Rapid innovation, profit margins and rising demand prompted the company change from the traditional vertical supply chain to the cross-enterprise supply chain network transfer, the network can continuously changing needs and respond faster to the market chaos, and achieve sustained management. Electronics industry in the benchmark companies are investing in a single cross-enterprise processes shared platform to enhance competitive advantage.
As the ERP system is the key to enterprise data and control processes as a unified, cross-enterprise sharing platform for business critical processes to provide a unified external data and control platform. As an extension of internal processes, the platform can provide enterprises with visibility of the external process execution, real-time response to market changes and make adjustments to play a greater value of ERP systems.
Today's supply chain has become the network structure of cross-enterprise processes.
How, then, the existing processes and IT systems built on the basis of a new cross-platform business process? In the building, first need to analyze the present industrial environment and supply chain structure of a few fundamental changes. Then, on this basis, on cross-enterprise processes, technology and operational infrastructure needed to analyze, build process to meet the business needs and infrastructure platforms. Finally the analysis of existing IT investments, using cross-enterprise platform, improving existing IT investments to maximize performance.
Supply chain structure of the three major changes
Some of the leading e-business supply chain will help companies achieve business goals as to occupy the market and access to superior financial performance of the strategy of weapons. Over the past few years, the industry environment has changed, leading to the basic structure of the supply chain also will change. Specifically, the changes are mainly concentrated in the following three aspects.
First, globalization has increased the complexity of the supply chain. More and more companies want to achieve through the globalization of business and better customer service, or the use of local cost advantage of lower operating costs, which makes supply chain operations increasingly complex. This complexity is mainly manifested in two aspects: 1. Complex global supply relationships. Whether purchasing from a low-cost areas, or use a huge supply system to support operations throughout the enterprise needs and distribution of trading partners around the world to communicate, to bring the complexity of process management. 2. A variety of business processes and business integration. In order to achieve a certain scale, some companies a lot of mergers and acquisitions and internal restructuring, which led companies have multiple sets of business processes and business systems, and the branches are widely distributed geographically, for them to co-ordinate global business spending, optimization overall decision-making and allocation of global resources is critical. Traditional multi-process management across the supply chain and not more than commercial units, to achieve real-time external communication, which reduces the development of business decision-making for the quality of the information, causing the supply chain resilience is low, safety stocks and exceptions frequently and other problems occur.
Second, the supply chain from the "push" type to "pull" type of change, such changes affect the upstream and downstream supply chain. Combination of long-term forecasting models and capacity planning to meet the actual short-term needs of the replenishment model, many companies have established a pull demand forecasting process. However, they need to strengthen and distribution partners, customers and supply partners in the interaction that could be the overall demand for visibility. Only in this way, companies can really use the information, by increasing supply chain visibility and control to replace the stock and financial risk.
Third, the use of outsourcing. In pursuit of cost pressures and core competitiveness, driven by more and more companies will design, manufacturing and logistics outsourcing and other business sectors. Outsourcing partners include EMS companies, third party logistics providers, original design manufacturers, distributors and trading partners. Outsourcing for the company to bring a series of new challenges, one of which is transferred to the company for outside, third-party company's operations, the company is losing visibility and control. However, from the customer's point of view, no matter who design products, manufacture or delivery, even if outsourced manufacturing, the company need to be responsible for these final products.
Outsourcing business operations to maintain visibility to ensure the timely delivery, and meet customer expectations is essential. For example, although from the upstream suppliers of raw materials, or order fulfillment is completed by the external partners, but the company must maintain control, they not only need to coordinate and ensure that the external partners for the implementation of the cooperation must also be allowed partners according to their internal operations to manage the implementation.
Construction of a single cross-enterprise processes sharing platform
Compared to the past, today's supply chain has become longer and more complex. For enterprises, they must go beyond corporate boundaries, will focus on and control point extending to all supply chain partners to gain visibility and control process to ensure the implementation. However, in cross-enterprise process management, different financial systems, technology infrastructure and different level of organizational structure will bring many challenges. Few companies can not change the existing conditions of the process into an effective value chain system, especially those forced to use "to a more appropriate" way to build a unified platform for the company, they often ended in failure.
Cross-enterprise processes into a unified platform will involve shared processes, technology, operations / infrastructure construction in three areas. Among them, the process includes cross-enterprise business processes, partners, unified communication processes, exceptions processing, the actual movement of goods from the isolated financial relationships to support the dynamic cross-enterprise processes and so on; technologies are mainly network-centric distributed and interconnected structure, cross-enterprise data model, and thousands of trading partners, cost-effective integration, event-driven exception management and workflow; operations / infrastructure includes support for global supply chain networks, comply with service Level Agreement (SLA), in order to avoid potential liability, while reducing total cost of ownership, access to quick software change management capabilities.
1. Unification process to achieve
Similar to the use of ERP system in the reunification process of the same company, each company is looking for them and customers, distributors and suppliers to share the same information on cross-enterprise business processes. The business processes focused on the following key areas.
First, companies have relationships across multi-level modeling capabilities. But a loose connection with the business processes, can come from different organizations, decision-making body and the data owners workflow through a combination of general, not only satisfy the seamless connection between enterprises, but also to maintain operation of an enterprise way.
Second, be connected to plans to upgrade the business partners, and lower import barriers. Companies need to connect with thousands of suppliers to meet the required visibility and control. These suppliers, customers, distributors, retailers and other trading partners have different business processes and IT standards. Connected to a successful business partner program that can offer self-service online tools, readiness assessment tools and business integration list, which can help all the business partners quickly realize the most cost-effective processes linked.
Third, the exception event management harmony. Companies need to import can be exceptions to the management processes and decision-making methods, which began in the global business based on proven cross-enterprise process model (such as VMI, forecast collaboration, and distributed execution), to standardize the response process, so that management more simple. Specifically, the standard exception process, including identification, root cause analysis and launch one or more partners, use of pre-defined response mechanism for action of cross-enterprise processes.
Four items from the actual movement of isolated financial relationships. For the companies, and at all levels understand the financial relationship between providers is very important, so they must be financial relations and cooperation between the actual flow of goods to be separated. ERP system is only the first level only reflects the company and its supplier relationship, they need via e-mail or Excel data tables on the second level of the financial data provider for manual calculations. Therefore, enterprises need a bottom-up designed to reflect the complex cross-technology business process, rather than the transformation of existing processes to the separation of this complex relationship.
2. Cross-enterprise process technology architecture
Cross-enterprise processes must be the core of each company to integrate processes, such as demand planning and ERP systems and systems integration. Import ERP system, a number of companies with projects delayed or failed due to the majority of data quality problems. These processes in the conversion process, prone to loss of information, thus resulting in inappropriate response to the accident. Therefore, cross-enterprise integration process contributed to the success of the project is considered a key factor. In addition, ERP system is a standardized information base as the core application design, cross-enterprise systems need to inter-enterprise supply network was designed with the core of the network architecture.
Cross-enterprise architecture that allows enterprises with different level of IT building, you can use different standards for rapid integration between partners, and reduce integration costs. Effective cross-enterprise technology architecture need to include the following four conditions:
First, a unified cross-enterprise data model. Cross-enterprise data model can present the relationship between multiple partners and use existing investments in core enterprise master data systems to show how the product in different levels of the supply chain to move. Using the original data-driven approach can keep all the relevant data for cross-enterprise relations, and still data transfer between the various companies. Application of this approach to become the first choice, because it retained the main data on business investment.
Second, different systems and integration between the exchange agreement. A decentralized and interconnected structure allows each partner in the supply network to integrate information and data while preserving the original standard. Compared to a single standardized database at the core of ERP, mainly through cross-enterprise control system data transmission in any way connected machine, aggregate data between multiple systems and business.
Third, with the optimal integration of thousands of partners. The best way is to integrate different IT-based trading partners, not to invest heavily in IT architecture or change the subject quickly into a single shared platform for cross-enterprise processes. This integration method is a basic requirement, that all trading partners to ensure a regular basis manually upload all the information.
Fourth, event-driven exception management and workflow. Cross-platform business process management and focus on exceptional events between trading partners making rapid changes in the exchange, even across multi-communication between trading partners. Event-driven architecture analysis and problem solving by the role process component, used to rise across the supply chain partners, handling exceptions quickly.
3. Inter-operation and support of enterprise architecture
As the company continued to supply network change, cross-business process platforms in the evolving process. In addition, if the system under normal operation of the interruption will cause the Company to manage the network and additional expenses, because the key demand and supply information leading to excess inventory delays, cost increases or shipment errors. Therefore, companies need to consider the following matters.
First of all, reduce the supply chain across all participants in the overall cost of ownership (TCO). To successfully import these systems, companies must weigh all the participants in the supply chain total cost of ownership. In the TCO analysis, companies can use a traditional measurement methods, from hardware, software, build, upgrade, operation and support in areas such as comprehensive analysis. In addition, the company must also span the entire supply chain into account the importance of TCO system, otherwise it will lead into a long cycle and between trading partners in the implementation of obstruction. So the only way to minimize the TCO is to use flexible cross-enterprise system to support any trading partners in the existing IT capabilities. Across the supply network in the supply chain, to enforce the new technology, or a so-called standardization process change will result in supply chain costs by process and application time increased. Cross-enterprise system allows all trading partners must be convenient, simple and rapid use, offer several options to support the existing capacity of each trading partner, so they would not have forced an expensive, time consuming and very risk changes.
Second, the rapid import, change and upgrade, to respond to rapidly changing requirements. As the cross-enterprise process platform is targeted for dynamic and rapid changes inherent in the management process, so it needs to import and change cycle much shorter than the internal system. In general, an inter-enterprise system usually requires 3 to 6 months to complete across the entire supply network, the initial import as well as on the basis of the frequent changes. In addition, when simultaneous changes within the system, such as ERP systems need to be upgraded, you need to isolate the supply network. Otherwise, ERP system upgrade will bring changes to all suppliers, the cost and risk increases. Therefore, the industry leader in IT architecture approach is supported from within by the ERP separate process to standardize treatment, cross-enterprise from a single shared platform to support external processes.
Third, build support for distribution of the capacity of the global users. When a company becomes increasingly global network of trading partners, it requires cross-enterprise platform with 24 × 7 operational and support capabilities, particularly across the supply network applications, in this regard than the internal users to external users more . In the internal system of operation, maintenance, upgrades and support, enterprise IT organizations have been very difficult, while the external system more complex, it involves changes in IT technology and business processes across the supply chain systems integration capability. Leading the way companies are using outsourcing, selection and cross-enterprise processes in the construction and operation of the maintenance platform on the expertise of the program provider to cooperate.
Fourth, compliance with service level agreement (SLA) in order to avoid potential losses. Cross-enterprise business, including orders, shipments, forecasts and inventory replenishment, supply chain, such as the end result has far-reaching implications, such as the receiver failed to receive and respond to those mistakes in the supply chain will have business potentially lost. Therefore, cross-enterprise information exchange to support these operations execution system must ensure high efficiency and good service level compliance has been consultative (SLA) level. System Tools must have different activities, exception conditions and handling processes of review and tracking capabilities. Companies in the choice of an acceptable service level agreement (SLA), you need to do all the responsibilities, or else face the risk of potential losses. Risk management approach is a viable software program has been carried out this function establishment of service providers.
All in all, a single shared platform for cross-enterprise processes need to support decentralized and interconnected enterprises and business processes among enterprises, by constructing a framework to meet these business processes to reduce delays and improve transparency of information. Currently, ERP architecture can not be easily extended, to achieve cross-enterprise processes. Cross-enterprise process architecture must have the support of any place, any way the capacity of a flexible connection can make a lot of fast on-line trading partners, and cost-effective.
Cross-enterprise platform to strengthen the existing IT investments
Most companies in the IT system has done a lot of investment to achieve the management of internal processes and automation.
In the normal business environment, develop a single shared platform across the enterprise to bring the value of exponential growth, greatly improve the efficiency of processes across enterprises, and provide timely and accurate information for enterprises to use existing ERP and planning systems.
For a large number of strategic partners need to interact with global companies, the typical business and IT technology, including the following:
1.ERP system: achieving financial, order management and automate the process of delivery
2. Plan forecast system: achieving internal productivity prediction, MRP (Material Requirements Planning), advanced planning capabilities such as Advanced Planning
3. Sales & Service platform: including sales forecasting, market intelligence and access to potential customers, customer service and support front-line sales
4. Business Intelligence information: regular internal management reports to support business decisions
In general, these investments are primarily focused on internal processes of enterprises and management automation. However, in today's increasingly close relationship between the world, a similar degree of automation has been extended to the enterprises. So far, with its partners, the exchange between is limited to the use of fax, e-mail, Excel data tables, EDI and Internet sites and other technical publishing order, shipping notification and forecasting, etc. Xin Xi. Once released, these data will be expected to be received at the other end, and with trading partners to integrate their business processes. This process is a priority, and prone to delays and error messages, but can not be sustained on the basis of the complete closed-loop conditions and the changes appear to track and monitor. This is the single shared platform for cross-enterprise processes can be effective where it can meet the cross-enterprise business process management needs. Following table summarizes the cross-functional business process platform to add on the ERP system.
In order to obtain the most cost-import, and many industry leading companies use to provide such professional services and software providers to easily complete their systems through the construction and management of remote services to all suppliers, in this way the enterprise ensure business can be more focus on the normal operation, change process of confusion and concern about the occurrence of exceptional events, but has reduced their costs and IT software technologies Sheng Ji Yin risks associated.