Vita Sanguis Supple Vinculum - Labor Management
Continue reading " Vita Sanguis Supple Vinculum - Labor Management " »
Infosys’ blog on industry solutions, trends, business process transformation and global implementation in Oracle.
February 5, 2012
January 20, 2012
CRP - The Game Changer?
Guest post by
Amit Tuteja, Senior Consultant, Infosys
Most of us have been part of implementations where CRP (Conference Room Pilot) is undertaken by the client. In most cases CRP is used by the client when they are not familiar with the product and want to see if the ERP package would fulfill most of their needs before they finalize which package to be implemented. In one of the recent projects I got a chance to work on CRP exercise in Oracle Apps for a client where Oracle was already running for more than a decade. Here is a glimpse of the situation which the client faced:
- Multiple Geographies with different business model. E.g. One Geography was following distributor model. In one of Geography ATO operations formed major portion of their sales.
- Different Geographies had different Oracle version being used: One Geography had 11.5.9 version of Oracle and others had 11.5.10 version.
- Local IT teams at each Geographies led to various different customizations across Geographies: The customizations built were also of different nature based on business needs in each geography.
Client engaged Infosys to do a business process re-engineering (standardize Business processes across Geographies) exercise in the first phase and then undertake CRP (showcase the fitment in oracle) in the second phase.
January 14, 2012
Quisque Id Of Implementation - Curtailed UAT
Continue reading " Quisque Id Of Implementation - Curtailed UAT " »
January 4, 2012
iSetup - An Effective and Powerful Tool to Manage Setup Migrations
Guest post by
Vikas Jhamb, Lead Consultant, Infosys
Any Implementation in Oracle ERP world involves a constant effort in re-doing the setups from scratch whenever a new instance is required. Getting a new instance and bringing it to speed with the current setups just can't be avoided or wished away. It has to be done and redone with almost no scope of errors. But anything that is done manually is prone to error and if these errors slip in when we are doing the setups, these will cause a lot of grief and the project team may have to spend a lot of time trying to figure out where there has been slip between the cup and the lip.
Continue reading " iSetup - An Effective and Powerful Tool to Manage Setup Migrations " »
December 13, 2011
OPM & Outside Processing: When will they meet??
R12 was a major release for OPM in the sense it merges process inventory with discrete inventory which resulted into streamlining of inventory operations & better integration with Order Management, Purchasing etc. Another change was the introduction of SLA for OPM, which finally hit the nail in coffin for much criticized MAC module. Afterwards, there are lots of enhancements like Multi-batch operations, Make-to-Order Functionality, Landed cost management etc. We now even have validated integration between 3rd party Regulatory document generation partners and OPM Regulatory Management. But, something was still missing. Something that process manufacturer is demanding from Oracle from long time??
Continue reading " OPM & Outside Processing: When will they meet?? " »
December 5, 2011
Enigme de la Symbiose
November 19, 2011
Achieving Higher Levels Each Time - Servicing Contracts
Continue reading " Achieving Higher Levels Each Time - Servicing Contracts " »
November 8, 2011
Symbiosis in Printing Industry - Contract To Kill
Continue reading " Symbiosis in Printing Industry - Contract To Kill " »
November 4, 2011
Why Oracle Fusion Procurement? How does it add value?
Guest post by
Suchitha Prabakaran, Consultant, Infosys
In the current global business environment, efficient Procurement techniques, methodologies and processes play a vital role in providing a competitive edge- both operationally and financially for any organization irrespective of the size, nature of business, products dealt with, area of operations etc. Corporates now have realized the importance of streamlining and strategizing procurement processes as it makes a huge difference to the revenue and profitability of the organization.
Continue reading " Why Oracle Fusion Procurement? How does it add value? " »
October 3, 2011
Day 1 at OOW 2011 : The 'Green' and the 'Machines'
Guest post by
Abhishek Sabharwal, Head- Infosys Oracle Innovation Center
Finally, we are here again on the helm of one of the biggest IT events of our times, Oracle OpenWorld (OOW) 2011. As the feeling of nostalgia triggers in with everyone beating each other about the number of years they had been participating in the OOW, the registration lines grew bigger and bigger. The weather, the excitement, iphone tunes and bustling traffic remained the same at SFO but the event seems to gets bigger and better, with representations from 120 countries and close to 45000 registrants. OOW started on a Green note of using minimum paper throughout the event, so no more bulky schedule. All replaced by mobile phone apps, and real time online updates...welcome Social Media and Mobility to the OOW...
Continue reading " Day 1 at OOW 2011 : The 'Green' and the 'Machines' " »
September 13, 2011
Value Delivered By Value Chain Planning - Subcontracting Practices
Continue reading " Value Delivered By Value Chain Planning - Subcontracting Practices " »
September 11, 2011
Risk Management Portfolio For A CMO
August 28, 2011
Establishing The Centroid Of Magic Triangle - Hitting the Bull's Eye of CMO Engagement
August 18, 2011
Best Practices In Contract Manufacturing - Implementing An Operational Agenda
Continue reading " Best Practices In Contract Manufacturing - Implementing An Operational Agenda " »
August 15, 2011
ABC of Contract Manufacturing + Markowitz Theory = Depth of Cost Iceberg
Continue reading " ABC of Contract Manufacturing + Markowitz Theory = Depth of Cost Iceberg " »
August 12, 2011
JD Edwards (ERP) User Adoption made easy with Oracle User Productivity Kit
What is perhaps the number one complaint about introduction of JD Edwards ERP or a new functionality in JD Edwards, in an Enterprise?
No one knows how to use it!!
According to one study, effective User Adoption seems to be the absolute best predictor of enterprise software success. More often than not, Enterprises have a lack of focus on faster User Adoption that helps to sustain Oracle -JD Edwards implementations and upgrades throughout its life-cycle. Let's talk about ways of achieving a faster user adoption based upon efficient usage of Oracle's User Productivity Kit (UPK) in an Enterprise.
Continue reading " JD Edwards (ERP) User Adoption made easy with Oracle User Productivity Kit " »
August 7, 2011
Solutions for Linear Asset Management - Data Model for defining the non liner assets and associating them to the linear assets
In my earlier blogs I have explained the data model to define the linear assets as part of the linear asset management solution. Any network will have both linear assets and non linear assets. It is important to build the relationship between the linear asset network and non linear assets.
August 5, 2011
Contract To Kill - Focus on Core Competencies
Continue reading " Contract To Kill - Focus on Core Competencies " »
July 29, 2011
Database and Application administration essential for Oracle E-Business Suite R12 upgrade
Guest post by
Umesh Tanna, Senior Technology Architect, Infosys
Oracle E-business suite R12 upgrade is a major project that organization undertakes. Functional, technical and infrastructure administration teams are the primary groups that are involved in upgrade project from IT department. Oracle Application Database Administration activities are very critical activities in upgrade project that is performed by Oracle Apps DBA. Following are most essential aspects of R12 upgrade project from the standpoint of Oracle Apps DBA.
July 27, 2011
KEP Strategy Is In Vogue
July 14, 2011
Roads Apart - Yet Worlds Apart
July 5, 2011
Landed cost for process industries - An Oracle solution
Look at the mirror directly or through spectacles, you are most probably seeing through it or seeing just the glass. Look deep into it - In all chance it contains sand from Australia, soda ash from China, both processed in Taiwan, manufactured in India using Italian machinery and recipe combination verified in American Laboratories. Each of these processes adds cost towards freight, storage, taxes and duty. Some part of the money you paid was actually for these. As a user you need not know the profitability and margins. But for the manufacturer this is of utmost importance. Normally the landed cost charges are applied to different items based on weight, volume and quantity.
Continue reading " Landed cost for process industries - An Oracle solution " »
July 2, 2011
TEAR Factors to Gauge ROI of Big Ticket Engagements
Continue reading " TEAR Factors to Gauge ROI of Big Ticket Engagements " »
June 27, 2011
Emerging Trends in Publication Industry
Publishing industry of yesteryears consisted of developing content and selling them as books, journals etc. The customer had two choices either to buy it or not buy it. They did not have the opportunity to check the contents of the book / chapters of the book for a limited time before buying it or for that matter buying only a portion of the book. The publishers at maximum had variants like paper back, hard cover, soft cover with minor price difference to cater to different segments of customers. The business processes of a publisher were mainly related to Sourcing content, Printing the content and selling books / journals from warehouse.
Continue reading " Emerging Trends in Publication Industry " »
May 30, 2011
FTS Needs Leads To KEP Strategy, Involving a WMS, ROI Follows
Continue reading " FTS Needs Leads To KEP Strategy, Involving a WMS, ROI Follows " »
May 29, 2011
The 10 most challenges in Linear Asset Management and solution options
Continue reading " The 10 most challenges in Linear Asset Management and solution options " »
May 19, 2011
Seiban Manufacturing - Enable Trackability in your Supply Chain!
Continuing on the ETO Series, I will discuss about the concept of Seiban, How it works and the key business requirements in Build To Order (BTO) Industry that can be handled in Oracle EBS Seiban solution. Another prominent ERP product that addresses Seiban requirements in the Industry is Glovia from Fujitsu.
Continue reading " Seiban Manufacturing - Enable Trackability in your Supply Chain! " »
May 18, 2011
Viability of Big Ticket WMS Engagements
Continue reading " Viability of Big Ticket WMS Engagements " »
May 3, 2011
Role of Testing in successful project implementation
Guest post by
Amit Tuteja, Senior Consultant, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
I was lucky to be part of one of the complex Oracle implementations done by Infosys Oracle Practice in Retail industry. During my work with this large retailer I got the opportunity to work on design phase and later got involved in testing phase. Most of us understand and realize the importance of Testing in any implementation but in this blog I would like to emphasize how a well planned Testing phase increased Management/ Stakeholders confidence and paved the way for a successful Implementation.
Continue reading " Role of Testing in successful project implementation " »
May 1, 2011
What happens in the Warehouse stays in the Warehouse
Continue reading " What happens in the Warehouse stays in the Warehouse " »
April 25, 2011
Best May Not Be Best, Sometimes !!
April 20, 2011
CSR@Green Supply Chain
March 25, 2011
Product Master 2.0 Retail Version
Oracle Product Item Master (PIM) was released in Jan 2008. PIM was touted as an innovative master data management application that allows global retailers to create a single, enterprise view of all product information to help unlock value from within the business.
With much water having passed under the bridge, where does it stand and what is the Product Master 2.0 for Retail, read on for my perspective on it!
March 19, 2011
Responsive Supply Chain is a Responsible Supply Chain: A Green Initiative
Continue reading " Responsive Supply Chain is a Responsible Supply Chain: A Green Initiative " »
March 17, 2011
Importance of Oracle E-Business Suite Integrated SOA Gateway
Guest post by
Rinku Das, Project Manager, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
With the introduction of Oracle Fusion Middleware technology, technical consultants who are mainly working on E-Business Suite started questioning how to expose Oracle business interfaces (like Business Events, PL/SQL, XML Gateway, etc) built using multiple technologies as Web Services and also how to invoke & consume external Web Services. The answer to such questions is YES. This is feasible using Integrated SOA Gateway available in Oracle E-Business Suite R12.1.
Continue reading " Importance of Oracle E-Business Suite Integrated SOA Gateway " »
March 8, 2011
Challenges Faced in Global ERP Implementations -Like Crossing A Sea?
Continue reading " Challenges Faced in Global ERP Implementations -Like Crossing A Sea? " »
March 7, 2011
Supply Chain Best Practices: Reduced TCO via Best Of Breed or ERP WMS
Continue reading " Supply Chain Best Practices: Reduced TCO via Best Of Breed or ERP WMS " »
March 3, 2011
Future Segments in a chart of Account are an insurance policy
Many organizations ask them selves 'how do we design our last chart of Accounts to last for the next 50 years' The fact that it is almost impossible to predict future management and financial reporting over such a long time frame. One approach is too look at pains of the current financial and management reporting system and identify the root cause of the issue. Often times it may be a result of change in business direction that could not be adequately be represented in the chart of Account structure.
Continue reading " Future Segments in a chart of Account are an insurance policy " »
February 28, 2011
Upgrading VCP to R12 was really beneficial
Continue reading " Upgrading VCP to R12 was really beneficial " »
Exploring Item life cycle management options
Every country is making its Food and drug administrative control laws more and more stringent. Each country has a different requirement to get the products in specific labels formats, label colors, holograms, compositions etc. Issue is more challenging if item life cycle is short and old SKUs are getting replaced by new SKUs
Continue reading " Exploring Item life cycle management options " »
February 26, 2011
Trends in Supply Chain Practice: XDock- From Mundane To Magic
Cross Docking is the balancing fulcrum between the Dock to Stock and Direct Store Delivery approach as we have discussed earlier. There are certain tenets of successful cross docking implementation and its best fitment.
Continue reading " Trends in Supply Chain Practice: XDock- From Mundane To Magic " »
February 22, 2011
Integrated Operations and Services Planning
Continue reading " Integrated Operations and Services Planning " »
February 18, 2011
Generic Vs Specialty ERP Products for Engineer To Order Industry - What Oracle can deliver for this Industry?
Engineer To Order (ETO) Manufacturers typically make complex products with longer lead time whose customer specifications require unique engineering design, significant customization or new purchased materials. Each customer order may result in a unique set of part numbers, bills of material & routings and each order needs to be tracked as a project throughout the Sales, Engineering, Manufacturing, Shipping, Installation and Service life cycle. This industry typically comprises of customers in Aerospace, Defense, Construction, Tool and Industrial equipment manufacturers etc.
February 13, 2011
Supply Chain Best Practices For Store Based Retailers - Reverse Logistics
It may leave many of us agape, but it is widely understood that retailers and distributors end up loosing close to 15% of sales revenues handling returns each year. A return has much more to it than mere waste management. In my last blog I had discussed on the probability of return as a function of multiple variables. Unless handled properly, returns could have a severe adverse impact on the bottom line of any retail organization. Concept of reverse logistics first surfaced in the 1980's, it is not new. But it may have been only well understood by proactive organizations or those smitten by the return bug.
Continue reading " Supply Chain Best Practices For Store Based Retailers - Reverse Logistics " »
February 11, 2011
Advance Planning Command Center - An Executive Approach for Planning Decision
APCC is an executive decision making tool for Planning and recently introduced in market by Oracle. APCC stands for Advance Planning Command Center. APCC is business intelligence-analytical tool and product is based on Oracle Business Intelligence - Enterprise Edition (OBIEE). It provides unified user interface for user analysis in form of Graph and Reports.
Continue reading " Advance Planning Command Center - An Executive Approach for Planning Decision " »
February 10, 2011
Who holds the key to success in ERP led business transformation programs
Many analysis has been done and many artifacts written about the success of the ERP projects but the question which primarily remains unanswered and less explored is who holds the key to success of the program.
Continue reading " Who holds the key to success in ERP led business transformation programs " »
February 1, 2011
The Post-Mass Production Era
This is not so much about the decline of mass production, as about the paradigm shift taking place in manufacturing around the world. Old system of manufacturing seems misfit to the current economic, political and environmental conditions. No new idea springs from void. Changes and even sea changes happen gradually. Craft Production System of late 1800 gave way to mass production when Henry Ford introduced Model T in early '90s. What Ford could achieve was not only the continuous flow of production, but also the standardization and interchangeability of the parts. What mass production system lacks, however, is a necessary responsiveness to ever changing consumer demands. Thanks to Oil shocks of 70s, Sep'11, Financial Meltdowns, demand volatility casts a shadow of mass destruction in profitability --- enterprises of all sizes across the industry vertical are struggling to remain competitive in the choppy market place.
January 21, 2011
Enterprise Asset Management - Emerging trends
Guest post by
Krishna Ammapalayam Srinivasaragavan, Consultant, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
We are in the era of Enterprise Resource Planning implementations. It's estimated that by adopting ERP systems and best practices cost reduction, quality improvement, staff skills increases too many folds. Also the IT companies dealing with ERP systems receive the maximum revenue and profit in their operations.
Continue reading " Enterprise Asset Management - Emerging trends " »
January 13, 2011
Enterprise Asset Management - Road to success ...
Guest post by
Krishna Ammapalayam Srinivasaragavan, Consultant, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
Now a days, industries focus not only on the profit, but also on the safety, morale of the employees and social responsibility in keeping the environment a better place for next generations to come. Above said things can be achieved by adopting quality systems and environment friendly methods.
Continue reading " Enterprise Asset Management - Road to success ... " »
January 9, 2011
Cross Dock- The Seesaw Between D2S and DSD
Retail sector has clearly demonstrated the practice and implementation of cross docking. Whereas, it is difficult to find many examples of true cross docking outside of the retail sector.
Continue reading " Cross Dock- The Seesaw Between D2S and DSD " »
January 5, 2011
Tapping the un-fathomed benefits of Oracle Applications through Oracle E+ (Efficiency Plus)
Guest post by
Murali Krishna Somisetty, Principal Consultant, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
It's easy, It's wholesome and its efficient and mind you, we are not talking about a new module of Oracle applications here. We are talking about how effectively different Oracle modules can penetrate into a company's business process effectively, for not only maintaining regular transaction data but also to help in various other aspects which any normal end user wouldn't dream of.
Our rendering of Oracle E+ series will be an inimitable blogging experience by itself. It will encourage innovation by making people think, 'oh how did I miss this and what if I used it this way?' This series will emphasize about how Oracle modules can be an excellent facilitator to manage the Oracle Applications ERP Program itself and the business needs which are not exactly application related. These guidelines and techniques can be used either during or after implementation. The initial blog posts will concentrate on what can be used 'post implementation' and later blog posts will cover what can be used 'during the implementation' phases. They also cover important aspects for such considerations and the preparation required by organizations before practicing them.
January 3, 2011
Single Vs. Multiple Instances Installations of ERP - The debate continues!!
How often do you hear ERP Pundits discussing whether single instance installations are better or multi instance installations? I guess there is no right or wrong answer. I bet a debate on this topic would go on for hours without ever reaching any conclusion
Multi Instance ERP installations can be classified as by Region or Geography, By Business Function, By Lines of Business or any other classification deemed appropiate by the enterprise.
Continue reading " Single Vs. Multiple Instances Installations of ERP - The debate continues!! " »
Thin Chart of Accounts within OFSAA !
Guest post by
Bhuvaneswari Venkataraman, Lead Consultant - Banking and Capital Markets, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
In older version of Oracle Financials Service Application 4.5.xx (OFSA), considerable time was spent on designing the Chart of Accounts (COA) to bring out the optimum number of members under COAs. Now with new Oracle Financial Service Analytical Application 5.xx (OFSAA) leveraging its enhanced features like conditional assumptions system can assign any combination at run time instead of pre-defined only leading to thin COAs instead of thick in earlier versions.
Continue reading " Thin Chart of Accounts within OFSAA ! " »
Demystifying Intercompany Accounting in Oracle Apps - Part 1
Based on our experience in providing consulting services for companies that have numerous Intercompany or interbranch transactions between entities spread across, following have been observed to be some of the issues commonly faced by the companies due to the inability of underlying applications to meet the business needs:
-- Process inconsistencies with different units following different mechanisms to account for intercompany transactions
-- Increased manual effort due to the use of suspense or clearing account for knocking off intercompany receivables and payables
-- Increased maintenance effort due to the use of multiple accounts to record intercompany receivables and payables for each division, branch, entity
-- Lack of ability to automatically balance intercompany transactions
Continue reading " Demystifying Intercompany Accounting in Oracle Apps - Part 1 " »
January 1, 2011
Build an Agile Financial Organization with Oracle FAH
In this era of globalization, an Organization needs to be agile to survive and grow. The need for agility is one of the key forces behind the introduction of 'Rule Based Applications' in the market. Oracle's Financial Accounting Hub (FAH) is one such application where accounting is managed by the business team based on configurable business rules.
Prior to introduction of FAH, most of the organizations had custom built accounting engines to address their accounting requirements. Such custom built components were a hindrance in introducing any new accounting rules or modification of existing rules to satisfy regulatory compliance requirements or due to business compulsions.
Continue reading " Build an Agile Financial Organization with Oracle FAH " »
December 27, 2010
MES for Process Industries
What is MES ?
ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) acts as central repository for all the data transacted, but there is no way of controlling the operations or passing the information between plant control system & ERP in integrated manner.
MES (Manufacturing execution systems) help in detailing the process and also controlling the operations through the systems. MES uses the data and provide results on the plant activities in minimal time. MES Collects the data from plant system, store them, and the output are used to control the functions in enhancing productivity and process on the whole.
MES for Oracle Process Manufacturing (OPM):
MES for Process Manufacturing adds new batch execution functionality and increases usability for manufacturing operators.
December 26, 2010
Picking SMARTLY, Aren't You?
Picking is the deemed to be the most important activity in the Warehouse Management as it is cost-intensive. Order picking in most distribution centers represents the largest area of cost, often said to account for more than 50% of labor costs. Due to the nature of distribution and fulfillment there are more outbound transactions than inbound transactions, and the labor associated with the outbound transactions is likely a big piece of the total warehouse labor budget. Another reason for the high level of importance placed on order picking operations is its direct connection to customer satisfaction. The ability to quickly and accurately process customer orders has become an essential part of doing business. In my earlier blogs on picking I have touched upon multiple dimensions of effective picking in relation to warehouse design in order to achieve operational efficiencies. Study conducted by Norman Saenz in past can be put to use to carefully analyze tenets of effective picking. Retailers around the world can reconsider their picking approach holistically to get a step closer to being a world class organization. We extend the SMART (Simple Methods to Achieve Rapid Throughput) ways to perform the picking operation SMARTLY in a warehouse.
December 22, 2010
Smart Phones to Smart Shopping?
Guest post by
Shankar Viswanathan, Principal Consultant, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
With the advent of smartphones, 3G/4G technologies and the increasing trend of consumers wanting to spend lesser time shopping at the traditional brick and mortar stores, it is not a surprise that "Mobile Commerce" is touted to be the next wave. Mobile phone manufacturers are planning to launch devices that enable these transactions, industry standards are being drafted to make this happen and there are new applications being launched everyday by zealous entrepreneurs looking to cash in on the impending boom.
December 16, 2010
Moving towards Excellence in Maintenance - Predictive Maintenance & Reliability Centered Maintenance
Guest post by
Ankita Nagpal, Senior Associate Consultant, Oracle Practice, Enterprise Solutions, Infosys Technologies Ltd.
Maintenance, in all its essence, is an absolutely indispensable activity for all organizations today. Downtimes or any damage due to malfunctioning of an equipment are most expensive and thus an immense squeeze in the profits. Almost each and every organization across industries have woken up to this fact and employ some or the other maintenance system.
Furthermore to just having a system in place to take care of the maintenance activities, organizations today are moving towards most intelligent and sophisticated methods of maintenance viz. Predictive Maintenance and Reliability Centered Maintenance.
December 13, 2010
Next Generation growth engines for Oracle Apps in Financial Services
Oracle marks a new era for its apps with the introduction of Fusion this year. It has tried to combine the best in class technology and functionality from its acquisitions and bring the best for end users.
However let us discuss what can be the key growth drivers both Industry wise and Functionality wise which would drive the future of Oracle apps
Continue reading " Next Generation growth engines for Oracle Apps in Financial Services " »
December 5, 2010
Intercompany Transactions in a Global ERP Environment
The mantra today is best cost manufacturing rather than "low cost" manufacturing. The idea is to serve the customer at the best cost from best possible location. Most such corporations are deploying or have already deployed some form of ERP solution to manage intercompany transactions in the most efficient way in their ERP systems.
Continue reading " Intercompany Transactions in a Global ERP Environment " »
"I" Am A SMART Retailer
Cross docking is a common practice amongst the retailers and has been widely acknowledged to provide operational efficiencies and scales of economies. In my earlier blog I had mentioned about the warehouse shape and size and how it relates to effective cross docking practices. Let us take this discussion a little further.
November 20, 2010
Are you a SMART Retailer ??
Cross docking has gained popularity amongst the retailers and has been widely acknowledged to provide operational efficiencies and scales of economies. A key business imperative for the retail industry is quick turnaround and cross docking proves to be a definite enabler.
November 15, 2010
Upgrade to Fusion is like relocating your household till it gets in final shape. Oracle R12 Financials or Fusion Financials, What's the Upgrade path to choose?
Existing customers on 11i are in a jinx on what is the right step to do? Most of them do not want to pay the premium support cost of Oracle 11i and also want to shift to the latest technology and functionalities. However with Oracle announcing the release of Fusion early next year here are some pointers on whether one should go for R12 V/s Fusion
November 7, 2010
Task Of Avoiding Stock Outs- Task Management
Out of Stock is a common problem that has smitten retailers immemorial. It is a part and parcel of the industry dynamics. One of the core WMS concepts can come in really handy and act as a panacea.
Continue reading " Task Of Avoiding Stock Outs- Task Management " »
November 6, 2010
Consignment Pull Operations For Lean Supply Chain
Consignment operations at a typical HTDM organization form an integral part of the sales process. It is a strategic operation both from volume and revenue standpoint.
Continue reading " Consignment Pull Operations For Lean Supply Chain " »
November 3, 2010
Managing Change in a Single Instance ERP Environment
How often do organizations feel that managing change on a single global instance is a nightmare? Although a single global instance has a lot of benefits compared to multi instance installations managing change is probably the biggest challenge on a single instance environment. The complexity of the environment also adds to this challenge.
Continue reading " Managing Change in a Single Instance ERP Environment " »
November 1, 2010
IFRS with Oracle - What standard and solutions impact the most?
Introduction of new regulations or changes in existing regulations at local or international level can lead to drastic changes for an enterprise. IFRS is one such change which would change the financial statements for ever. US markets would also be affected starting 2013 though SEC is yet to make any decisions on the start date as to when to adopt IFRS.
The key IFRS differences which would have big impact on US companies are:
1. Consolidation, Associates and Joint Ventures
2. Property Plant and Equipment
3. Employee Retirement Benefits
4. Borrowing Costs
5. Inventory valuation
Though oracle claims that it is ready for IFRS with multiple solution options like Sub ledger accounting, Oracle General Ledger or Hyperion Financial Management, some key solutions would have to be worked as per the client situation. The most complex solutions to design would be Fixed Assets and Inventories since these solutions would have sub ledger level impact
No ERP package provides an out of box solution to immediately converge to IFRS especially at sub ledger level. However let's look at some of the features of Oracle R12 which can be used at sub ledger level to achieve asset componentization and thereby comply with IFRS standard on Property plant and Equipment
Continue reading " IFRS with Oracle - What standard and solutions impact the most? " »
October 25, 2010
Dynamics Of HTDM In Asian Markets
Responsive supply chains are no more just a jargon. More and more organizations are adopting this route in order to stay competitive in this era of globalization. Last few years have seen economic downturn and thereby a trend of consolidations. There have been many a mergers and acquisitions.
October 23, 2010
On Demand WMS For Responsive Supply Chain
When an organization engages in systematic, purposeful acts, using and stretching its abilities to the maximum, it cannot help but feel positive and confident abut itself. I firmly believe that by stretching yourself beyond your perceived level of confidence you accelerate your development of competence. It holds good equally good for an organization that is a living individual.
Continue reading " On Demand WMS For Responsive Supply Chain " »
October 6, 2010
Harmonize to Globalize
Per many researches conducted pan globe, companies worldwide, are realizing the benefits of rolling out standardized WMS processes across their national and global warehouses. Popularly referred to as WMS unification, this initiative is typically triggered from a need to streamline processes by extending best practices from the industry or within the organization to all the storage locations. This delves into the outline, benefits and implementation perspectives to design the "Right" WMS instance strategy for organizations having geographically distributed warehouses on the road to a WMS unification exercise. Hence the choice of an appropriate WMS for an organization will act as a positive catalyst and enabler.
October 5, 2010
Accounting Center of Excellence with Oracle Financials
How does Oracle Apps support establishing your ACE?
Continue reading " Accounting Center of Excellence with Oracle Financials " »
September 26, 2010
Pick Effectively To Get Pricked Minimally
A day in life of a warehouse involves labor intensive and system dependant activities. I have earlier written on multiple dimensions of inbound logistics, putaway and detailed receiving. Put-away is getting material and putting it in the storage areas of the warehouse. It accounts for 15% of the total costs as many a research have spelled but picking is exactly the opposite and it costs more than 3 times of putaway.
Continue reading " Pick Effectively To Get Pricked Minimally " »
September 20, 2010
Demand to Deliver Solution: The Panacea for Supply Chain Disruptions
Continue reading " Demand to Deliver Solution: The Panacea for Supply Chain Disruptions " »
September 15, 2010
Are your company's sales and operations planning, demand management and operational planning processes integrated?
Strategic Sourcing - Leverage Supplier relationship for cost effective procurement
September 14, 2010
Demystifying Oracle Fusion Procurement Product Family
Continue reading " Demystifying Oracle Fusion Procurement Product Family " »
September 13, 2010
Fusion Distributed Order Orchestration (DOO)- A new revolution in Supply Chain space!
September 12, 2010
Dynamics of Shipping Industry- A Glimpse
World has indeed changed from when Ferdinand Magellan's set on the first expedition of 1519-1522 to sail from the Atlantic Ocean into the Pacific Ocean thereby completing the first circumnavigation of the Earth.
Continue reading " Dynamics of Shipping Industry- A Glimpse " »
September 8, 2010
Know the unknowns of MDM
September 6, 2010
Optimized Parcel Rating: A key to control transportation costs
"Do you ship more than 100 parcels each day?"
Most of the large enterprises might say 'YES' to this question. In the last decade, the emergence of e-commerce coupled with the rise in smaller and more frequent orders has made parcel shipping operations as one of the key functions of transportation management systems.
Parcel shipping is an inherently complex and expensive mode. Logistics planners are generally faced with the challenge of meeting customer expectations of delivering goods at a lesser freight cost within the stated service time. Adding to their woes, FedEx and UPS have increased their rates for parcel shipments in 2010.
Continue reading " Optimized Parcel Rating: A key to control transportation costs " »
September 3, 2010
Are you able to objectively and quantitatively measure the performance of your entire Demand to Deliver Value Chain in a holistic manner?
In a traditional manufacturing enterprise, the supply chain works in a piecemeal way through multiple departments executing their own functions and tracking their own performance. Most package-based IT solutions also accordingly adopt a siloed view of the business and provide disparate modules/ applications for different business functions. Thus measurement of overall process performance becomes tedious as end-to-end Key Performance Indicators (KPI) are not defined, benchmarked and measured, leading to dilution of process-level accountability and view, leading to dissatisfied customers and suppliers.
September 2, 2010
Critical points to be consider while "Asset Group" Design process for Successful eAM implementation
August 31, 2010
Resolve Supplier Collaboration Problems with Oracle Supplier MDM
Continue reading " Resolve Supplier Collaboration Problems with Oracle Supplier MDM " »
Managing your engineering changes in a multi divisional Oracle Global single instance environment
Have you ever wondered how you would manage your engineering changes in a single instance multi divisional environment? You are using Inventory, Bill of Material and Engineering and it has become a nightmare to maintain your master data. You have issues with data security due to the multi divisional environment.
August 27, 2010
Is "On-Time Delivery" Just a Promise or a Process to Gain Competitive Advantage?
Over the years, transportation remains one of the top five expenditures for Hi-Tech manufacturers, Retailers and Distributors. As Hi-Tech manufacturers strive to be competitively responsive to the marketplace demands in order to leverage the economic growth, and be a step ahead of their competitors, gaining control over pace and the cost of the transportation activity becomes imperative. As per leading industry analyst firm "A 5% reduction in transportation cost has the same P&L impact as a 5-30% increase in sales".
August 26, 2010
Social CRM : Prospects and Pitfalls
Apart from forecasting a tremendous growth of Social Media for Business and customer facing communities, Gartner's CRM predictions for 2010 have some key points to note
August 25, 2010
Demystifying Legal Entity in Oracle R12 Architecture
Continue reading " Demystifying Legal Entity in Oracle R12 Architecture " »
August 17, 2010
Choosing the right solution for your consolidation needs
Every organization has unique consolidation needs due to the way it has grown, complexity of the business and also its legal entity structure. What are your consolidation challenges?
Are you coping with multiple systems / multiple vendors sending data for consolidation in discrete manner?
Do you have multiple instances of your GL, which need to be consolidated?
Do you need sophisticated consolidation needs like Extended reporting capability in a single GL environment?
Do you need insights into consolidation for Analytics, Performance management like KPI's, Ratio Analysis etc to make informed decisions?
Continue reading " Choosing the right solution for your consolidation needs " »
August 16, 2010
Warehouse Sizing and Configuration- Art OR Science
Continue reading " Warehouse Sizing and Configuration- Art OR Science " »
August 13, 2010
Is your IT system geared to support the dynamics and complexities of the High Tech Value Chain?
High Tech manufacturing enterprises operate in a very competitive environment with a complex and long value chain. Value Chain Planning is the key differentiator and thrust area for these enterprises, as this lends them to better demand capture and fulfillment, better operational and financial efficiency. IT systems play a crucial role in enabling them to remain competitive. These IT systems acquired/built over a period of time, inevitably result in a complex integration landscape involving plethora of heterogeneous B2B (Business to Business), B2C (Business to Customer) and A2A (Application to Application) transactions. Even the reporting for running operations and management decision making is premised on multiple sources of truth.
August 7, 2010
From KYC to KYS- A Paradigm Shift
Organizations pan globe have engaged in programs like VoC (Voice of Customers) since time immemorial. They all want to know what their customers perceive of them. Recent times have seen the flattening of the business world. In order to keep an organization's supply chain lean and optimize on cost and operations, it is equally important to engage in programs like VoS (Voice of suppliers).
June 24, 2010
What Is Better: Radio Frequency Identification or Barcodes?
There is always an obvious choice at the end. It could to difficult to make though. But for long there have always been discussions which technology is better - RFDI or Barcode. There are many differences and benefits that each of these carry with them. Both bar codes and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) are a type of automatic identification and data collection (AIDC) technology.
Continue reading " What Is Better: Radio Frequency Identification or Barcodes? " »
June 10, 2010
What is the Credit Rating of Your ERP Implementation?
LIC - Life Insurance Corporation of India (Govt. owned) is the largest life insurer in India with an asset base of USD 160 billion and insuring 220 million lives over past 50 years.
Recently LIC was denied a license by the Singapore authorities to expand its operations in the country since it was not rated by an International credit rating agency. They have no option now but to get themselves rated by Moody's or S & P
Taking a cue from this incident and considering the changes in emerging markets like India, there may be a day when a ERP implementation or Software service provider may have to be rated by specialized agencies as AAA or at least A+ to qualify or bid for a proposal.
Continue reading " What is the Credit Rating of Your ERP Implementation? " »
June 8, 2010
Pillars of WMS
Receiving and putaway have often being defined as 2 of the 4 pillars of a typical Warehouse Management System. Put together the two pillars account for no less than 17% of warehouse operating expenses. Hence choosing the right processes and a system to support these processes is paramount.
June 2, 2010
Order Management for Legal Online Publishing
During a process improvement discussion on 'Voice of Customer' meet, one of the sales managers said, "Order processing in systems is the biggest bottleneck in our sales cycle. Further you simplify, more you will get it". The meet was part of large scale transformation endeavor, instigated with a new product launch for a legal media publishing company.
How true it is for a sale representative! Continuously bombarded with new products, company's acquisitions resulting in desperate order entry applications and compensation linked with products cross sell. Why only for sales? Even for call center reps doing order entry while on call, and for consumers doing order entry through self service channels.
Let us take a quick look at online products; typically online products are sold as part of Menus. For legal publishing, these Menus consist of information published from content sources. The content provider publishes varied information like Cases, News, Public Records, and Court Filings etc.
Now let us look at some facts which make these offerings complex;
• Within last 10 years, number of menus has increased to 1400 %**
• Individual source can appear in any number of Menus
• Each Menu has a different price point
(**Data - leading legal solution provider in US)
Typical characteristics of legal publishing enforce designers to think laterally for this industry where business models are getting transformed from "Service Providers" to "Solution Providers".
While it is true that legal industry dynamics and product structure contributes to Order entry complexities. But majority of complications are also due to 'People's involvement & training', 'Holistic Process definition' and 'Right use of technology & tools'. While there are enormous discussion opportunities on these subjects, I would limit the scope by illustrating on order processes.
In legal publishing, the order function revolves around following high level processes;
• Proposal & Contract: Proposing different offers and finalizing on one, subsequently formulating a contract with approvals, legal terms editions etc.• Order Capture & Validations: Entering the order details and subscribers data along with system checks on data validations like emails, subscription period etc.
• Security & Verification: Validation of subscribers, company and contact information for background check and future communications.
• Billing Provisioning: Sending order information to billing application and setting up the billing cycles, account and subscription information.
• Order Fulfillment & On-boarding: Running the subscriber information against authentication, generating and sending the user id password information.
• Subscription Management: Different operations on a subscription e.g. extend, inactivate, reactivate, terminate, interrupt, resume etc. with different level of validations and authorization.
The problem statement becomes more complicated while leveraging the alignment of "Order-to-Cash" with "Campaign-to-Order", "Cash-to-Care", "Billing & Invoicing" & "Royalty" processes. What make it worst is the inconsistencies in order processing rules across different segments like Small Law Firms, Mid-Size & Large Law Firms, Law Schools, Law Students, Corporate & Non-Profit Firms and Government clients.
Different leading software vendors have been collaborating with publishing leaders to enrich their application platform. Infosys team has been working with a US client to create a seamless solution on Oracle platform. We successfully completed the first milestone where the Order Management functions are configured on Siebel platform with an end-to-end integration with Billing (BRM), Finance (PeopleSoft), Fulfillment (WAM) and other back office applications.
I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences and opinions for handling complex order management function on typical enterprise software packages. Also if you are facing similar challenges, I will be very happy to share more details. Please feel free to write back.
May 28, 2010
Can material bins themselves serve as kanban signals?
Continue reading " Can material bins themselves serve as kanban signals? " »
May 26, 2010
Role of Reverse Logistics in enhancing customer satisfaction by improving returns management in manufacturing
Traditionally the manufacturing industry is always focused on improving the forward logistics- the focus is to cut cycle time for product innovation, time to market, order to fulfill. This led to optimization techniques of forward logistics through usage of technology. Forward supply chain visibility is a key parameter which the customer evaluates before choosing a supplier in manufacturing.
But the paradigm is shifting gradually. Today's best of class manufacturing organizations have created their own service organizations and are realizing the importance of managing the return and repairs efficiently. There is a considerable monetary value attached to this cycle- and more important it is the loss of loyalty due to an unsatisfied customer because of delay in the replacement/repair of faulty product. This loss can be easily associated with loss of revenue, market share and other financial numbers. As a result leading manufacturing companies are leveraging technology and collaborating with partners to optimize their return, repair, replacement, recycle and remarketing processes.
In order to understand the role of reverse logistics, let us look at the key functions in the value chain which impacts the overall cycle time for execution.
- Customer service management- This involves receiving customer complaints and ensuring service contract compliance, proactive updates on service calls, status monitoring and first hand issue resolution
- Transportation and Logistics- this involves authorizing returns, collecting, sorting, testing, stocking, shipping (transportation) and disposition
- Depot repair- Managing repair, reverse engineering, remanufacturing, reassembly and reuse of salvaged components
- Channel Management- This involves measuring, monitoring, tracking and evaluating the performance of channel partners
- Financial management- This involves managing warranty and financial liability, proper inventory valuation and costing and finally recovery of appropriate costs
- Sales- Refurbished product sale through promotions and other channels
We need to now carefully examine the factors that impact these functions. Once we understand those we can understand the role of efficient reverse logistics in enhancing customer satisfaction. We will discuss those in my next blog- in the meantime let me know your views and thoughts.
May 22, 2010
Go Lean: Minimize customizations and reduce overall TCO in Oracle ERP implementation (Part 3)
There are many ways to achieve Leaner ERP implementation, and I have discussed some of the strategic levers for it in my previous blogs Go Lean (Part 2) and Go Lean (Part 1) like senior management and executive sponsorship, robust decision making framework, effective change management approach, upfront planning for middleware and reporting platforms, solution design workshops, selection of appropriate edge products and leveraging localizations. However, there are many tactical and operational levers also available for enterprises to adopt, which are primarily part of implementation execution cycle. I am discussing here some of these levers and best practices to minimize customizations:
- Boot Camp Trainings - Before initiating the solution design phase, organizations must seriously consider to conduct the boot camp trainings on chosen ERP to their key super users, business analysts and implementation core team, facilitated by System Integrator (SI). The intent for boot camps must be training to the team for vanilla features and functionalities of ERP relevant to their industry processes. This will enable them to bridge many gaps and requirements through seeded ERP functionality, and increase the overall fitment of the package application, leading towards reduced customizations.
Oracle R12 : Journey So Far! Key Learnings
Oracle R12 has now completed a good number of years in the Market. It arrived with much fanfare, so has it delivered so far? What have been the key learnings from the upgrades that we have seen?
The former is a more difficult question, as any enterprise technology upgrade always comes with fading support for the previous version, thereby creating a risk for the organization. So product upgrades are akin to insurance policies one just has to get them. But R12 was the path to fusion so expectations were a little different. Let us discuss the latter question first, what have we learnt from our engagements of R12 Upgrades. I will next attempt to list down some of the top things I have heard from supporting multiple engagements in R12.
1. Measure twice - Cut Once
Well this common rule in carpentary holds true for R12 Upgrades too! People often underestimate the amount of technical impact that this version has. Oracle users have been used to almost a 10 year period when the version releases were between 11.0.3 to 11.5.10, all essentially sub releases. But R12 brings together substantial differences in the core financials modules, namely GL and AP. The one thing that we learnt from a lot of engagements is to make sure we estimate multiple times through a rigorous check with version comparisons. While the Infosys Upgrade tool does estimate the impact, it does have some limitations. For example Folders, Forms Personalizations these are aspects which not many technical tools capture. The more of these and you have a big problem of missed estimates.
In summary, accurate estimation of technical components from a technical upgrade is a must and is often underestimated.
2. It looks different - It IS different - User Interface changes
The R12 screens borrow heavily form PeopleSoft applications in the user interface technology, so when you look at for the first time, they look bluer and more different! We have seen lot of engagements miss the boat on estimating the effort needed for retraining some of the users, even the expert Oracle 11i ones. The html based navigation is different, and does need some getting used to. Although 11i had introduced OA framework based html screens, R12 has introduced these to a wider number of modules, even financial module of AP has a lot of these screens for eg Supplier Entry.
3. New Functionalities
Just like the above bullet, a substantial business user involvement is needed even if an organization is looking at technical upgrade, since R12 contains many standard functionalities that would retire customizations. Evaluate of these functionalities are best done as part of the upgrade and not as a separate project after the upgrade. The additional testing and project management effort might make the justification of the subsequent phases difficult to fund.
4. Reporting Changes
When underlying data structures change, it has a big impact on the reporting out of the application. And R12 contains a lot of data structure changes, this makes it opportune time to review and revise the organizational reporting strategy during an upgrade. Also with R12 the tools supported for reporting are changing, Desktop ADIs and FSGs can be replaced with a combination of Web ADI and Reports Manager. Also the BI publisher enables a lot of reuse of reporting entities
These were some of the main themes emerging from the 30+ R12 engagements that infosys is engaged in. What are your experiences? I would love to hear back from your personal experiences with R12.
May 20, 2010
Leveraging Technology - Retaining corporate knowledge in an Ageing workforce situation
May 17, 2010
Use RBAC to secure your eBiz suite
To realize the early benefits of an ERP implementation and to comply with all the legal requirements, it is important that the applications and data are properly secured by exploring all the available security option within Oracle Applications
Oracle ebiz suite has various security features like:
a) Application Security using Access Control, Identity Management , Password Management etc
b) Physical Data Security using oracle database security , back ups etc
c) Security for imodules using firewalls, proxies etc
As part of Application security, User Management or RBAC (Role Based Access Control) was introduced by Oracle few years back, the major features of User management are:
- In the User Management model, a role would point to a set of functions and separately point to a navigation menu that should be used to access those functions.
- This navigation menu may contain a superset of functions but only those functions which have been granted to the user (via the roles) would be enabled (other functions would be filtered out)
- The navigation menu can be organized in the most intuitive way for finding functions in the navigator, while the roles can be defined purely based on the security / organization requirements
What is the difference with the traditional Responsibility approach?
Under User Management / RBAC, rather than presenting the user with a list of responsibilities which may have the same menu or slightly altered versions of the same menu presented multiple times, one would present the user with a list of product areas, and all the functions which they can access in that product area regardless of the role through which the function was given.
RBAC / User Management still has long way to go with challenges like an organization should have a clear RACI(Responsibility-Accountability-Consultation-Information) matrix defined with proper roles but eventually it would replace the Responsibility based security model of oracle.
May 16, 2010
The TMS Way- The SMART Way
There are many ways to perform an operation and there is a SMART way of performing the same operation. Inbound logistics is an integral part of any warehouse management system.
May 5, 2010
Business Process Reengineering: How to reengineer towards an efficient process?
Business Process Reengineering (BPR) has become yet another buzz word of recent times where every System Integrator advises clients that before going ahead with any large transformation program they need to conduct BPR of their existing processes. But is there a correct prescription for this critical step? After all, a wrong move can jeopardize the entire ERP investment.
May 4, 2010
When is the right time to conduct End User Training in Oracle implementation?
One question that continues to baffle the program management community around Training delivery in large ERP implementation programs is when to deliver end user Training? The answer is probably not as straight as you may expect. Let's first discuss the constraints around this decision:
- Go Live Date: If there is a huge gap between Go Live Date and User Training, the user tends to forget what they learnt as during this period they have to continue using the legacy system and will not be able to unlearn some of the old practices and habits post go-live. On the other hand, if the training continues till the last date, you will not be able to make an apt decision towards user readiness and its implications on implementation Go No Go Decision.
Continue reading " When is the right time to conduct End User Training in Oracle implementation? " »
May 3, 2010
Training Need Analysis, the first steps towards a successful End User Training for large implementation programs
Typical implementations would tread the wrong path by training their end users on all the modules/ functionalities being implemented using the traditional system based classroom session training approach, assuming that this will make them ready for the implementation. Some of these organizations, who are more mature, may leverage similar approach, however by grouping their user community by departments and having some amount of hands on training. But the fact is, the both ways lack the vision and approach towards a successful Training Program. Even before any training activity is initiated, it's important to understand the target end user population, their current skill sets, the impact of the system changes on their day to day tasks and job responsibilities, and then only a strategy must be developed around Training.
Road towards Package Adoption and Learning - Comprehensive Training Strategy is your Precursor to implementation success
In my last blog Still waters run deep - Poor User Adoption may cost you your ERP Implementation.. I discussed at length about the importance of ERP training and the need for organizations to focus more on user adoption. As ERP Implementations mature and grow, the focus on user training also intensifies. While many organizations have started realizing the benefits of user adoption, they often struggle to determine the right budget and the right approach to achieve it.
Go Lean: Minimize customizations and reduce overall TCO in Oracle ERP implementation (Part 2)
To get an answer to the question raised in my previous blog Go Lean (Part 1), first we need to understand the primary reasons why organizations tend to develop custom code in typical Oracle ERP implementation program, and then what are the best practices or guiding principals they can adopt to go leaner.
May 1, 2010
Oracle WMS To Achieve Lean Manufacturing
Oracle WMS tries to optimize the material storage and handles material movement within warehouses and storage units based on the business constraints for a facility. By implementing Oracle WMS, a Warehouse Manager can walk within the four walls of the warehouse to execute material transactions. These include:
- Inbound Transactions,
- Outbound Shipments and
- Inventory movement
and avail of the other value added services in Oracle eBusiness Suite (EBS), through hand held RF (Radio Frequency) devices which are well integrated with EBS.
Continue reading " Oracle WMS To Achieve Lean Manufacturing " »
April 30, 2010
Go Lean: Minimize customizations and reduce overall TCO in Oracle ERP implementation (Part 1)
'Flexible and Extensible' is one of the key differentiator for Oracle in Enterprise Applications market space. Despite providing rich out-of-the box functionality and edge products, Oracle also offers variety of tools and methods to personalize or customize the vanilla solution to meet the industry specific unique business requirements. Admittedly, it is sometimes reasonable and worthwhile to customize the ERP to address the specific gaps and meet strategic objectives of the implementation, however these customizations come with their own cost - Increased TCO, Painful and expensive upgrades to newer versions, Ongoing maintenance challenges, No support from Oracle for customized application, need for scarce ERP technical resources to maintain custom code and many more.
Still waters run deep - Poor User Adoption may cost you your ERP Implementation..
April 26, 2010
Emerging trends in ERP for Banking Industry - Establish an Accounting Centre of Excellence with Oracle R12
Globalization has become inevitable in the current economic scenario. Banks need to expand their horizons and establish footprints in multiple geographies to cope up with the changes in the market and retain a competitive edge. This trend has been compelling banks to revisit their Business Models and strategies to sustain growth and profitability.
Such Industry/ market factors and Management's vision play a crucial role in the determination of the Bank's organic and inorganic growth strategies, that in-turn necessitate changes to the business model and the systems supporting the same.
Think Globally -Need for Centralization or Consolidation of functions /processes
Banks need to think and act globally to remain competitive: They need to lower cost and improve performance by business consolidation, realize economies of scale, establish shared service center etc
What is Accounting Center of Excellence (ACE)?
Centralizing and consolidating accounting functions like invoicing, collections, period close at a central place on behalf of global entities within a banking organization is Accounting center of excellence. It is different from Shared Service center in the sense that it would be a cost center which would drive the common accounting and finance activities for all the entities within an organization
Objectives of ACE
a) Meet diverse accounting and functional requirements from a global center
b) Simplify financial operations
c) Streamline Financial close processes
d) Lower the cost of accounting and finance functions
e) Streamline MIS and reporting
April 21, 2010
Governance, Risk and Compliance: Are You Ready?
With ever increasing frauds being detected, a Governance, Risk and Compliance solution is no more a nice to have but an absolute necessity to address the challenges. Companies are now realizing the benefits of an investment which has the potential to yield phenomenal gains in the long run.
Before even delving into an IT solution, it is imperative to understand the needs around Governance, Risk and Compliance. A good starting point is to have your auditor look at your risk mechanism, governance issues, control mechanism. A strong foundation needs to be in place before we can think of an IT enabled solution.
Once we have built the foundation around segregation of duties, key data to be tracked, mitigating controls, the next step is to look at the OTC products available in the market and come up with a solution which works best for you. It may not be a 100% fit but 80% fitment is good enough to start with.
Though on financial terms, the investment may not result in immediate gains but in the long run it gives you a peace of mind which unfortunately is not quantifiable. Also the amount of time and money which goes in meeting these needs is huge if we do not have a workable solution in place.
April 5, 2010
Upgrade to Oracle Apps R12 - Sow a right seed today to harvest a bumper crop tomorrow
Growing globally, organically or inorganically is the ultimate goal of any organization to adhere to the basic principle i.e. enhancing the enterprise value by satisfying all stakeholders.
One of the difficulties in operating globally is that different localizations, such as statutory and currency, complicate business operations since the business must comply both with global and local policies. Back office ERP systems are supposed to provide support to meet global challenges. However, complexities that result from global operations are still a major hassle, and there comes a decision point when a business must evaluate its current systems and determine if changes / upgrade to the current systems would be required.
Smart business owners know, that by planting the right seeds at right time, their companies can harvest a bumper crop later. By investing up front to upgrade their ERP applications to oracle R12, entities can mitigate various challenges today.
| Challenges | How eBusiness suite R12 can help? |
| Large Global Entities: Ø How do I meet diverse accounting and financial reporting requirements? Ø How do I simplify my financial operations and drive out cost? Ø How can IT keep up with a changing business?
| Global Accounting, Standardized processes and Flexible architecture Ø Flexible Ledger structure Ø Centralize Accounting using SLA Ø Centralize Tax and Payments Ø Multi organization access Ø Advanced architecture with OAF, XML technologies and fusion middleware |
| Single National Entity Ø How do I streamline my financial close process? Ø How do I lower the cost of my finance operations? Ø How can I eliminate customizations through configuration? | Simplified processes and compliance, Use standard set ups Ø Manage close with ledger sets and advanced tools like WEB ADI Ø Centralize Banks, Payments and Intercompany Ø Sub ledger Accounting – flexibility to configure accounting rules |
| SME’s Ø How do I compete in a global economy? Ø How do I distribute information to the right people? Ø How do I maintain applications with limited IT resources?
| Enhanced efficiency and simplified reporting Ø Better look and feel with 300+ enhancements and 18 new modules Ø Flexible Report configuration using Report manager and XML data definitions Ø Scalable platform with functionalities like secondary ledgers and definition access sets Ø Flexible architecture |
March 15, 2010
Is it possible to achieve "Zero" breakdown in Maintenance World?
In maintenance world when we talk of "Zero Break down" most of the time maintenance crew says that it is not possible to achieve zero break down. So is it really possible to achieve "Zero Break down" for a Machine /Equipment? The answer is "Yes".
What is breakdown? :- When a Machine (M/c)is working and suddenly something fails for e.g. in case of CNC M/c hydraulic hose pipe rupture and it leads to heavy oil leakage, thus Beak down due to hydraulic leakage occurs on the M/C.
Above Failure could have been anticipated by doing regular check of hydraulic hose piping by carrying out proper preventive, predictive maintenance.
What is "Zero Breakdowns"? :- When the Maintenance Department hand over a M/C to Production Department for the Production activities, that time maintenance department can confidently say the M/C would not fail due to "Hydraulic leakage" for another 24 Hrs as they have done a proper inspection/rectification through Preventive and Predictive Maintenance on the M/C on Hydraulic side. This 24 hrs of running time without any Hydraulic failure is said to be "Zero Break Down" in Hydraulic piping area.
After 24 Hrs again maintenance team would take the machine in their custody to do preventive and predictive maintenance to ensure that there would not be any failure due to "Hydraulic leakage" for another 24 hrs, thus maintenance team take over the control of M/C after certain running period of the M/Cs and do preventive/Predictive maintenance to achieve "Zero Breakdown" in specific area e.g. 'Hydraulic Pipe failure'. Over a period of time by doing proper, regular preventive maintenance on almost all the areas of M/C instead of specific area leads to achieve Total "Zero Breakdown" on an asset for certain mentioned period time frame by the Maintenance department.
Continue reading " Is it possible to achieve "Zero" breakdown in Maintenance World? " »
February 28, 2010
A diet for your General Ledger system: From “Fat GL” to “Thin GL”
Determining the number and composition of the extended accounts (Flexfield structure in Oracle) has been a topic of debate and angst amongst GL architects.
A “Fat GL” design as the name implies contains a very large number of journals, often containing information that would typically be required for operational management reporting and typically containing minimal summarization.
Continue reading " A diet for your General Ledger system: From “Fat GL” to “Thin GL” " »
January 26, 2010
The Importance of being Earnest (on Oracle Rollup Patches)
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.
December 16, 2009
5 Mistakes Every Future ERP Implementation should make
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 thisc) 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."
December 6, 2009
Minimizing the Bull Whip Effect in the IT Supply Chain
Continue reading " Minimizing the Bull Whip Effect in the IT Supply Chain " »
December 2, 2009
Are you getting the most out of your investment in PLM and ERP?
Continue reading " Are you getting the most out of your investment in PLM and ERP? " »
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! " »
October 7, 2009
When the going gets tough, the smooth gets going!
During tough economic times, even the mightiest of them fall and especially in oil and gas industry we have seen that happening when crude plummeted to $32 after hitting a record of $147 a barrel at a point of time
Continue reading " When the going gets tough, the smooth gets going! " »
October 1, 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 " »
September 30, 2009
ERP on Next Gen Phones: Dream or Reality
With the need of the hour for Senior Executives being the ability to make well informed decisions on a 24x7 basis, it has become imperative that they have constant access to the Business Applications specially Enterprise Applications.
Continue reading " ERP on Next Gen Phones: Dream or Reality " »
September 23, 2009
EBS R12 Roadmap: A Global Retailer’s challenge in picking the optimum upgrade solution approach to R12 with an existing Oracle product portfolio
On the EBS R12 Roadmap, retailers with an existing Oracle product portfolio and operating globally across multiple business units and having multiple oracle instances face the everlasting dilemma whether to Upgrade for achieving the new package benefits at a relatively lesser cost versus - to Re-Implement a fully re-engineered R12 based solution bringing in maximum benefits but probably at a relatively higher cost.
August 3, 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 " »
June 30, 2009
Is my ERP safe
Often,during client meetings, I am asked if ERP systems are secure enough to be used. Granting of rights,privileges,administrative rights across various 'responsbibilities' in oracle applications is a common practice in any implementation.This prevents unathorised access and potential misuse.
June 19, 2009
Oracle's MTO Solution for Process Industries
This is followup blog to:
http://www.infosysblogs.com/oracle/2009/05/finally_maketoorder_solution_f_1.html
In Last Blog, I discussed about Oracle’s MTO solution for process manufacturer. Let’s go a little deeper to understand how it will benefit Process as well as hybrid manufacturer. We will also see how this solution has evolved through various releases of OPM.
Continue reading " Oracle's MTO Solution for Process Industries " »
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.
June 1, 2009
Customizations to a ERP....
Can a ERP system exist without customizations? Can a Company run its business using a Vanilla ERP product? This is a question which can be debated on and on..
May 15, 2009
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.
March 29, 2009
EAM Implementations in view of changing Generation portfolio
Traditionally Enterprise asset management functions for power generating companies focus on implementing a model that supports complex plant maintenance. There is always a particular importance given towards capabilities to handle hierarchical plant structures, condition and performance monitoring, preventive maintenance and outage management. Generating companies tend to arrive at their asset management model based on the generation portfolio that own. For eg., the asset management model for a hydro electric plant will be different from the asset management model required for a coal fired plan or a Gas fired plant. This blog highlights some of the dimensions that current EAM implementations are focussing on.
Continue reading " EAM Implementations in view of changing Generation portfolio " »
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.
March 10, 2009
When do we re-implement instead of upgrade?
Especially when the effort/cost required for both the options is approximately the same? If we were to assume the upgrade is from any of the 11i versions to R12, what are the key factors which will help us reach a logical conclusion on this topic?
Continue reading " When do we re-implement instead of upgrade? " »
February 23, 2009
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? " »
January 2, 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.
December 11, 2008
Handling Integration Crisis with Composite Applications
Continue reading " Handling Integration Crisis with Composite Applications " »
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.
November 19, 2008
STANDARDIZATION: Top-Down Vs Bottom-Up
Standardization helps businesses develop the ability to "consistently" deliver high quality products and services its customers. It drives manufacturing excellence by raising the efficiencies of operations by reducing process variability, adopting optimal procedures to complete work and then adapting those procedures as effective practice within the organization.
While most organizations understand the importance of process standardizations, there could be confusion with respect to the approach that should be followed. Businesses looking at standardizing its operations can look at the following approaches -
Continue reading " STANDARDIZATION: Top-Down Vs Bottom-Up " »
November 13, 2008
ERP implementations in a recessionary economy: Is Limited Functionality ERP the way?
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.
October 17, 2008
Earned Value Management for ERP Implementations
ERP implementations are a special breed of projects. They are often characterized by aggressive timelines, high budgets and involvement of diverse teams. This emphasizes the need to have a reliable tool to measure the performance of ERP implementations throughout the execution phases.
Continue reading " Earned Value Management for ERP Implementations " »
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
August 10, 2008
Thinking of R12? Go for an Enhanced Upgrade
Continue reading " Thinking of R12? Go for an Enhanced Upgrade " »
July 11, 2008
Upgrading to Oracle R12? Keep Fusion in mind
R12 is a milestone in Journey to Fusion
Oracle’s E-Business Suite Release 12 is Oracle’s latest version of their business applications with an upgrade path to Oracle Fusion Application. The technology stack is upgraded to Fusion Middleware, the backbone of Fusion Applications.
Continue reading " Upgrading to Oracle R12? Keep Fusion in mind " »
Follow us on
Poll
Infosys on Twitter
Recent Posts
Categories
Blog Roll
Archives
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008