Clone, Connect, Automate – saving time and reducing errors is just the beginning.
One the of great things about SaaS is the ability to opt-in permanently (or on a transaction by transaction) basis to information from a counter-party such as supplier, customer, employee or other legal entity you ‘trade’ with in a broader sense.
We call this automated exchange of information ‘Transaction Cross-Docking’ or TCD, just like the traditional cross-docking of pallets of physical materials in warehouses and distribution hubs when they are being transhipped from one location to another via a middle point. It was and remains very efficient but it is still constrained by being physical. Our TCD is virtual and so much faster and more powerful.
Think of it like the ground breaking work done with cloning dolly the sheep plus a lot more because is is virtual, global and instantly accessible.
It extends on some very old concepts such as EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) that have been used in (mainly closed or industry specific) trading networks for many many years. The automotive industry has been a heavy user of these principles since the seventies but it required lots of upfront investment and ongoing investment in technology infrastructure and teams. Lesser known but more influential has been the use of these technologies in trading for global capital markets such as in a world leading Australian based company I used to run.
This is not a new area for SaaS either. Saasu has been quietly working on it for about 15 months and the range of opportunities is huge. Some of our competitors have recently worked this out too so hopefully the market will learn faster about the benefits.
Cloning
At the simplest level, you receive a sales invoice from your supplier and click one button to post it in your records too. This is a step up from most alternatives because it saves re-keying effort and error risk. We call this cloning – ‘one click duplication’.
Connecting
At the same time as you clone, you may optionally choose to connect the two (distinct copies) of the (same) transaction permanently. Why? To ensure you are kept informed of changes on the originator’s end (supplier in this example). This is step up from cloning because it adds the value of change management. You may be notified of changes by the supplier and keep a record of those changes against the transaction. We call this linking ‘one click connection’.
You may also ask why two copies, why not always have one that is permanently linked? The answer is simple, this is one transaction but there are (at least) two parties to it, each are separate legal entities required to have their own records.
Automating
The next step in efficiency is optionally agreeing to do this (clone and connect with various options) for all transactions from that counter-party (e.g. supplier) automatically in future. Possibly also add-in an additional level of security for managing repudiation risk, public/private keys work well here. We call it ‘one click automation’.
Manage
Over time you can imagine these relationships with counterparties could get complex to track and manage efficiently. You need to ensure you have the right tools in place to ensure the longer term cost does not exceed the savings. More importantly, this new meta data on your ecosystem might be able to add value to your business more strategically – like benchmarking suppliers and customers.
Clone. Connect. Automate. Manage.
The great thing about SaaS transaction cross-docking is the low cost of realising those benefits, no big upfront investment or ongoing costs.
It creates a mini-ecosystem for your business just as auto makers (and trading system technology providers in capital markets) have been doing for years. This ecosystem gets extra efficiencies and retention benefits that those outside the ecosystem won’t get.
Here at Saasu we are working on all this and some even more sophisticated versions we think apply benefits to a few dozen industries. Not just as an isolated feature here or there but as a strategic multi-year multi-industry multi-release initiative that will deliver substantial business benefits in the short and long term.
A new level of competing. Bring it on!
