Infosys’ blog on industry solutions, trends, business process transformation and global implementation in Oracle.

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March 05, 2010

Spend Time on your Projects, Not on Reporting

Project Managers work in a constantly changing environment and are often looking for ways to manage the multitude of data elements within their reach. Typically the data is available, but it is scattered across different screens and the project managers need to spend a long time in consolidating them. This would always mean a customization and would require some lead time for the IT team to develop it.

Continue reading "Spend Time on your Projects, Not on Reporting" »

Posted by Prasanna Kelkar at 08:58 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

February 22, 2010

Oracle GTM - A Centralized Platform for Managing Global Trade Policies and Regulations

Oracle Global Trade Management (GTM) helps manufacturers manage trade policies and regulations by providing a global, centralized and customizable trade compliance solution that helps mitigate supply chain and compliance risk.
Initially Oracle planned to develop GTM as a part of OTM to address International Trade Logistics (ITL) requirements, mainly for customs documentation generation and denied parties association. Later on Oracle has changed their strategy and developed GTM as a separate product on the OTM platform (can be directly accessed from some specific screens of OTM 6.1, once GTM server gets installed).
GTM solutions can be used with any Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system and/or legacy order management system and/or as a standalone extension of the Oracle Transportation Management (OTM) family of applications.
With Oracle Global Trade Management the benefits for customers can be categorized as:
Global Trade Management:
*   Automate Trade Compliance: Accelerate supply chain processes and increase working capital utilization by ensuring products are not delayed in-transit due to compliance issues such as missing import/export documentation.
*   Master Trade Data Management: Centrally manage product, party and other data that are unique and necessary for trade.
*   Improve Product Classification: A central classification repository for all products worldwide supports country specific compliance and other classification driven business processes. In addition, assisted classification tools make product classification faster and easier.
Global Trade Compliance:
*   Implement Restricted Party and Sanction Screening: Manage and mitigate risk by screening government lists, internal gray lists, red flag words, and other custom content.
*   Achieve Trade Compliance: Help ensure compliance with trade regulations, import and export control regimes, embargos, sanctions and internal compliance programs by determining and applying trade controls that may exist for any type of transaction.

Acknowledgments for inputs from - Lakshmana Murthy Kodukula, OTM Consultant, Oracle Practice

Posted by Nilabja Dey at 08:29 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

New look of Oracle Transportation Management (OTM)

This latest release of OTM i.e. OTM 6.1 offers expanded capabilities in five primary areas:
*   Extensions to sourcing, planning, execution, financial settlement and visibility across all modes of transportation.
*   Extension of the multi-modal capabilities supported for transportation sourcing by addressing complex-ocean bids as well as accessorials for both truck and ocean.
*   Expansion of Oracle Fleet Management with new capabilities that help reduce transportation costs and improve equipment utilization by enhancing the planning and optimization engine for solving complex fleet planning scenarios.
*   The introduction of new business intelligence capabilities and additional dashboard reports to drive process efficiency and help measure and monitor 'green' metrics such as CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) Emissions, NOX (Oxides of Nitrogen) Emissions and Total Fuel Consumption.
*   "Oracle Global Trade Management”, a new product offering of Oracle delivered within the OTM platform. This new product is designed to support the import-export compliance needs of companies engaged in global trade.

This combination makes OTM the only solution that enables companies to manage their comprehensive trade compliance and transportation requirements, including fleet, on a global basis within one central platform.

By further automating logistics processes and supporting sustainability initiatives, OTM 6.1 helps shippers and logistic service providers lower transportation costs improve efficiencies and reduce their environmental impact.
 

Advanced Fleet Management and Support for Sustainability Objectives
As part of the enhancements to Oracle Fleet Management, OTM 6.1 delivers a new mobile communication platform that improves shipment visibility by allowing fleet dispatchers to capture data-rich information about shipments and communicate with drivers in real-time. The mobile communication platform also enables fleet dispatchers to drive process efficiencies by automating shipment monitoring to determine whether an event requires additional action or support.

Reinforcing Oracle's commitment to the "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) SmartWay Transport Partnership, the new release includes a 'Green Dashboard' that incorporates SmartWay emission factors for measuring and monitoring 'green' metrics that are intended to offer a baseline for 'green' calculations. The SmartWay Transport Partnership helps freight sector companies reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve energy efficiency through strategies, financing and advanced technologies.
 

All these features are so unique in TMS world and had given a fresh and new look to OTM.

Acknowledgments for inputs from - Lakshmana Murthy Kodukula, OTM Consultant, Oracle Practice

Posted by Nilabja Dey at 08:23 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

February 19, 2010

Managing Intercompany transactions for Global Projects

Globalization has changed the way companies do business. Because of increasing competition and pressure on margins they are forced to have multiple Operating Units /Departments and Projects work together on a single deal, yet the customer wishes to receive only one bill. Parts of the work performed may be billed externally to a customer while other work may be billed internally to another project. These types of business needs require a way to capture multiple project costs into one project regardless of where or by whom the work is performed.

Continue reading "Managing Intercompany transactions for Global Projects" »

Posted by Prasanna Kelkar at 08:34 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 26, 2010

The Importance of being Earnest (on Oracle Rollup Patches)

Oracle Implementation projects at large organizations typically tend to span over a long period of time and quite often into years. Wide scope of requirements, complexity of design, elaborate testing efforts and smooth cutover planning, all mandate substantial investment of time. This may lead to substantial time getting elapsed between start of the project and the go-live of implementation.

During the implementation, the project teams start with a given version of oracle code and design the solution based on that version. In large implementations, substantial number customizations are built for the customer specific requirements. During project implementation duration itself, oracle may come out with new Rollup patches for the modules that are being implemented. As applying the Rollup patches may significantly impact the already built customizations and since they require significant analysis and regression testing, these new Rollup patches are not applied to Oracle instance used during the implementation, unless it is a must to resolve a project specific issue, Thus, more often than not, the oracle version that gets implemented at go live is the same that was started with at the time of design.

Further, after the go live, the projects teams and client business teams are focused on making the production environment stable. The thrust is on making sure that all the built components and solution work as has been expected as per the designed solution. So it takes some more time to make sure the production environment is stable and running smoothly and during this time the new Rollup patches are not taken up for application. Further, successful implementations are very close in being able to provide to the customers almost all the functionalities that they sought from the implementation. With requirements being met, the client organization’s IT and support team’s next goal is to ensure continuity of systems to the business and operations. Due to this, the latest Rollup patches do not get applied to the production environments even further down the line.

Also, since the oracle implementation are large initiatives for the client organizations, they tend to be sticky in the sense that customers tend to harness the implemented oracle system for a good number of years before planning for any major change unless it is required by a new initiative.  And, in some situations, the cost of large implementations leads to client management ramping down teams and focus on maintaining the system rather than bring any further changes that may impact the existing system. This tendency further causes delays in taking up the Rollup patches for application.

Thus multiple years would have passed on since the start of the Oracle implementation without the newer Rollup patches being applied to the system. As a result of all this, the oracle version in production would have become woefully out of sync with the latest versions from Oracle. In case of some rapidly evolving oracle modules (e.g. WMS), this gap becomes even more pronounced.

This can be a very drastic situation for production environments that are at the core of running large scale business operations. What further increases the gravity of the situation is the fact that this criticality may not be borne out to system managers until the production system runs into a major issue with Oracle standard code. When a major production issue occurs and it needs to be resolved in the oracle code, then to be able to fix the issue Oracle support expects the client systems to be close to the latest system versions vis-à-vis the program files pertaining to the issue. Often times the issue may not be replicable within oracle support instances due to version differences. Then oracle development and support further necessitate that the production system version be the latest. Moreover, it may not be possible for oracle to fix the issue in isolation as changing just few of the files may have impacts that are widespread in the system.

So, it might lead to a situation that there is not an existing oracle patch to resolve the issue and Oracle is not able to provide a one off customer specific patch. Even if it is possible, Oracle may take some time in building a one off patch and testing it. If the issue is so critical that it is stopping the operations, this time lag may lead to huge losses to business. This can cause a scenario wherein the latest rollup patch needs to be applied urgently. As this would require significant regression testing, it will significantly delay the resolution time of the issue. Also, applying the rollups within a short timeframe may not leave enough time for proper planning and rigorous testing of the patch.

Therefore, it is highly imperative for system managers to ensure that the Oracle versions in production are timely updated with latest rollup patches. The application of rollup patches should be taken up in earnest and due importance should be paid to this activity. This will help in planning properly for the application of these patches and performing rigorous end to end testing of the same. Further, this will ensure that the system is capable of handling any eventuality if it arises. The resolution turn around time for any critical issue will be short and business and operations will be affected to a lesser extent in case of issues.

Also, with the system being on the latest versions, any new initiatives and new solution that need to be brought in to the oracle system can be taken up quickly as and when they come up and implementing these solutions will not require an extra effort of bringing the systems in sync with the latest version. Overall, it makes a lot of business sense to continually asses and evaluate the new Rollup patches provided by oracle for application in the production systems and ensure the sustainability of the system.

Posted by Pragyesh Dwivedi at 02:08 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 25, 2010

Lean Transportation: Reduce Transportation Wastes using OTM

Taiichi Ohno, the father of Toyota Production System says, “Transportation is a waste and has to be reduced”. Transportation within the organization is considered a waste which does not add any value. What many overlook is the fact that transportation does not only imply inside the manufacturing facility but also outside it. The outside transportation can, not only help add value but also act as a differentiator. With many companies implementing Lean Manufacturing concepts, it is of paramount importance that the Logistic strategies are also aligned to it. Let us analyze the different wastes in transportation and how they can be reduced using Oracle Transportation Management (OTM), a Transportation Management System (TMS) by Oracle.

With Lean Manufacturing implementation the supplier and the manufacturer collaborate to tune themselves to listen to the customer demand and produce only what is required. They continuously aim to reduce inventory and create a pull system. This requires the transportation to have frequent truck runs with lesser quantity. Most organizations prefer going for Milk Runs with the right size equipments.

Customers also prefer smaller and frequent orders and this reduces the opportunity for full truckloads and direct shipments. In this case organizations have to look at other modes to transfer the goods. Mostly LTL transport is looked at. In many cases the orders are such that they are not fit for LTLs (more weight or volume) but do not fully utilize the full truckload capacity either. In such cases the planners forget the fact that multi-stop shipments can fully utilize the trucks.

One of the key factors for instantaneous response is proper communication between the carrier and the manufacturer. Visibility of the shipments for various reasons like warehouse planning, customer queries etc. is essential. The delivery times for all the carriers needs monitoring so that the efficient carriers can be identified.

To implement lean transportation, organizations are looking at their transport network very closely. Every route is being rationalized so that better vehicle utilization can be achieved. This exercise needs to be done continuously for reduction in the waste.

For some of the above OTM can be very useful, become partners for waste reduction and make the system lean.

Ø  The schedule for the Milk Run is entered in OTM and the shipments are formed accordingly, helping the manufacturer have several runs for a pre-defined route.

Ø  The planning engine of OTM takes care of the customer order planning. It helps in giving you the right mode with the right equipment to deliver the shipment to the customers at the right time.

Ø  Planning engine takes care whether to build a Multi-Stop, LTL, Direct or a Multi-Leg based on all the constraints on the order.

Ø  OTMs powerful Supply Chain Event Management tracks the shipment which helps in planning at the warehouse and answering customer queries quickly. It gives immediate information about the current status of the shipment. The shipments are routed to the correct Dock so that the time wastage on unloading is reduced.

Ø  Cooperative Routing feature of OTM identifies repetitive routes and helps in determining the right number of vehicles required for a particular route. This supplements the Transport Network rationalization.

Ø  Fusion Transportation Intelligence module provides a means to monitor Key Performance Indexes like number of on-time deliveries, number of late deliveries, total load pre lane etc. These help in making strategic decisions and revise the carrier collaboration programs to make the supply chain more effective and leaner.

Reducing wastes in transportation is one of the key factors for making the supply chain lean and OTM can act as a strategic partner to achieve it.

Acknowledgement: Anirban Roy

Posted by Nilabja Dey at 04:30 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 16, 2009

5 Mistakes Every Future ERP Implementation should make

a)    Choose a costly Partner than a cost effective vendor
*    One must thoroughly assess all of options in evaluating potential external implementation companies. Software companies aren't always the best at implementing their own software, and some are more expensive than others. An organization should look at a vendor who can partner with them in their ERP initiatives not only for software implementation but also in managing the non-technical aspects of the project, such as organizational change management, training, and ERP benefits realization.

 

b)    Map the software to Business requirements don’t just buy it
*    If an organization has decided that ERP is the route it needs to take, it is important to begin by looking at the desired software to implement. In most of the cases, package selection is influenced by top executives who have previously worked on particular package.
*    Instead, executives should define and document key business requirements irrespective of the package that may be selected. This includes not only nice-to-haves, but also requirements that can be "proposal-breakers" if the software is unable to accommodate. The package selected should focus on achieving measurable business value for the organization, and one should choose the software that best enables to do this

 

c)    Focus less on System training and more on Change management / Executive sponsorship
*    What is your Business Case and ROI? This is where many companies fall apart. Answering and documenting this question is important to get Executive sponsorship and ownership for an ERP program.
*    The lack of a change management approach as part of the program can prevent a program from succeeding. Resistance to change is human nature and is quite often caused by (1) A failure to convince a case for change, (2) Lack of involvement by those responsible for working with changed processes (3) Inadequate / Improper communication (4) Lack of visible top management support and commitment, and (5) Arrogance.  A lack of buy-in often results from not getting end-users involved in the project from the very start, thereby negating their ownership of the new system and processes.
*    ERP-related training is also crucial as most employees must learn new software integration and business processes which affect the operation of the entire organization. Appropriate focus should also be given on this part of the ERP implementation else it leads to much pain and suffering downstream.

 

d)   Don’t just Save Dollars sometimes?
*    One of the key causes of ERP implementation failure is unnecessary cost cutting. In an effort to avoid multi phased roll out costs, repetitive conversion costs, some companies take a very risky route and go live “Big-bang” at multi-plant sites simultaneously, subjecting all plants or some plants to a total shutdown, should there be a failure
*    Some projects have compressed schedules in order to save on expenses, only to eventually overrun both schedule and budget.
*    Sometimes the question “What is my Value for Money / ROI?” should take a back seat as some projects should be treated as an upgrade to the company infrastructure that is necessary to maintain or gain a strategic and competitive advantage.
e)    Yes we can but are we prepared for Failure?
*    Best organizations would prepare themselves for unforeseen contingencies, similarly all implementation projects should have a fail over plan. No matter how well-run a project is, one should be prepared for failure.
*    If the project failed or if the software was not implemented correctly, what will be the backup plan? Would users be able to access legacy systems? Would certain processes be performed manually until the system is brought up? Catastrophic failures may not be common, but they do happen on occasions, so companies should be prepared for the "what-ifs."

 

Posted by Sachin Chitlange at 01:45 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Go Green: TMS Approach to Reduce Carbon Footprints


 

The Copenhagen Climate Summit is grabbing the newspaper headlines all over the world. This led me to introspect about how Oracle Transportation Management (OTM), a Transportation Management System (TMS) by Oracle, can help in making the world a better place to live.

Several researchers have revealed the fact that 15% of the global emissions and 31% of the Ozone release can be attributed to transportation. This suggests that we have a large gap to fill in. Being a Transportation and OTM consultant my first thought was how OTM helps to fill up this gap.

Oracle itself builds products which are “ISO 14001 Environment Management Standard” compliant. It helps organizations fulfill its environmental policies. This led me to believe that the same has been built into OTM as well. The benefits for the environment are plenty. Before we get into the environmental benefits let’s try to figure out the benefits every company is looking for after an OTM implementation. Then we’ll see how the 2 are connected. Organizational benefits after an OTM implementation:

·         Route Optimization without any compromise on delivery dates/time.

·         Explore multi-modal and continuous move opportunities while planning

·         Explore consolidation opportunities while planning

·         Automated shipment execution (includes tendering and visibility) and freight settlement process

·         Automate pool and cross dock planning

·         Reduction in Transportation Costs

What many ignore is the fact that most of the above benefits inherently helps reduce the company’s carbon footprint and makes it greener. Let’s try to break it up.

1.       Route Optimization without any compromise on delivery dates/time –

a.        Reduction in truck miles

2.       Explore multi-modal and continuous move opportunities while planning –

a.       Reduction in truck miles

b.      Reduction in number of trucks

3.       Explore consolidation opportunities while planning –

a.       Reduction in number of trucks

4.       Automated shipment execution (includes tendering and visibility) and freight settlement process –

a.       Paperless environment

The points above make it very apparent that OTM reduces the fuel consumption and in turn reduces the CO2 emissions. EDI integration for Shipment Execution (204, 990 & 214) and Freight settlement (210, 110) makes the entire process paperless and also automates it. Apart from the above, “Cooperative Routing” helps corporations make strategic decisions on which route to optimize and in turn optimize the fleet utilization.

Want to know how much your corporation emits after OTM implementation? Very soon OTM’s Transportation Intelligence module, FTI, will help in providing a dashboard for knowing the CO2, NOX and Fuel Consumption for each transport modes run by the corporation’s transportation department.

OTM TMS is a very effective way to reduce the unnecessary emissions of a corporation due to transportation. OTM combines the environment protection and cost reduction in such a symbiotic way that it not only helps the organizations but society at large.

Courtesy: Anirban Roy

Posted by Nilabja Dey at 09:09 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

December 15, 2009

GLOBAL TRADE MANAGEMENT THROUGH OTM

Trade locally had become a very old practice for any economy across the world; global trade is the new axiom any enterprise is looking at for global business to survive. In this context Transportation of goods in the Supply value chain has a prominent role in any Enterprise Global Trade Management. As the word goes (Global); the goods has to cross across borders moving from one location to another and in the process has to stop and go at the point of Customs.
Oracle Transportation Management (familiarly known as OTM) has built its architecture to address the latest Global Trade Management solutions in its Application. The Application is very robust that it has in-built functions of Denied Party Screening, Embargoed Country Screen Service, Import/Export Ban Country Service. Apart from the above functions various customization of the application facilitates OTM(Oracle Transportation Management) to serve as an information supplier to AMS (Automated Manifest System) of US Customs and Border Protection (AMS is a multi-modular cargo inventory control and release notification system).
The above functionality can be achieved:
Ø  Outbound integration of the service provider’s OTM Application to the US Customs and Border Protection system
Ø  Inbound integration of the US Customs and Border Protection system to the service provider’s  OTM Application

Out-bound Integration:

Service Provider’s (Shipping Liner, NVOCC) OTM application will create the vessel – cargo manifest by considering all the details required by the US Customs and Border Protection system and have them validated in the BPEL middleware. BPEL transforms the required AMS data elements (Vessel/Voyage ID, Ports of Source and Destination, Cargo Description, SCAC, B/L, Shipper/Consignee etc.) from the Shipment information into the respective file format which customs would accept. The data file will be sent to AMS system from OTM through the external system setup.


In-bound Integration:

US Customs and Border Protection system will process the Carrier’s request and allows faster identification and release of low risk shipments if the information is accurate as per the Custom rules and regulations. If the rules were not matching as per the customs regulations the service providers receive the corresponding status or alerts which helps them to modify the said information in the Shipment manifest.

Conclusion:

OTM – AMS integration reduces reliance on paper documents and speeds the processing of manifest and waybill data. As a result, cargo remains on the dock for less time, participants realize faster tracking, and Customs provides better service to the importing community.
 

Courtesy: satya_vabilisetty

Posted by Nilabja Dey at 05:31 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 08, 2009

ERP - Integrating Acquisitions

Challenges in M&A

Mergers and acquisitions are raining in banking and financial industry. Recently there have been a lot of them in Banking space across geographies to meet different needs of organization varying from survival to growth. However most of initiatives fail to deliver expected outcome due to various reasons including system integrations.

To meet M&A objectives, firms should have proper strategic direction on system integration and back office works. Firms should focus on two different areas like process and data integration in a phased manner. Data integration should happen first followed by Process integration to move toward Centre of Excellence

A clear integration model and strategy needs to be chalked out for ERP integration of the merged entity with a proper project charter and governance. Some key directions can be

a)   The internal IT strategy should aim to integrate, centralize, outsource, and economize

b) Power and Politics should be properly managed i.e. more time and money should be spent for BPR and change management

c)  Innovative strategy to retain employees with relevant knowledge is key for integration

d) An excellent communication strategy is important

e) Focus on gradual IT cost reduction by Application portfolio rationalizations

Continue reading "ERP - Integrating Acquisitions" »

Posted by Sachin Chitlange at 05:52 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 07, 2009

Project cost control ... But at what Cost?

Accurate and effective cost control is the most important solution aspect for any Projects based solution implementation. How ever how to determine the optimum level for cost control remains on of the biggest challenge in the solution.

Continue reading "Project cost control ... But at what Cost?" »

Posted by Prasanna Kelkar at 10:19 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 04, 2009

OTM Out-of-Box Integration with Oracle WMS

In the OTM world, there is a common misperception among OTM Consultants and Customers that OTM is not integrated with Oracle WMS. But the fact is OTM is integrated with Oracle WMS and leverages the same Out-of-Box OTM integration that exists with EBS for other modules like Oracle Purchasing, Order Management, Accounts Payable & Accounts Receivable. In R12.1, Oracle has further enhanced OTM by including Warehouse Dock Door and Dock Schedule Information in the integration footprint.  From the warehousing perspective, the current integration means that one can perform warehouse tasks based on the transportation plan. In other words one can release lines for picking prior to dock appointment and staging the products to the dock door where the dock appointment has been made.
From a WMS perspective there are two interested integration points:
·         Shipping Itinerary Integration
·         Dock Door Appointments Integration

Shipping Itinerary Integration
The most interested integration from the warehouse perspective is “Delivery trip interface with OTM”. This is a very trickier integration, since by necessity it has to be a two way integration. EBS sends the Order information to OTM for planning and OTM sends the shipping itinerary back to EBS based on transportation constraints and goals. EBS then executes the pick, pack and ship process and resends the information back to OTM for rerating if required.
EBS concurrent program “Shipping Transportation Outbound Interface” creates Order Release in OTM from EBS Delivery.  So, as you probably guessed, deliveries in EBS are a pre-requisite for using this integration. Once the OTM transportation plan is finalized, OTM triggers planned shipment interface concurrent request to create a trip in EBS.            

Dock Door Appointments Integration
If the OTM dock appointments are used, then there is a brand new interface point introduced in R12.1. The “Dock Door Appointments Interface” is applicable for WMS only. This interface synchronizes the dock doors defined in WMS to OTM. This model assumes that WMS is the source for dock door definitions. R12.1 has “Synchronize Dock Door with Transportation Management” concurrent request for dock door synchronization.

Conclusion:
The current OTM-WMS integration is robust and works as described. However, the integration may require tweaking in case of more complex needs and/or operating a very dynamic logistics environment. There are few ‘missing links’ that needs to be addressed, that can help customers in designing a more efficient fulfillment operation.

Acknowledgements: Lakshmana Murthy Kodukula

Posted by Nilabja Dey at 04:25 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 17, 2009

Use Oracle EAM effectively, turn Assets to Cash!

Managing assets is crucial for any business, especially for Oil Field service companies which are asset intensive where operational cost in asset management contributes to a substantial part of expenses. Even a 6-8 % saving on operational cost can make lot of difference.

Continue reading "Use Oracle EAM effectively, turn Assets to Cash!" »

Posted by Manish Malhotra at 08:52 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 05, 2009

That’s not really a Project !

Oracle Project offers a very tight and out of box integration with other systems, which are typically, operational in nature. Oracle project connects with procurement, payables, inventory, WIP etc to collect the cost that is incurred for a particular project (and task). So basically if users are able to stamp a proper projects signature on all the transactions which are recorded in “operations” system like payables, procurement, inventory etc, the cost collection for a project really becomes very easy.

Continue reading "That’s not really a Project !" »

Posted by Prasanna Kelkar at 10:50 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

October 01, 2009

EBS R12 Roadmap: Upgrade Vs Re-Implementation Decision

In my last blog on this topic,

http://www.infosysblogs.com/oracle/2009/09/ebs_r12_roadmap_a_global_retai_1.html

I mentioned that a judicious decision on any Upgrade Vs Re-Implementation decision is always based on a combination of objective considerations (parameters where decision can be relatively easily made) and subjective considerations (parameters which vary in importance depending client’s particular business issues and the significance of the factor for any given situation).

In this blog, I will try to list down these objective and subjective considerations which will help in deciding as to what is desirable in any client scenario. Let us look at the possible Objective Considerations and desirable Upgrade or Re-Implement decisions for each parameter.

Continue reading "EBS R12 Roadmap: Upgrade Vs Re-Implementation Decision" »

Posted by Vivek Singh at 09:10 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

September 16, 2009

IFRS - Are you ready for Dual Reporting?

Worldwide countries are moving for either adopting or converging to IFRS as common accounting standards across globe. However during transition phase which is spread over next decade, organization adopting IFRS will have to do dual reporting to meet the requirement of IFRS 1.

Continue reading "IFRS - Are you ready for Dual Reporting?" »

Posted by Pravin Sekhani at 10:41 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

August 12, 2009

An Introduction to Oracle Manufacturing Operations Center (MOC)

Does your manufacturing intelligence system support proactive monitoring for quick decision support? Lots of data gets collected on your shop-floor – but how should it be organized to assess the performance of a machine, a line, a plant, or a fleet of plants? What will it take you to make the process more a science than an art? Oracle has launched a new product - Manufacturing Operations Center - to answer some of these questions.

Continue reading "An Introduction to Oracle Manufacturing Operations Center (MOC)" »

Posted by Deepak Wankhade at 06:43 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

August 04, 2009

Best Practices in Handling Uncertainties in Business Requirements in Enterprise Solution Implementations

Experience shows it is impossible to define all business requirements in the initial phase of a packaged software implementation. Some requirements are missed due to schedule pressure or oversight, while others originate later due to changed business realities. How can program sponsors manage changing requirements without impact to budgets and schedules? This article attempts to answer the question based on practices observed in multiple large enterprise system implementations.

Continue reading "Best Practices in Handling Uncertainties in Business Requirements in Enterprise Solution Implementations" »

Posted by Deepak Wankhade at 01:19 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

August 03, 2009

Oracle Configuration Controls Governor for your Set-up needs

How do you verify that Oracle Applications set-up standards are being consistently applied across organizations? How do you monitor that approval controls and financial limits are changed only when properly authorized? How do you determine why functionality works in one instance but not in another? How do you ensure your set-ups are defined consistently across instances when changes are propagated? How do you automate SOX and other audit or regulatory compliance requirements? How do you manage the changes required for new rollouts, business organizations, or version upgrades? How do you provide time stamped documentation of application setups? How do you identify what changed when errors occur?

Continue reading "Oracle Configuration Controls Governor for your Set-up needs" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 07:31 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 24, 2009

Change Management challenges in Projects solutions implementation.

Most of the organizations are typically used to tracking project progress based on % cost spent. Moving to a detailed, sophisticated and integrated Project management solution certainly poses a major “change management” challenge. In this blog lets look at few points which implementation team can keep in mind to address this effectively.

Continue reading "Change Management challenges in Projects solutions implementation." »

Posted by Prasanna Kelkar at 08:02 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

June 23, 2009

MDM Best Practices – The first steps

Further to my earlier post on managing expectation from MDM implementation – we will discuss on some of the best practices for Master Data Management (MDM).

A company decide on going for a MDM program - what are the first steps to be taken to ensure a successful implementation of the program.

Continue reading "MDM Best Practices – The first steps" »

Posted by Krithivasan S at 08:52 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

June 10, 2009

Video - Want NextGen Application Integration? Look at Oracle PIPs

Are you looking for a tool that ensures maximum convergence of the best-of-breed Oracle applications deployed at your enterprise?

Let’s discuss how Oracle Process Integration Packs (PIPs) not only offer out-of-the-box process integration solutions to composite industry processes, but also cut deployment times significantly.

Posted by Malay Kumar at 11:51 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

June 08, 2009

What do you optimize in your Supply Chain?

In one of my earlier blogs , I had introduced Oracle Strategic Network Optimization as a tool to optimize your supply chain. Well, the primary objective is to deliver a consistent, flexible, efficient, sustainable, Supply Chain  which results in an optimized output that considers all trade-offs such as customer delivery, cost, risk, lead time, tax, carbon footprint, etc. Please refer to the link below:(http://www.infosysblogs.com/oracle/2009/05/linear_programming_models_orac.html#more)

Continue reading "What do you optimize in your Supply Chain?" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 08:52 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

June 03, 2009

MDM Implementation – Managing Expectations!

Managing expectations is what we do most of the time in our life.

Managing customer expectations – this is a big topic. We restrict ourselves to discussing a couple of expectations from customers when they plan to implement an MDM solution. MDM is a growing field – people have limited knowledge and there is no clear leader in MDM product offering. So obviously customers will have certain expectations and inhibitions about the MDM implementation.

Continue reading "MDM Implementation – Managing Expectations!" »

Posted by Krithivasan S at 09:36 AM | | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

May 18, 2009

CDI – Critical Path to Trading Community Dynamics

Mergers and Acquisitions activity is getting increasingly common and challenging in current business environment.  These dynamics in the trading community (Customers, Suppliers...etc) of an enterprise needs to be effectively managed. Any inflexibility in administering the dynamics would increase the risk exposure, loss of opportunity, lack of insight into customers, and revenue leakage. In cases where an enterprise is part of Merger or acquisition activity, lack of proper CDI strategy for any of the participant enterprises would make realization of intended ROI difficult. Read through this blog for more information.

Continue reading "CDI – Critical Path to Trading Community Dynamics" »

Posted by Aruna Srikanth at 06:49 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 17, 2009

Regulated Energy and Utility Market Challenges – Pricing

In today’s competitive environment the unit prices for electricity and gas is driven heavily by the competition between energy companies.However, to ensure that the customer receives a fair price and to avoid monopoly, it is quite common to have this price overseen by regulation.  Though there are many pricing models available in different countries, by and large the pricing models in regulated scenarios are either revenue based pricing or rate based pricing.  This blog briefly touches upon the pricing models and the components of prices. Pl. note that the examples in this blog focuses on UK energy market.     

Continue reading "Regulated Energy and Utility Market Challenges – Pricing" »

Posted by Ismail Syed Mohammad at 08:54 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 15, 2009

Oracle's vertical integration - A move towards Cloud Computing ?

I read about Oracle’s acquisition of Sun; a move which had been preempted and discussed after IBM’s failed attempt to acquire Sun few months earlier. And then the obvious question “ Why Sun” ?

As per my understanding, Oracle acquired Sun for open standard Java language , a backbone of various applications and mobile phone related software . The second reason is Solaris on which a high number of Oracle database runs. Also a significant chunk of Sun’s revenue comes from maintenance services( around 40%) , a revenue stream which Oracle cannot ignore and which means Sun’s hardware business is still going to remain(though Hardware is considered to be a low margin business). And should we account of Sun’s customer base too..

Continue reading "Oracle's vertical integration - A move towards Cloud Computing ?" »

Posted by Amandeep Singh Syali at 08:51 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Linear Programming Models: Oracle Strategic Network Optimization is the Answer

Remember those Linear Programming Problems in College? We used to find an optimized solution based on certain constraints. Some of the popular methods of solving these were Graphical, Simplex and Big-M Method. Also, there were software programs available to minimize the computation efforts.

Continue reading "Linear Programming Models: Oracle Strategic Network Optimization is the Answer" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 03:46 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 14, 2009

Regulated Energy and Utility Market Challenges - IFRS compliance challenges in Fixed Asset Management processes

Vertically integrated utilities have large assets in form of their generation stations and their components.  This part of the business is regulated in some countries.  Through the regulatory environment, the government gets involved in various aspects of utilities viz., pricing, Secured energy supply, Pressure to reduce carbon footprint etc.,.  Equally there are some accounting challenges that are posed through regulations and reporting norms.  This blog talks about one such challenge faced by generators on the way in which they manage and report their generation Assets and their significant components.

Continue reading "Regulated Energy and Utility Market Challenges - IFRS compliance challenges in Fixed Asset Management processes" »

Posted by Ismail Syed Mohammad at 07:49 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

April 28, 2009

Product Data Integration Challenge: Structured Vs Unstructured Data

The two key components of Master Data Management (MDM) are Product Data Management and Customer Data Management.  The customer data consists of mostly structured data like Name, Address etc., whereas product data is highly unstructured. Product Data will have unstructured data like CAD Drawings, Specification Sheets, Images etc.  While creating a product master data in a MDM system – you need to migrate product information from multiple disparate systems into your MDM system. Integration of unstructured product data during migration throws lot of challenges.

Continue reading "Product Data Integration Challenge: Structured Vs Unstructured Data" »

Posted by Krithivasan S at 08:36 AM | | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

April 20, 2009

Periodic Average Costing (PAC) Demystified

Last week when I was talking to some people, there was a major hue and cry about the need for changing the costing method. They went to the extent of trying to compare Periodic Average Costing and Average Costing. But what they failed to realize was that they were comparing apples with oranges.

Continue reading "Periodic Average Costing (PAC) Demystified" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 06:01 AM | | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

March 16, 2009

Integrated Receiving (RI): Oracle’s Solution for Brazil

In one of my earlier blogs, I had discussed why Brazil is different from other countries. One of the legal requirements in Brazil is if you are selling in Brazil you have to own inventory (at least in your system if not a physical warehouse). For a company with no manufacturing in Brazil, there is an import process whereby goods need to be received against a Purchase Order. The core Oracle product does not have the provision to comply with legal and statutory requirements for Brazil when it comes to receiving.

Continue reading "Integrated Receiving (RI): Oracle’s Solution for Brazil" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 02:36 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

March 13, 2009

Thinking of R12 – Do it now!

In the tough recession phase, an upgrade to R12 EBS can reduce cycle times and streamline the core business flows. The core OM features like MOAC help in providing a shared services model. For most of your OM needs, R12 brings ways to bridge those gaps. The complex business processes can be well managed using R12.

Oracle R12 is a major release with large number of enhanced functional capabilities. With significant changes to architecture and technology, this release is recognized as the "global business release".
Thinking of R12 upgrade should no more be a question. Join the R12 journey and feel the difference.

Posted by vikas khurana at 11:26 AM | | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

March 09, 2009

Brazil Localization: How is it different?

With the economy in such turmoil, more and more companies are looking at emerging countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) for growth. With unique statutory, legal and language requirements, it is imperative that companies follow the rules of the land to do business.

Continue reading "Brazil Localization: How is it different?" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 03:09 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

February 24, 2009

Is Lean Manufacturing the answer to your operational woes -II

Previous post - Is LEAN Manufacturing the answer to your operational woes?

A straight forward answer to whether 'Lean manufacturing is the answer to operational efficiency woes' is not feasible, but researchers have acknowledged that along with agility, leanness in operations and manufacturing is important. Most of the ERP and Supply Chain products provide ways and means to inculcate these processes into the e-business architecture.

Continue reading "Is Lean Manufacturing the answer to your operational woes -II" »

Posted by Arnab Banerjee at 06:40 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

February 23, 2009

Customers – Lifeblood of an Enterprise!

All of us are customers in one way or the other in our everyday life. How satisfied are we with the service, products that are sold to us? Do we even know how vital are we to an enterprise for their business growth, sales, profits etc.? How do the enterprises look at the customer data when it comes to business? Do they have enough information about all of their customers? Read through the blog to know more about how the Customer data is maintained in a central Hub.

Continue reading "Customers – Lifeblood of an Enterprise!" »

Posted by Aruna Srikanth at 06:16 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Single Instance or Multiple Instances?

For a global company, choosing between a single instance and multiple instances is a strategic decision which can augment the way the company does business.

Continue reading "Single Instance or Multiple Instances?" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 02:00 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 30, 2009

Driving Operational Excellence using Oracle Mobile Supply Chain Applications

Oracle Mobile Supply Chain Applications architecture empowers users to achieve new levels of productivity and accuracy. At the same time flexibility of this module along with features of hand held devices available in market makes the system extremely easy to use. Functions required for all transactions can be performed either using RF scanners (with barcodes) or through an Oracle form on hand held device.

Following are some of the key benefits which drive Operational Excellence by implementation of MSCA (Mobile Supply Chain Applications) are:

  • Reduce data entry errors and data entry time by use of Barcodes
  • Reduce labor travel time by transacting at point of use
  • Real-time data availability and validation

MSCA comes with standard screens on hand held devices for doing receiving transactions, manufacturing transactions, shipping transactions, inventory transactions and quality data entry. Standard MSCA screens will have a lot of fields which may or may not be used by an operator. It is one of the critical steps in an MSCA implementation to identify in each transaction screen which fields are required and which ones can be removed. MSCA provides option to customize the screens and have only the fields required in a preferred sequence for transactions. This goes hand in hand with design of key documents used in shop floor like Work order, Receipt traveler, Pick slip and any other traveler used during transaction. On these documents identify the key fields which are used for data entry and barcode them.

Oracle Warehouse Management module can be implemented in addition to MSCA to write additional rules which will optimize the travel time and further improve Operational efficiency. It also supports cross docking, flexible label printing, task assignments and LPN (License Plate Number) support for transactions. One of the prerequisite for implementing Oracle Warehouse Management module is using Stock locators and implementation of MSCA. Hence make sure if MSCA is implemented as standalone module locators are enables.

 

Posted by Srikanth Sripathi at 08:13 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 07, 2009

Beat the competition with speed to market

Impact due to reducing product lifecycles and the need for speed and collaboration

In this Era of Innovation,the latest gadget becomes obsolete within no time. Better products come to market at cheaper prices and/or with higher value. The result is shorter product lifecycles.

The main effects of shorter lifecycles are:

  • Need for New Product Introduction(NPI) at shorter intervals – speed to market is the only way to beat the competition
  • Focus on cost effective / high value products
  • Innovation in processes

The key enabler to achieve the above is

  • More collaboration between stake holders.

Continue reading "Beat the competition with speed to market" »

Posted by Krithivasan S at 08:48 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 02, 2009

ERP for SME – why and why now?

For many the word ‘ERP’ conjures up an image of an extremely high priced and complicated set of applications that only a few understand and whose services only big organizations can avail. Over the last many years that I have been working as an ERP consultant I have come across many such instances wherein the managers of SME company are wary of ERP and ask ‘Can it be implemented for a small company like ours?’

With the present economic recessionary environment Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) which have been running on very thin bottomline must look at various avenues to reduce their costs and increase the operational efficiencies. The business applications provided by various ERP packages have over the last few decades evolved from just being a transactional system to one that provides functionalities built around industry specific best practices and standards. Notwithstanding the benefits an ERP may provide the IT and business executives of SMEs face the challenge of convincing the stakeholders that this is an investment towards an ability that provides better productivity which would help lead to better profitability, market share and / or customer service.

Continue reading "ERP for SME – why and why now?" »

Posted by Krishna Josyula at 11:49 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Operational Excellence Metrics – Implementation Considerations

Past couple of decades manufacturing organizations have focused on improving the quality of their business process to achieve operational excellence. ERP implementation is seen as an opportunity to re-engineer the existing business process, define / review Operational Excellence Metrics and ways to measure these metrics.

Continue reading "Operational Excellence Metrics – Implementation Considerations" »

Posted by Srikanth Sripathi at 05:52 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 18, 2008

R12 Upgrade - What's in it for Retailers?

Most Product companies flourish by rolling out newer versions every now and then. Most versions are mere bug fixes, is there a difference then in the fusion enabled Oracle R12 version, especially for Retailers who have been long waiting to get an integrated suite of applications to run their business!

Continue reading "R12 Upgrade - What's in it for Retailers?" »

Posted by Venu Kotamraju at 12:11 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Reuse and Recycle of WEEE (Wastage of Electrical and Electronics Equipment) – Optional or Mandatory?

The Directive on WEEE (Wastage of Electrical and Electronics Equipment) in EU notes that the content of hazardous components in electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) is a major concern during the waste management phase and recycling of WEEE is not undertaken to a sufficient extent. The WEEE directive places the responsibility of end of life (EOL) disposal responsibility of the products on the manufacturers either individually or by joining a collective scheme. This implies that the cost of disposal of the product and the harmful substances that it contains squarely lies on the manufacturer.  The EU Commission has set new targets for recovery and reuse/recycling by 31-Dec-2008 for all EU countries.

Continue reading "Reuse and Recycle of WEEE (Wastage of Electrical and Electronics Equipment) – Optional or Mandatory?" »

Posted by K N Harilal at 09:07 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 10, 2008

Need for expansion of Product Life cycle Management (PLM) beyond engineering to users across the company and its extended enterprise

Engineering and design occupies an important role in most Hi-Tech companies due to mounting business pressure on R&D and product development functions. This is due to increasing demand for innovative feature-rich products accompanied by shrinking product life cycles and decreasing prices for the improved products. Thus there is a need for the PLM software to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of users beyond the Engineering department within and outside the company.

Continue reading "Need for expansion of Product Life cycle Management (PLM) beyond engineering to users across the company and its extended enterprise" »

Posted by K N Harilal at 05:35 AM | | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

December 03, 2008

Large Projects challenges - Beyond applications

Industry challenges

In my earlier blogs, I had briefly touched upon how a project centric approach will facilitate utilities achieving process efficiencies by integrating its various business functions.  We had also seen how Oracle out of the box capabilities can be leveraged.  Whilst the oracle based project centric solution enables utilities, there are some industry wide challenges that cannot be addressed through any system or solution.   Based on our experience the following are the few industry challenges that need to be considered while implementing any transformational solution to such project organisations.

Continue reading "Large Projects challenges - Beyond applications" »

Posted by Ismail Syed Mohammad at 10:06 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 18, 2008

Providing visibility to your large projects through a Project centric solution

In continuation with the entry here

Standardised project management process
Utilities have a trend of growing through acquiring other companies and hence the project management processes are likely to vary within their business.  For e.g., an organisation that took over a contracting company that specialises in executing rechargeable jobs is likely to have its processes and systems for managing rechargeable jobs different form the rest of the business - unless there is a conscious effort to homogenize the processes.  The project centric solution design addresses this by mapping the processes to the job classification available out of the box in Oracle ie., direct and indirect jobs  Also project management templates can be defined to ensure that the projects are defined in a specific way that is aligned with other projects in the organisation. This substantially reduces the time required by the engineers and/or planners to create projects in Oracle.  In some cases (Large capital projects), the project are likely to be created in best of breed project management software like Primavera or MS Projects etc.,.  The out of the box interface available in Oracle eBusiness suite can be used to reduce the need to duplicate effort in entering project data into Oracle.  With this, the process, the resource assignment and budgeting are the only processes that need to be done in Oracle eBusiness suite, whilst the other core project management processes are managed in the actual Project management suite.

Continue reading "Providing visibility to your large projects through a Project centric solution" »

Posted by Ismail Syed Mohammad at 09:24 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 13, 2008

ERP implementations in a recessionary economy: Is Limited Functionality ERP the way?

Well, probably when every one is cutting cost, investing in a fresh ERP implementation may make the customer think twice. This is primarily because of the size of the initial investment required for such engagements on account of hardware, software and implementation cost.

Hence for an IT service provider, the challenge lies in guiding the customer to make the right amount of investment in a timely manner, so as to minimize the initial CAPEX requirements at these times of turbulence.

Here are some of the ways to my mind, which can be put in practice for proposing new engagements:

1. Partnering with stakeholders
Let us partner with the customer and create a close collaboration between customer, IT service provider and the OEMs to provide the customer the best price

2. Using out-of-box features
Customers should be encouraged to use the standard built in features of the ERP product to the greatest extent possible. Enhancements should be entertained for addressing only the business critical needs.

3. Customer driven design
The need of the hour is more emphasis on incorporating customer’s requirements and his wishlist at the very early stage and designing the solution along-with the customer. This will reduce the number of iterations and rework in the project life cycle. Extensive workshops with the customer on the product and design will help on this aspect.

To add to the above, another aspect which can be explored more can be to bring in more modularity in the solution. We need to work with the customer in identifying the core business needs that need attention on a priority basis and provide a solution on those areas only; however care should be taken to ensure for the future enhancements to be added to the core solution with ease later.

In summary, the impending recession has made customers more cost-conscious than never before; this is probably the right time to sell a limited functionality ERP in a big way. This concept may sell when corporates are trying to just sail through rather than expecting to make huge profits. Customers with basic business processes in place in an ERP framework will be equipped better to scale up in boom times through adding more functionalities.

Posted by Debashis Dey at 10:45 AM | | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

November 09, 2008

Key Factors for Success of ERP Implementations - Part 2

In the first part of the blog, we looked at 7 key factors that an implementing organization should consider before deciding to go ahead with its ERP implementation project.

http://infosysblogs.com/oracle/2008/10/key_factors_for_success_of_erp.html#more

In this blog, we will analyze 3 additional factors that are also vital for success.

Continue reading "Key Factors for Success of ERP Implementations - Part 2" »

Posted by Samir Das at 05:50 PM | | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

November 05, 2008

High Tech Reverse Logistics: A Potential Cost Cutting Avenue

To put in simple terms, Reverse Logistics is the flow of Returned goods by the customer to a state where the product is disposed of, repaired, recycled or internally consumed. And because of the strict norms pertaining to disposition of goods in the high tech sector, this is a very strategic area.

Continue reading "High Tech Reverse Logistics: A Potential Cost Cutting Avenue" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 09:38 AM | | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

October 16, 2008

Going Lean the ERP Way

We often see ERP Implementations failing because of lack of user acceptance for the new system. The user community is not convinced about the utility of the ERP System simply because they feel that they take a long time to execute the transactions in the new system.


Is there a solution to this? How do we make sure that from day one users start advocating about the new system. The answer to this question starts from the time the future state design of business processes is started. First question that any implementer should ask is" Is this the most efficient and lean way to deploy this process". "Are we deploying the correct tools and techniques offered by the package to design the future state business process?"

Continue reading "Going Lean the ERP Way" »

Posted by Somnath Majumdar at 10:50 AM | | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

October 01, 2008

ERP Systems for Small & Mid-Sized Companies

 If we look at the world's 2 leading large ERP packaged suites, they are huge applications that offer tremendous flexibility to handle just about all possible kinds of manufacturing systems and business processes spread across all kinds of industries. Can these ERP systems be readily adapted by small & medium-sized companies and how do large ERPs really differ from those that are used by the SMB segment?

Continue reading "ERP Systems for Small & Mid-Sized Companies" »

Posted by Samir Das at 10:54 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

September 19, 2008

Value Realization and Oracle - A Perfect Match

"Business case?  What business case?  This is a "strategic" investment"....ever heard that one?

Can any executive team pull that off in today's economy?  Something tells me that those days are O-V-E-R.

"That which gets measured gets done"....so here's the secret:  build a Value Story, define the core metrics, and measure, track, and transform using the Oracle OBIEE solution.

That's a mouthful.  Let's talk about it live at Oracle OpenWorld.  Ask for me at the Infy booth.

See you in SF -

Chris

http://www.linkedin.com/in/cspangler

Posted by Christopher Spangler at 02:21 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

September 04, 2008

Do you wanna expedite your Order cycles?

Where is my Order????? When will it get shipped???? Another delay, yet again!!!! These are some of the very common and frequently asked questions by the Customers.
The challenging business needs, difficult to hold enough inventory, increase in cost of manufacturing and more so frequent re-org’s have made manufacturers to re-think about their business strategy. The business drivers are changing and increasing at a fast pace and Enterprises using ERP’s expect the product vendors to be more than up to speed to offer capabilities in the standard product and also provide an Integration strategy to offer seamless out-of-box integrations.These capabilities are targeted towards Increase in Agent Productivity, Significant reduction in cycle time, Automating Business flows, Orchestrating Business flows spread across disparate applications and Enabling Shared service operations etc.
Oracle has a taken a step forward to meet the above objectives and much more than that. The latest release of Oracle EBS (eBusiness Suite), which is popularly known as R12, is a significant step to meet the complex and demanding business objectives. The features like Multi Org Access Control (MOAC) allow agents to access data spread across Operating units from a single responsibility. The enhancements done as part of EBS R12 in Order Management, Advanced Pricing, iStore help in increase of Agent productivity and shorten the Order cycles.
Come and join the journey if you wanna know on how to expedite and streamline your prolonged Order cycles…….
This session will elucidate how Oracle R12 features can be leveraged to enable shared service operations with features like MOAC. It will elaborate the New R12 features in the areas of Order Management, Advance Pricing and iStore with suitable examples. The session will explain on how the new features like Price book will join the core stream and make it more transparent to the customers. This session will also talk about how the new R12 features and Fusion middleware product BPEL came together and delivered a composite Application model for a big Hi-Tech giant.

Oracle's latest version of its E-Business Suite (EBS) is a significant release. Current users need to determine if and when this upgrade will be appropriate, if they have not already done so. New users of Oracle applications need to ensure that Release 12 is the appropriate release to implement.  – Gartner

The journey begins in the biggest Oracle Technology symposium – Oracle Open World, 21st-25th Sep 2008……

Session ID: S300276
Session Title: Shorten Your Order Cycles with New Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12 Features: Wanna Know How?
Track: Oracle E-Business Suite

Posted by vikas khurana at 10:40 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

August 16, 2008

Thinking of Acquisition? Keep ERP as one of the decision parameters

John G. Smale, the former CEO of Procter and Gamble had once remarked, “Our commitment must be to continue the vitality of this company –its growth in physical terms and also its growth as an institution –so that this company, this institution, will last through another 150 years. Indeed, so it will last through the ages.”

 

Continue reading "Thinking of Acquisition? Keep ERP as one of the decision parameters" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 04:30 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

August 14, 2008

Age of packaged BI and analytics – Should you embark on this journey? Part1

Historians used two approaches to apply the past to the future: reasoning by analogy and projection of trends. The 1970’s saw the emergence of ERP systems in the form of Inventory Control Packages and Manufacturing Resources Planning (MRP II). Then came the integration of Finance, which was followed by the integration of various functional areas like Customer relationship, HR etc.

The evolution of Business Intelligence traces a trajectory similar to this. From a time of specialized tools and long multi-year customized solutions, we are seeing a convergence of enterprise applications, Data warehouse tools and analytic solutions. This is reinforced even further by the takeover and consolidation of BI vendors leaving few large players with capabilities across the value chain.

  ‘No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it.’  ~H.E. Luccock

Continue reading "Age of packaged BI and analytics – Should you embark on this journey? Part1" »

Posted by Siddharth Pant at 10:01 AM | | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

August 10, 2008

Thinking of R12? Go for an Enhanced Upgrade

Call it the bane or boon of an ERP system, companies do not have a choice but to upgrade to a higher version. There are various factors which drive the decision to upgrade namely de-support of the current system by the ERP vendor, availability of new features in higher version which have the potential to give a strategic edge. Typically companies choose the upgrade path to avoid the de-support problem and hence what it finally does is a pure as-is technical upgrade. This has multiple benefits in the sense that it is least risky and also can be done in a shorter timeframe. But once in a while it makes sense to have a look at the new features which can bring efficiencies in the process.

 

Continue reading "Thinking of R12? Go for an Enhanced Upgrade" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 05:38 AM | | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

July 21, 2008

High Tech Industry’s Logistics Woes: Oracle Transportation Management may be the answer

Gone is the era when customers would queue to your factory gate to buy the goods produced by you. Remember Bajaj scooter in the 80s when we had a waiting time of up to 10 years. Not any more. With breakthrough advancement in science and technology, we are in a situation where the market place is cluttered with supply surpassing demand. More so in the high tech sector where changes happen in split seconds. Given the current situation, the winner is surely the one who will be able to provide a better buying experience to the customer and yet charge reasonably for providing the service. This includes both choice of products and/or services and delivering it to the customer at a reasonable price.

 

Continue reading "High Tech Industry’s Logistics Woes: Oracle Transportation Management may be the answer" »

Posted by Sandeep Chatterjee at 10:59 PM | | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

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