Grant Stadheim from SPS Commerce recently joined Vision33 to discuss the benefits of EDI with a full-service automated solution. There are many reasons why EDI provides strategic benefits to you and your supply chain partners. Read on to learn how EDI can benefit your business during Covid-19 or skip to the end to watch a pre-recorded webinar hosted by Vision33 and featuring SPS Commerce.
EDI Overview
First of all, if you’re new to EDI, or electronic data interchange, it is basically the way to automate the order to cash process. Sometimes this process will be required by a supply chain partner such as a retailer or other buying organizations. Other times, EDI can reduce manual data entry and labor costs.
Businesses Scenarios where EDI Provides Benefit
SPS Commerce has led the industry for the past 15 years in the EDI, during which they have seen businesses fall into one of several camps: The first is simply a business that doesn’t have EDI, or they’re presently working with a supply chain partner for the first time that requires EDI.
The second scenario is a business that may already have EDI, but it may be via a variety of sources. They might be working with Amazon via their web portal or have a couple other solutions to manage their EDI partners.
A third possibility relates to supply chain complexities, where a business has EDI in place, but as they continue to grow, their needs change too. An example would be adding a third-party logistics warehouse or different order management models, whether it’s a drop ship or cross-dock.
Lastly, system replacement represents a fourth scenario where a business needs EDI to change so it can become automated as part of their new business management system.
Regardless of the scenario you face, there are solutions available to enable your business to realize the benefits of EDI for your specific situation.
How to Manage the Complexity of Your Supply Chains EDI Requirements
The next step is to find a way to manage the complexity of your unique business process requirements for EDI; each trading partner that you encounter will have their own set of needs. An example is that companies like Kroger and 7-Eleven have several requirements based on how you do business with them. That’s where SPS Commerce comes in.
SPS Commerce’s Stadheim says that “SPS actually manages these changes on your behalf, and across [their] network, [they’ve] made about 9,000 changes per year to [their] network for different documents or different communication methods.” SPS Commerce also supports the continued development of their EDI solution to ensure that its massive network of over 80,000 pre-mapped connections met the needs.
This is great news for users of enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution, SAP Business One. The company’s goal is that regardless of what your trading partner requirements are, they are able to help since they have hundreds of users that run SAP Business One making use of over 4,300 EDI documents.
About SPS Commerce Cloud EDI for SAP Business One
Through Vision33, we offer businesses running SAP Business One a one-time connection with SPS so that you can connect to your trading partners and manage your electronic orders within SAP Business One. Through Vision33, we bring the proven technology and SAP experts to manage the process from implementation to ongoing, day-to-day operations.
Our EDI solution, built specifically for SAP Business One, offers support for EDI document to transact with any trading partner. Through our network of over 80,000 customers, you’re connected to retailers, manufacturers, suppliers, 3PLs and more.
Want to see what EDI looks like when used with SAP Business One? Watch our webinar demonstration.
