NEXT LEVEL EDI

The long overdue breakthrough in data networking?

While our smartphones and apps are becoming increasingly intelligent thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), many companies still seem to be at the level of the first generation of cell phones. It’s as if time has stood still in terms of digitalization in some areas of the company, while it is progressing at the speed of light in the private sphere. Especially in the professional context of enterprise resource planning (ERP), it is time to release the handbrake and pave the way for innovation. Many companies are still clinging to outdated technologies that had their heyday several decades ago. The consequence: competitiveness and scalability fall by the wayside, as outdated systems are unable to keep pace with the demands of the modern business world.

From manual to intelligent data exchange

Since the beginning of trade, the exchange of business information such as orders, order confirmations and invoices has been essential for the economic success of companies. The exchange of documents in particular plays a key role between business partners. Until the end of the 1960s, this exchange took place in the form of paper documents that were processed manually. At the beginning of the 1970s, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) was created as a way of exchanging business data electronically.

In the following decades and with the further development of ERP systems and cross-system standards, Electronic Data Interchange became increasingly important and is still widely accepted in various industries today. Over the years, standardization became the leitmotif. The standardized EDI approach also means that individual formats, document types, interfaces or specific requirements of trading partners are difficult or impossible to take into account. Traditional EDI technology is also time-consuming, costly and requires manual post-processing in 95% of cases. The implementation of these systems is often complex and time-consuming, as proprietary systems hinder interoperability. In addition, the shortage of skilled workers and the low level of user-friendliness are exacerbating the challenges in the area of electronic data exchange.

Document exchange via Electronic Data Interchange therefore does not meet the requirements of the modern business world and ties up administrative positions in an endless cycle of manual processing. This means that millions of clerks in the areas of purchasing, logistics and sales have to spend thousands of working hours manually reworking documents. This outdated approach is not only inefficient, but also represents a significant obstacle to innovation, progress and scalability in companies.

One thing is clear: in an increasingly networked and intelligent world, it is no longer enough to rely solely on traditional electronic communication. A strategic realignment using modern technologies is required in order to fully exploit the benefits of artificial intelligence (AI) and thus increase productivity and efficiency. Due to these circumstances, new and intelligent systems are emerging as a logical consequence that look at and solve these problems differently. They all have a new, intelligent approach, also known as Intelligent Data Interchange (IDI).

The innovative strategy for intelligent data exchange

Intelligent Data Interchange (IDI) marks the beginning of a new era in data exchange, leaving traditional methods behind and paving the way for a smarter and more efficient future. By integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), data is not only transferred, but also enriched and contextualized. This makes it possible to recognize and fill data gaps independently by means of intelligent data exchange, which leads to a significant improvement in data quality.

Advanced IDI technologies are designed to overcome data barriers autonomously, providing a dynamic solution that continuously adapts to new business requirements. The development and establishment of new basic technologies by means of IDI allows companies to rethink conventional solutions and to dispel previous concerns due to the increasing maturity of the technology.

It is therefore essential for companies to develop a long-term and sustainable strategy for automated data exchange. Such a strategy should go beyond short-term solutions, eliminate existing challenges and ensure a continuous increase in efficiency. An intelligent and scalable IDI solution is characterized not only by the identification of existing data, but also by the ability to automatically identify data gaps and fill them with correct information. This represents a permanent and valuable resource for any data-driven company, particularly in the area of document exchange.

You can find out more about the specific application and added value of Intelligent Data Interchange (IDI) as well as practical application examples in the free IDI white paper

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