IBM & EDI

The computing workloads are becoming more and more sophisticated and specialized. This diversity of workloads can increase complexity – complexity that can cost you money.

 IBM can offer the right combination of systems and expertise to help you tune your IT investment for the needs of your business today – and into the future.IBM has signed a five-year agreement with French retail chain operator Carrefour to take over the transformation, management and maintenance of Carrefour's IT infrastructure and associated applications.

Leading European retailer Carrefour installed a new IBM merchandise planning and supply chain re-order system to connect point of sale data to its customer loyalty coupons program. Carrefour used IBM technology to integrate more than 3,500 trading partners conducting 3,000 interactions per month. As a result, Carrerfour is improving customer satisfaction by ensuring suppliers efficiently deliver fresh product daily to its stores.

Carrefour has teamed with IBM and its partners to enable the planning and execution of targeted campaigns, this will allow Carrefour to optimize their IT costs, enhance IT security and service quality, and reduce subcontracting .

advantage:

1.      Increased revenue through more targeted promotional campaigns

2.      Lower marketing costs

3.      Greater control over marketing strategy and customer relationships resulting in stronger customer loyalty and a stronger Carrefour brand

4.      Deeper knowledge of customers via analytics and segmentation

5.      Shorter campaign planning to execution cycle

6.      Faster feedback on promotional effectiveness and more detailed feedback to suppliers

7.       Closer supplier relationships

 Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)

Electronic data interchange (EDI) is the structured transmission of data between organizations by 

electronic means. It is used to transfer electronic documents or business data from one computer system to another computer system, i.e. from one trading partner to another trading partner without human 

intervention

Advantage of Electronic Data Interchange:

·         Save Money

      The cost of paper and paper processing is incredibly high compared to a properly implemented EDI program. RJR Nabisco estimates that processing a paper purchase order costs the company $70. Processing an EDI purchase order reduces the cost to a mere 93 cents.

·         End Repetition

      If your trading partner wants a copy of a document, instead of calling you they simply check their mailbox. This results in a great time savings from not having to copy and fax/mail copies of business documents.

·         Save Time

       EDI also saves time over paper processing since the transfer of information from computer to computer is automatic. There is no need to rekey information with EDI. And the chance for error drops to near zero, with no data entry.

·         Improve Customer Service

      The quick transfer of business documents and marked decrease in errors allow you to do business faster and more efficient. KMart is an example of a retailer that implements a Vendor Stock Replenishment (VSR) program. With VSR, the KMart warehouse sends stock as their EDI system reports it and automatically bills the client. It can cut weeks from the order fulfillment cycle and ensures that product is always on the shelf.

·         Expand Customer Base

      Thus with improved customer service, you can ultimately expand your customer base. Many large manufacturers and retailers are ordering their suppliers to institute an EDI program. So, when evaluating a new product to carry or a new supplier to use, the ability to do EDI is a big plus.

      Disadvantges of EDI:

·         Too Many Standards

       There are too many standards bodies developing standard documents formats for EDI. For example your company may be following the X12 standard format, while your trading partner follows the EDIFACT standard format.

·         Changing Standards

      Each year, most standards bodies publish revisions to the standards. This poses a problem to EDI users. You may be using one version of the standard while your trading partners are still using older versions.

·         EDI is Too Expensive

      Some companies are only doing business with others who use EDI. If a company wants to do business with these organizations, they have to implement an EDI program. This expense may be very costly for small companies.

·         Limit Your Trading Partners

      Some large companies tend to stop doing business with companies who don't comply with EDI. For example Wal Mart is only doing business with other companies that use EDI. The result of this is a limited group of people you can do business with

Carrefour can be enhanced by compelling promotional offers that reflect each consumers individual purchasing patterns. Providing Carrefour’s marketers with a means of designing and executing these offers presented another set of challenges. In defining its needs, one of Carrefour's most important attributes was flexibility—both in terms of the system’s ability to configure highly tailored offers for specific customer segments, and in its ability to creatively integrate its promotional activities with its existing loyalty programs