The Shift to Enterprise Wide Computing: Technologies of Supply Chain Management and Sales Force Automation

1
The Shift to Enterprise Wide Computing
Technologies of Supply Chain Management and Sales
Force Automation

• Professor Kleist
• BADM 334
• January 22, 2001
• Talk based in part or entirely from material in
  PricewaterhouseCoopers 1999 Technology Forecast

2
ERP SUPPORTS STRATEGIC USE OF IT

• ERP enterprise resource planning.
• ERP products allow for better coordination of the
  entire logistics, production and distribution
  channels of the value chain.
• ERP allows the acquiring of raw materials,
  scheduling, and shipping of product to customers
  on time. ERP helps with supply chain and sales
  force automation.

3
Major ERP Vendors

• SAP
• Peoplesoft
• Oracle
• Baan
• J. D. Edwards

4
Trends in ERP Products

• Targeting midsize companies with less expensive
  products
• Adding new functionality to the product line
• SCM Products linking companys manufacturing
  and distribution, planning and scheduling, order
  mgt., warehouse mgt., transportation mgt.,
  customer service
• Internet usage for all linkages

5
Sales Force Automation

• SFA links the back office operations to the front
  office
• Provides multiple functions
• Tracks sales prospects, contact management,
  product development, help for users, pricing
  schemes in the field, forecast sales, connect to
  inventory, delivery databases

6
Data Warehouses and Data Trends

• ERP products help provide the ability to better
  collect and analyze data
• ERP products allow the firm to link processes to
  other vendors databases (sometimes called
  middleware)
• New data capabilities with OLTP (on line
  transactions processing)
• Movement to data warehouses
• Use of datamining

7
Trends with ERP Vendors

• New products using ecommerce formats
• Use of middle markets
• Use of implementation outsourcing (PWC)
• Accelerated, easier implementations
• Less expensive products for middle size firms
• Componentized products
• Mergers, acquisitions and alliances
• Rental instead of purchase of software

8
Call Center Technologies

• Historically, call centers have been voice
  oriented
• New breed linking call centers to databases
• Trend to integrate voice and data over the web
  technologies
• Trying to build technologies which use many
  channels to reach customer voice, web, email,
  etc.