Email is great for quick communications to avoid the timely mail system not to mention paperless. If you were to send a purchase order via email then you would likely have to print out the document and enter the data into another program such as an accounting or inventory package. Businesses need a structured secured format for sending and receiving information. The white papers below will highlight some of the options.
EDI: What is it?
EDI is simply the sending and receiving of information using computer technology
Benefits of EDI!
• Reduced postage costs, expenses in general
• Speed. Because information is moved faster and with greater accuracy, time spent communicating with suppliers is decreased
• Elimination of paper documents
• Elimination of labor-intensive tasks such as data entry
• Greater accuracy of information
• Better tracking
The efficiency of EDI has made it a condition of doing business in numerous industries, including retail, grocery, warehousing, transportation, health care, education, real estate, and government. Companies or trading partners can exchange standard business documents as needed using EDI as long as both have made the preparations to do so. Some examples of the type of documents are purchase orders, invoices, shipping schedule, inventory inquiry, and many more.
EDI is not limited by differences in companies or communication methods. Instead, EDI bridges the information gap that exists between companies using different computer systems. EDI can’t be activated with a flip of the switch as many procedures must be carried out in preparation for exchanging EDI data with a trading partner.
There are typically two ways of communicating the data between trading partners. Usually the trading partner will designate the method of either a VAN or Direct Connect.
VAN (Value Added Network)
A Van is a third-party service that transmits and stores data in the “electronic mailbox” until it is picked up by the appropriate party. Since the EDI message contains addressing information, the VAN routes the message to the mailbox of the recipient. Until recently, it was considered the most secure method of transferring data. Communication via a VAN can sometimes become quite costly. Most VAN providers charge monthly for the services that they provide based on the number of kilo-characters transmitted.
Direct Connection
Unlike a VAN, a direct connection allows you to pass the data straight to the receiving party. There are a few types of direct connection like, VPN (Virtual Private Network), FTP (File Transfer Protocol), and EDIINT (EDI over the internet) usually EDIINT is done in conjunction with AS2 software which encrypts the data before sending it over the internet.
AS2: A new standard for data exchanges
AS2 (Applicability Statement 2) is the draft specification standard by which vendor applications communicate EDI or other business-to-business data (such as EDI and XML) over the Internet using HTTP, a standard used by the World Wide Web. AS2 provides security for the transport payload through digital signatures and data encryption and ensures reliable, non-repudiable delivery through the use of receipts. AS2 communications can securely transfer not only EDI documents but also documents in various formats such as X12, SML and Microsoft word. Due to the high level of security and cost-effectiveness, several businesses including major retailers such as Wal-Mart and Kohn’s have mad the move to AS2.
XML: A New Standard for Document Exchange and Application Integration
What is XML?
XML stands for “Extensible Markup Language. XML was developed by an XML Working Group in 1996 and became a formal specification in February 1998. XML is now an industry standard that enables accurate, flexible, information rich data exchange.
XML allows the flexible development of user-defined document types. XML is not a programming language, and you don’t have to be a programmer to use it or learn it. XML makes it easy for a computer to generate data, read data and ensure that the data structure is unambiguous. It provides a robust, non-proprietary, persistent and verifiable file format for the storage and transmission of text and data both on and off the Web.
XML is extensible, meaning that it is designed so that its capabilities can be expanded. XML is also platform-independent, meaning that data can be exchanged across the internet or from application to application, regardless of the operating system/application used.
Why is XML important?
XML is commonly used in enterprise application integration, linking legacy systems to newer systems such as intranets and Web sites. XML makes it easy to send data from any application to any internet or desktop application (application-to-application integration).
In order to appreciate XML, it is important to understand why it was created. XML was created so that richly structured documents could be used over the web. The adaptability and functionality of XML lends itself to many uses.
XML: A New Standard for Document Exchange and Application Integration
XML has the potential to become the method for exchanging data because it is easy to use, extensible (its capabilities can be expanded as needed) and platform-independent reasons and because XML document trading is more cost-effective than other means for exchanging data, XML is becoming the buzz word in the 3PL industry as the new standard format for trading documents electronically.
Who is using XML?
Distributors are beginning to use XML to trade documents such as Transfer Orders (shipments), Shipment Confirmations (shipment acknowledgements), Receipt Authorizations (inbound receipts), Receipts (receipt acknowledgements) and Product Master Updates with their fulfillment centers (3PL Warehouses). With the use of XML and applications that make use of internet connectivity, it is possible for 3PL’s and their customers to be “linked together” so that these documents can be traded seamlessly. At the distributor’s order processing center, the user generates the order and sends it as an XML document. In even as little as seconds, the order is received into the 3PL’s WMS system without any user interface – meaning that the user does not have to import a file into their system to create the order.
EDI and XML
The big question is, “Is traditional EDI obsolete?” There are advantages and disadvantages to both, so therein lay the debate. At this time, though, the answer is “Far from it.”
“When the largest company in the world won’t do business with you unless you do EDI; when the US health industry makes it mandatory to use EDI; when the world’s energy companies are using EDI; when institutions that are sending people into space are using EDI; when Universities are sending students’ records in EDI; and when a Department of Defense, with the largest budget ever, has an EDI system in place, then surely one can’t say EDI is obsolete.”*
In reality, XML and EDI are not mutually exclusive. “XML actually complements EDI. Any technology that promotes e-commerce is good for EDI.”*
However, flexibility and speed are the key factors that make XML a viable alternative to traditional EDI. It allows multi-point or many-to-many integration required in an elaborate trading partner network. Unlike traditional EDI, where information movement between companies is predominantly through batch transfers, XML fosters cost-effective, real time data exchange.
In addition, there are moves to enable traditional EDI documents to travel inside XML, as well as proposals to replace the existing traditional EDI formats with XML ones**.
Probably the biggest effect on traditional EDI is the rise of standardization attempts for XML business documents and transactions. The standard jointly sponsored by OASIS and United Nations/CEFACT is ebXML (Electronic Business XML) which provides Schemas for the common commercial transaction document types.**
freshware Housing
http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/connectivity-with-business-partners-423925.html
Veterans own over 5% of all small businesses in the United States. This growing number of small businesses, upwards of 4 million, is due to the success rate of veteran business startups being higher than the average due to the experience veterans have gained serving in the armed services. While there are a number of services to help veterans with business education, loans, and many organizations to help place veterans in jobs, until 1999 there were no services specifically focused on helping veterans start their own small businesses or franchise businesses.
Currently the armed forces offer several programs and opportunities for ex-military personnel who are interested in starting their own small business, including home based businesses that will allow veterans to work from home. The army in particular now offers the Army Advantage Fund. This program offers those who qualify money to help start a small business. For a 3-year enlistment you can earn $25,000, for 4 years up to $35,000, and for five or more years you can earn up to $40,000. Here is a list of 10 great home business opportunities and small business franchises that can each be started for less than $40,000.
#1 Spring Green is a Lawn care service franchise that has been serving communities for more than 30 years. They are locally owned and operated and invite franchisees to join them in service the $30 billion dollar lawn care industry. Spring Green also has a flex-start program, which allows franchisees to keep their current job while building the base for their new business. Also Spring Green offers a specific military assistance program as well that has a working grant from spring-green for veterans.
#2 Health Career agents offers veterans the important and profitable business opportunity of working in the health care business market. There is a critical shortage of healthcare professionals all across America. Who understands recruiting better than the armed forces? Put that experience to work by helping to recruit health care professionals through being either an owner/operator of a franchise, or becoming a Health Career recruitment agent
#3 American Business Systems, LLC is a state-of-the-art, web based electronic billing system. This solves medical offices’ cash flow and billing problems. No special education or certification is needed, as full training and ongoing support are provided to the franchisee. By signing up medical offices you reimburse their claims and charge a small percentage fee to process the billing through the electronic system that dramatically speeds up the billing process and reduces errors that lead to insurance claims being rejected.
#4 If your military service has left you with extensive experiences in technology and computer systems the Tech-Hero on site Computer Service franchise is looking for you. With a reputation of being professionals that work with customers to resolve computer and technology issues. Called heroes because of their desire to solve problems rather than bog down clients with “geek or nerd” terms the Tech-Heroes goal is to provide customers with exceptional service without making them feel ignorant or insignificant.
#5 In Your Home provides meaningful and important services to the senior population by providing advice, modifications, remodeling, and on-going maintenance and repair to elderly homeowners who want to “age-in-place.” If you have patience, solid work ethic, and a respect and care for elderly citizens, then In Your Home is a great small business opportunity to assist those senior members of the community to maintain their living standards so they do not have to relocate to nursing homes and elderly care facilities.
#6 If you have a head for finances, organization, and the passion to be successful then you should consider the Blue Coast financial group. Adding the title of Blue Coast Financial Advisor to a resume can provide an abundant source of additional income. Blue Coast Financial Advisors are fully trained upon becoming franchise owners and specialize in money saving analysis of companies and small businesses. Many businesses overpay for their workers compensation packages, equipment lease and rental insurance, research and development tax credits and many more. Blue Coast Financial Advisors are trained to recognize these oversights and correct them saving the companies that hire them thousands of dollars in unneeded expenses.
#7 If a more hands on type of home based business is what you are seeking in your small business venture look no further than PosiGrip. PosiGrip is a high profitable turnkey, home-based business with virtually no competition. Providing resurfacing and traction to slick and slippery-when wet surfaces such as concrete, tile, ceramic, and more, PosiGrip helps to combat the more than 9 million disabling slip and fall injuries accounting in more than 95 million lost work days each year. Each customer that utilizes your service also qualifies for a federal tax credit as a result of the safety provided by PosiGrip surfaces.
#8 For the small business owner who is looking for complete flexibility in their business opportunity the DVDNow kiosk is a very attractive option. This incredibly low cost business opportunity provides people with the convenience of renting a new release DVD from a kiosk in a convenient location such as a grocery store without the hassle of having to make an additional stop at a video store and wading through hundreds of out of date titles. The DVDNow kiosk can be serviced when you want, and by only carrying the most popular titles you save on stocking older movies, which only represent 10% of all DVDs rented. The DVDNow kiosk is quick and easy to start and offers immediate return on your investment.
#9 In the same vein of servicing machines the Vendstar vending machine company provides another 100% cash flow small business. The Vendstar owners set up as many vending machines as they choose to manage and service and can service and refill those machines at their convenience. With a cash-based business becoming a profitable small business owner is as simple as finding a location where people are and setting up your first Vendstar vending machine.
#10 Finally a business with continuing demand and constant need for more franchisers is the home inspection business. With Home Team inspecting you receive all the training and support you need to become a fully trained and licensed home inspector. Whether you choose to run your business with a work force of one or manage a team of inspectors, the Home Team Inspection service provides a necessary component in all purchase and sales of homes. People always need a place to live and with more and more homes being built everyday each sale requires an inspection. With Home Team Inspection Services you can quickly set up your own inspection franchise today.
These great opportunities appeal to the wide variety of skills and abilities that typically lead to high success rate in military personnel. For the military person seeking to run their own small business with the leadership and management skills that lead them to success in the armed services, these opportunities can help them find that same success and accomplishment in the business world.
Candice Clem
http://www.articlesbase.com/small-business-articles/top-10-small-business-opportunities-for-military-personnel-406822.html
www.bartonccc.edu
Contact Information:
Kathy Boeger
Instructor & Coordinator
Tech Accounting & Accounting
(620) 792-9203
boegerk@bartonccc.edu
Why Barton?
Classroom environment
Small classes – one on one attention
Hands on classes
Students leave Barton understanding accounting processes and basic business foundations more than students at the same grade level that started at a university
Instructors who care in and outside of classroom
Instructor led study sessions
Instructors will take students on college visits and will assist in their individual enrollments
Advisement system
Allows seamless transition to a four-year university
Bartons connection to the business world
Opportunities to network with regional businesses
Employers contact us wanting our students as employees
Internship opportunities with local employers
Advisory board from the regional business community gives program instructors advice about the program and how we can continue to improve it to meet current industry standards
Opportunity for Community service thru our student driven club Community Service Organization
Curriculum includes Work Ethics components
Research from the business industry shows business leaders refl ecting strong work and business ethics and leadership qualities will have the best opportunity for
employment
What are some of our graduates doing?
Our graduates are working in careers such as: Accounting, Communications, Finance, Marketing & Management, Travel & Tourism, Event Coordination, Education, and Mechanical Supervisor
Occupational Outlook
General and Operation Managers can expect to earn between $58,230 and $128,580 annually depending on industry and responsibility
Growth potential varies by industries:
Highest growth projection is in areas of professional, scientific, and technical services
Average or above growth in administrative and support services
Source: Kansas Career Pipeline
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Are you stuck up with the overload of work related to tax calculating? Then it is the right time to opt for outsourcing services that are being offered to accounting firms. Everybody likes to lessen work burden because you have to pay attention to each and every part of your task carefully. With the excess of workload, you may make mistakes that can drive you towards losses. And nobody is here to make losses, rather to earn huge amounts of profits in the field of business. The concept of accounting outsourcing is all about giving some part of your work or the entire one to an outsourcing company that will do the best work for you.
Everyone is aware of the fact that accounting outsourcing saves a lot of your money. Mainly, it is because of this reason that the outsourcing services are frequently sought after. As far as outsourcing is concerned, the saved money can be invested to boost any other department of your business that is on the losing end. Many a times, it happens that the accounting firms suffer huge losses due to their inattentiveness to other sectors of the business. In this case, accounting outsourcing proves to be a boon for your business.
Accounting outsourcing ensures better quality of service. It is because the firms that are handling outsourcing services concentrate thoroughly on the accounting work only. Many accounting firms or big business houses outsource various accounts related tasks, such as invoice generation, generating accounts, financial statements, trial balances, profit and loss account, pay roll processes, checking credit card accounts and lots more. Outsourcing is highly beneficial for you as it saves money that would have been wasted in hiring a proper staff for managing such accounting tasks.
The accounting outsourcing companies understand the need of getting things done at a faster speed. Such outsourcing companies are a blessing in disguise for those accounting firms and big business houses that are unable to manage their work. You can even monitor your work done by your outsourcing helpers. The information can be posted to the server in your company and this will let you keep a track of the efficiency and quality of work. The main aim of this service is to save you from problems that may crop up during tax sessions.
Tax session is the ultimate time that everyone gets tensed. It is because, if you are not able to file the tax on time; you can land up in big problems. Mainly because of this reason that outsourcing services are seeked from the other companies. Accounting outsourcing service has become mandatory for the over-burdened accounting firms. The professionals with outsourcing companies are skilled enough to manage the tasks properly and complete the work on time. After all, they understand the need of making good client relations.
Allies Harbor
http://www.articlesbase.com/outsourcing-articles/accounting-outsourcing-is-here-to-save-you-from-tax-related-problems-83581.html
Newly declared accounting majors and Masters of Science students are invited to attend this weekend-long program. Students learn about the accounting profession and accounting professionalism directly from accomplished professionals at the Big 4 CPA firms, industrial firms, and financial services firms.
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IRA Accounts by Jose F. Padro, CPA
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Softline Pastel takes accounting onto the Internet for small, medium businesses
May 28th, 2009
http://www.charged.co.za/frontpage/pastel-takes-accounting-online-for-small-medium-businesses
Softline Pastel – a member of the Softline Group and a local leader in accounting, payroll and business software — has launched Pastel My Business Online, its first online accounting system, which targets small to medium businesses (SMBs).
Very often, products become complicated by the sheer volume of features added to it over time, says Softline Pastel managing director Steven Cohen (pictured right), who explained that by developing Pastel My Business Online from scratch, the company had the opportunity to design the software specifically for business owners who were either starting out with very little bookkeeping knowledge, or who only wanted a basic system.
Pastel My Business Online is a multi-user system with dashboards, graphs and drill-downs to source transactions, and we believe it will be a joy to use.
The company has integrated My Business with the Apple iPhone and Cohen reports there are plans to port it to the Blackberry and Windows Mobile platforms in the near future.
Mobility, portability
According to Softline Pastel, accounting over the Internet not only gives the user greater mobility, but extending it to mobile devices makes it even more portable.
Users can view customers sales histories and contact details and write notes while on the road, or in front of a client.
Being online also allows an accountant to log on to the system without travelling to the customers premises to check accounts.
Softline Pastel states that it has accumulated some 200 000 users during its 20 years in business; during this time it has taken users through various shifts in technology.
These include:
* transitioning from the DOS operating system to Windows,
* 16-bit to 32-bit operating system changes, and now
* accounting over the Internet
Pragmatic
When we developed Pastel My Business Online, we used all our 20 years of experience to deliver a product that was user-friendly, intuitive and fun to use. We also disciplined ourselves to keep the product clean and uncluttered, said Cohen.
He explains that Softline Pastel took a pragmatic view and used the most appropriate developer technologies and delivery mechanisms for the development of the system.
Technology continues to move at a fast pace and with the growth of Software as a Service (SaaS) and Web 2.0 technologies we had to use a platform that will have legs in the future, he added.
However, while there is no doubt that the market for SaaS applications and service based software is growing — and we expect this trend to continue — we also believe that demand is not universal. Adoption will be gradual and will vary widely across markets, as customers in different sectors have different needs. Many businesses will adopt a hybrid approach to their business software and services, using a combination of desktop and SaaS applications.
Current systems
To this end, Softline Pastel will continue to enhance its current systems.
Our clients expect us to deliver the best software available while keeping an eye on new technologies that will make them more efficient, he said.
The launch of Pastel My Business Online is another show of our ongoing commitment to delivering cutting-edge solutions. We really offer the best of both worlds which makes customers feel comfortable and secure with Softline Pastel as their vendor of choice.
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Nichols Financial Service – Richard Nichols CPA, http://www.superpages.com/bp/Newark-NY/Nichols-Financial-Service-Richard-Nichols-CPA-L0501609775.htm, Newark, NY, SuperMedia, Accounting, Annuities, Bookkeeping Services, Business Accounting, Business Services, Consultations, Corporate Services, Estate Planning, Federal Taxes, Financial Planning, Financial Services, Insurance Services, IRAs, partnerships, Payroll, Payroll Processing, Tax Planning, Tax Preparation, Tax Preparations, Tax Return Preparation, Tax Services
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http://betterguideforyou.com/business-software — Providing Your Business Solutions
Customization of Forms more Professional looking than ever!
I am the CFO of a real estate law firm and have been using Quickbooks since 1999. As an accountant I understand the importance of having the financial data of a business presentable quickly and easily. For this reason I volunteered to be a beta tester of the new Quickbooks 2010 and was selected by Intuit giving me early access to the newest features!
The feature I love the most is the ability to create professional looking forms such as invoices to make an impression without having to buy preprinted forms. There are dozens of templates to choose from specific to many business categories such as tax preparers, construction, sales, etc. The template will fill your form completely with a shadow background with all of your form data printed crisply in the foreground. And, all this from your very own printer on plain paper! A tremendous cost saver over buying preprinted forms.
The only negative to the forms customization feature is the requirement that you create an online access account to store your many templates that I am sure that you will want to have! A minor negative but one that requires internet access. If you do not create the account than you will have to start the customization process over again if you want to change to a completely different template.
To get more about business software, please visit :
http://betterguideforyou.com/business-software
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To succeed in your job, you make decisions every day based on your grasp and outlook for your business. Here are some typical examples:
· You are in charge of sales; a competitor is doing well and your management wants you to deal with the problem.
· You are in charge of finance; the marketing department wants to spend money and you are asked to approve the request, based on your outlook for the company’s cash flow in the coming weeks.
· You are a regional sales manager who needs to reassign sales territories between the reps. Before you do, you want to know what the impact of the change will be on revenue, commissions, and travel expenses based on past performance.
In today’s difficult economic climate, if something goes wrong, saying “I didn’t know” is not a good excuse. To maximize your success you need good visibility into your business.
There Must be a Better Way
How many times have you found yourself faced with a decision and looking desperately for data that will help you make your choice easier?
If you are the sales director who was called to deal with a new competitor, you will want to look at your team’s win/loss record against that competitor. You will also want to know what discounts your sales team offered in those deals. And you will want to look at public data on the competitor’s financial performance to see how they are doing relative to your company and to your industry.
You can access your CRM system and get a list of sales prospects where the competitor was involved, along with the status (win/loss) of the deal, the sales region, and the date.
This information is helpful, but not enough. Missing, for competitive wins, are the amount that was actually booked and the discount that was given. To get this information, you go to your accounting system. But your accounting system doesn’t record competitive data, so you can’t simply generate a report that only lists wins against the competitor. What you end up doing is generating a list of all recent deals from your accounting system. You then look at the deals one at a time and try to match the deals in the report from your CRM system with those that appear in the report from the accounting system. Adding to your challenge is the fact that company names that appear in your CRM system don’t always match those in the accounting system. One system might list deals with “Coca Cola” and “IBM,” while the other system lists deals with “The Coca Cola Company” and “International Business Machines.”
You then have to resort to cutting and pasting data in Excel once again to compare your private company’s revenue performance to that of your competitor and the industry. You get the data on your industry and your competitor (a public company) from an industry analyst web site. You then combine it manually with your own company’s revenue data in Excel.
What should have taken you minutes ends up taking hours. The process was so tedious and labor intensive that it’s hard to avoid mistakes. And, if you decide to repeat the analysis a few days later, you’ll have to start from scratch, you can’t simply “refresh” the data. Some companies refer to this as “Excel hell.” Does it sound familiar?
Say Goodbye to Cutting and Pasting
If you need quick access to your company’s data, along with other information from the Internet, you now have a simple and affordable alternative to “Excel hell.” New software as a service (SaaS) business intelligence solutions deliver the answers you need on-demand. After a quick set-up, all you need to do is connect to the web and view the business analytics you need to be successful.
The sales operations director who was trying to combine data on competitive wins and losses from the CRM and accounting systems can now access a single, dynamic report that combines the current and historical information needed. All competitive wins and losses, along with revenue forecasted, revenue booked (for wins), and discount rates can be displayed, along with the relevant sales region and date.
Bringing in external data from the web is just as easy. The sales director can view a single report that compares the company’s internal (and confidential) revenue data against public data on the competitor and the industry.
To answer most questions, the sales director opens one of the prebuilt sales analytics. If the question is new and a report is not available, the sales director can easily create a new one without any technical help from others. The dynamic web reports combine data from different business applications, in this case from your CRM and accounting systems. The data is “cleansed” automatically before appearing in the reports to address inconsistencies between the different data sources (such as the IBM vs. International Business Machines issue).
But quick and simple access to data is not the only advantage of the on-demand business intelligence approach. SaaS analytic solutions are also designed to be simple to set-up, since all you need to do is connect to the “on-demand” service on the web. And last, but not least, SaaS business intelligence applications are simple to buy and affordable. In comparison, if your employer had decided to address this problem by building an on-premise business intelligence reporting and analysis solution in house, the acquisition and maintenance cost for all the pieces would easily reach a million dollars.
Business Visibility: Your Four Alternatives
Let’s review the alternatives that you have today to answer your business questions:
1. You can ignore the data, and just guess: You can ignore the unprecedented amount of transactional information that your company’s systems collect and just use your “gut” to guess what needs to be done. This is like keeping the lights off in your room and walking around in the dark. The data and business visibility is there for you if only you flip the switch on, but instead you can just choose to keep the lights out and ignore it.
2. You can continue to cut and paste data: You can continue to export data manually from each of your business applications to Excel and then waste your time cutting and pasting the information to combine it as you try to make some sense of your business. This is like walking around the dark room while holding a candle. You can make out individual objects. If you spend enough time you can even get a general sense of what is in the room; but you don’t get the full picture all at once. And if you’re not careful and make a mistake, you might get burned.
3. You can deploy an expensive BI solution: You can have your company design, procure, and maintain in house a traditional business intelligence reporting and analysis solution, assuming your company can afford it. But this is like installing a full electric power plant in your house just to light up your room. A BI solution implemented in house to generate multi-data source reports with cleansed and consistent data would require the following components: data extraction, transformation, and loading (ETL) technology with connectors to your business applications, like Salesforce.com and Netsuite; data cleansing technology; a data warehouse stored in a database management system; OLAP analysis services; a query and reporting tool, like Business Objects or Cognos. Assembling all of the above, whether from proprietary or from open source software takes months to design and deploy and costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to build and maintain.
4. You can get business visibility on demand – You can access the data that you need to be successful via the Internet and a SaaS business intelligence solution, on demand. This is equivalent to flipping on the light switch in your room. There’s no power plant in the house, the power is supplied by an electric utility company.
Which approach do you think makes the most sense for the future?
Business intelligence on demand: Why now?
You might ask: If on-demand business intelligence is such a great approach, then why wasn’t it available before? Traditional business intelligence solutions were designed for use inside the “four walls” of a company: They were built with the assumption that all users are full-time employees who access the business intelligence system inside the company’s secure network. The solutions also assumed that all the data that the users needed to see came from databases and applications sitting inside the company’s network.
In the past decade, all these “building assumptions” of traditional BI solutions changed: Many users, data, and applications now sit outside the company’s four walls. Just look at your own business today: How many of your contractors, partners, or even customers might benefit from viewing some of your business reports? To analyze your business and your market, how oft en do you access external data from the Internet? And how many on-demand business applications such as Salesforce.com or NetSuite do you use?
Traditional BI solutions did not anticipate these changes and their architectures cannot easily adapt to these new business realities. To get faster, more affordable, and simpler access to the data they need, with a solution that fits the new ways of doing business, employees are now shifting to SaaS business intelligence solutions. As with “on premise” solutions, the data is secure and users only have access to the information that they are authorized to see.
There is little doubt that future generations will look back and wonder why companies ever tried to configure full and costly BI suites of soft ware in house. For now employees simply wonder why it is so difficult to access the business information about their company that they need to be successful.
But this about to change.
George Scifo
http://www.articlesbase.com/sales-articles/i-didnt-know-is-no-excuse-in-a-business-720054.html