Customers design online
By By Don Willis, president and CEO, IPNet Solutions Inc. -- Purchasing, 12/22/2000 2:00:00 AM
By 2010, e-business will be business as usual. Compulsion to use the letter "e" in business terminology will be long past and an online global economy will flourish. Highly automated business processes between trading partners will keep commerce humming with minimal manual intervention. This will be powered by adoption of universal standards for everything from bar codes to XML data formats to ubiquitous wireless devices.
As the lines between internal and external applications are blurred, supply chains will be more tightly coupled and function as living organisms-of one mind and purpose. These specialized organizations will flex with ease to accommodate ever shifting demands. Information will flow instantaneously from tip to end and relationships between suppliers and their customers will be even more seamless. Overall, there will be radical changes in the way businesses move product.
Enabling these developments will be new technologies as well as more highly developed existing technologies. Wireless order and delivery will play a significant role. Bandwidth will be awesome and have huge impact. There will be exponential growth in frequency and amount of data being exchanged among partners coupled by a reduction in costs of data handling as manual intervention is removed. Everyone will have visibility into the supply chain-buyers, suppliers, retailers and even customers. Customers will be able to design online to meet their specific needs and preferences. Manufacturers will build products to order and the supply chain will react to these granular requirements with ease and speed. Highly sophisticated software products will be delivered over the Net.
Superb supply-chain execution will continue to provide the competitive advantage it does today, but will also be a requirement for survival. Big buyers will manage their supply chains to gain strategic advantage. Extensive supply organizations will integrate even the smallest business partners, as easy, low-cost business transaction solutions will be available off-the-shelf.
Preparation for the future involves making thoughtful in-vestments today. Investments that won't tie a company to proprietary solutions that consume capital and other re-sources as they struggle to upgrade and meet future demands. Smart money will be spent on systems and solutions based on open standards and built with open architectures. Among industry standards and initiatives that hold future promise are ebXML, UCCnet and CPFR. These movements will play a significant role in enabling an online global economy.
Preparation also entails removing obstacles impeding flexibility. Companies may need to sacrifice efforts to recoup value from legacy infrastructures and capital investments. Experience has shown that a rear-view focus will impede progress. This scenario has been played out in a number of areas-wireless technology, for example-where Japan now leads because industry in that country was willing to take risks and adapt to a changing world.
IPNet Solutions Inc. is an e-business software developer creating products that seamlessly link companies, their trading partners and exchanges in virtual trading communities.
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