in-house |
external |
|
| Skill/Ability:
daily operation - getting the system running,
accessing mailbox, sending messages, etc. Explanation for Rating: These are routine operations that are critical to the functioning of a business. |
X |
|
| Skill/Ability:
Minor troubles shooting, ability to check manual or
converse with technical support. Explanation for Rating: These are the kinds of problems that have to be fixed quickly to assure smooth operation of important business activities. Given the level of technical expertise required, it is easy to assure that at least one employee will have the necessary skills. |
X |
|
| Skill/Ability:
Minor accommodation to changes in trading
partner’s formats or transaction details Explanation for Rating: If your translator does not have a user-friendly system for formatting transactions, or if the need for modification is rare, it may be reasonable to use an outsider for this work. But beyond a low level of change, it is convenient, and not that difficult, to have on-demand access to the required skills. A mid-level to advanced training course for one employee is in all likelihood, all that will be needed. |
X |
|
| Skill/Ability:
Complying with a request for EDI from a new trading
partner, or accommodating major changes in EDI with an
existing trading partner Explanation for Rating: The problem here is that a lot of detailed work needs to be done to make sure that the format you are receiving will fit the format you need. The problem is particularly difficult if you are automating the flow of information from EDI into another application (e.g. MRP). You could do the work in-house, but in most cases it will not make good business sense to maintain the capacity to do so. The ideal situation is to have a vendor who has many customers with your translation needs, and who will thus prepare a special map to do the translation. Because the cost is amortized over many of your vendor’s customers, the cost to you will be low. |
X |
|
| Skill/Ability:
Recognizing possibilities for improvement, e.g.
software upgrades or changes, switch from VAN to
Internet, integration of EDI into other business
applications Explanation for Rating: While it is always helpful to have outside experts point out possibilities for change, the process of continuous improvement requires an in-house recognition of when change may be desirable, and what kind of change needs to take place. |
X |
|
| Skill/Ability:
Implementing improvement Explanation for Rating: Implementing these kinds of changes requires a fairly high degree of specialized expertise. Some SMEs may have that expertise in-house, but we believe that most do not. Further, poor choices at these times can have major deleterious consequences later. Thus even with in-house ability, it often makes sense to check with an outside expert. |
X |