EDI Services Demand a Shift in Mindset

Faced with a business climate that’s more complex and connected than ever, companies are engaging in digital transformation initiatives. EDI services are an integral part of that process, moving from on-premise to cloud solutions. A significant piece in powering a successful transformation comes down to a shift in mindset, in strategically thinking about how your business operates. In fact, looking at it from a macro level and then diving deeper, helps breakdown silos and paves the way for rapid improvement and continuous growth.

Our team lives by a principle that guides our decision making process prior to onboarding new clients. We undergo a rigorous discovery phase to understand each company’s individual business operations. Every organization is unique and has their own processes in place. Having worked with companies of all shapes and sizes, we understand how important this discovery step is prior to any EDI integration.

Some companies in an effort to move full speed ahead are often faced with a dilemma. The need for agile business solutions seems appealing, however, it is important to be aware of potential drawbacks. There are EDI service providers that claim how quickly they can get you up and running. For many organizations, the speed to go live is a desirable selling point. A solid EDI provider will take the time to understand your business processes, before getting you live and operational. This is critical to building a solid EDI foundation.

Today’s EDI environments are more complex than ever, and there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. That’s why it’s critical to understand your business operations and how your enterprise resource planning (ERP) or system of record (SOR) is set up. The central purpose of an ERP system is a database that supports multiple functions used by different business units. These systems are configured to match the needs of each individual company. On top of that, many organizations have developed custom code to fit their unique business requirements. Therefore, no two ERP systems are alike.

In order to fully comprehend your business processes, it’s critical for our team to understand how your system of record is configured. At the ERP level, there are countless complexities and  circumstances unique to each individual organization. Unless you take the time to understand these nuances and their effect on your business, your EDI integration will not be set up for success.

For example, if you’re building an 856 transaction—an advanced ship notice (ASN). Your EDI service provider needs to understand, do you put all your packages on a pallet? Do you have multiple items in a box? Are there multiple items on a pallet? Is everything sent at the pallet level? It’s important to understand the physical package in the warehouse, in order to develop the ASN. Do you handle multiple orders in a single delivery? Do you only run full truckloads, or will do you handle less than truckloads?

These are a few variables that make your EDI processes unique. With that in mind, unless you take the time to uncover these individual scenarios, you won’t fully understand the intricacies associated with your business.

Prior to engaging with a new customer, our team undergoes a rigorous discovery and onboarding process into your company’s unique procedures. It’s crucial to understand how data is coming in and out of your ERP system. This is an essential step that paves the way for a successful EDI integration. Like everything we do at Orderful, we care about our customers and are committed to helping them succeed.

If you’re interested in learning more, get in touch with our team today.