchase orders can be made and confirmed quickly, easily, and often without human intervention. Buyers and sellers alike can expect several immediate improvements with the right EDI strategy:

• Faster procure-to-pay
• Quick and accurate purchase order delivery
• Fewer time-consuming and labor-intensive processes like responding to email
• Improved buy-side agility and improvements in fulfillment rates

Supply Chain

EDI vastly improves supply chain operations. Supply chain processes typically include an advance ship notice (ASN). Also known as an 856 or Ship Notice/Manifest, the structure of the message enables the transfer of information from seller to buyer at the shipment, order, pallet, pack, and item levels, providing the receiver information necessary to schedule shipment receipt and storage.
 

The ASN also accommodates common data elements used for business, including global trade item number (GTIN, i.e. the numerical representation of the barcode) and traceability elements like serial number, batch and lot numbers, expiration, packaging, and production. Relating harvest and use-by dates with these data elements at the shipment, order, pallet, pack, and item levels can help ensure consumer safety and reduce counterfeit goods.

EDI documents like the Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Message (214) and the Motor Carrier Package Status Message (240) from package delivery companies, couriers, logistics companies, and carriers enhance trading partners’ ability to track goods.

EDI is there when shipments arrive at the warehouse or on the consumer’s doorstep. The barcodes on the cartons can be scanned and data delivered by way of the ASN can be used to automatically update inventories, send confirmations and invoices, and if the shipments are somehow delayed, relevant personnel can be alerted immediately to address any concerns.

Automating the exchange of data through an EDI solution across the supply chain improves:

• The timing of orders, shipments, deliveries, and invoices
• Cross-docking, direct store delivery (DSD), and direct-to-consumer (D2C) delivery
• Product traceability and shipment tracking

Read more: Improving your supply chain efficiency with ERP-integrated EDI

Invoicing

Businesses are always looking to improve business efficiency and reduce costs. Many are also concerned about the environment. Within the United States, some federal agencies have made e-invoices compulsory to reduce paper usage. Many countries have taken environmental and other concerns even further with countries including Spain, Brazil, Italy, and Mexico mandating the use of electronic invoices.

EDI solutions have a long record of success in improving communication and reducing fraud. Companies employing EDI solutions have also been able to save costs in paper, processing, postage, and invoice storage, furthering their operational goals of improving efficiency and reducing costs. Real-time access to electronic invoices and other business documents helps trading partners eliminate manual tasks commonly associated with paper-based process while improving days sales outstanding (DSO) and reducing payment penalties.

Conclusion

A properly designed, implemented, and integrated EDI solution offers businesses many significant advantages:

• Improved decision-making
• Improved business efficiency
• Improved environmental and regulatory compliance
• Improved cash management
• Reduced paper, processing, postage, and storage fees

EDI-enabled companies are better prepared to focus on their customers without increasing overhead or administrative tasks. To learn more about how your business can migrate from a labor-intensive, paper-based business process to a modern EDI solution for your business, contact PartnerLinQ.