There’s a Map for That! Automate Away with Custom EDI Mapping

Week #4 of IDEA’s EDI Masterclass: Your Ultimate Guide to Streamlining Business Processes with Electronic Data Interchange

By Tom Guzik, Director, Digital Integration Services, IDEA

headshot of Tom Guzik

Are the complexities of mapping and limited internal resources preventing your company from implementing EDI transactions and getting the most out of your Electronic Data Interchange? Consider outsourcing EDI mapping to a managed services provider, so you can maximize transaction automation without expanding your team. Learn how custom EDI mapping works.

EDI Mapping: In-House Challenges and Outsourced Solutions

Electronic Data Interchange facilitates exchange of standardized documents in an electronic format between trading partners. EDI may sound simple, but when the transaction needs customized maps to translate data between different systems, the expertise required of both the business processes and EDI technicalities may not be available in house and EDI implementation comes to a screeching halt.

That’s why so many companies are turning to EDI managed services providers like IDEA to create custom EDI maps, tailored to unique business requirements.

Custom EDI Mapping Support for Current EDI Users

Outsourcing mapping to IDEA can help your business overcome the obstacles that prevent you from realizing all the benefits of EDI.

  1. Free Up Internal Staff: Delegate the more complicated EDI maps that to IDEA’s experts, ensuring they’re developed efficiently and accurately, without bogging down your team.
  2. Address Map Requests Faster: Avoid a backlog and keep EDI operations running smoothly.
  3. Expand Capabilities, Not Staff: With IDEA’s custom mapping services, you can grow your EDI capabilities without the need to hire and train new employees. Our team acts as an extension of your own, providing the expertise you need to expand without the overhead.

Support for New EDI Users

IDEA’s custom mapping services are designed to make the implementation process as seamless as possible, helping you get up and running quickly and efficiently:

  1. Comply with EDI Mandates: Many large trading partners require suppliers to comply with specific EDI mandates. IDEA’s custom mapping services can help you comply with these mandates, ensuring you avoid costly chargebacks and maintain strong relationships with your trading partners.
  2. Automate the Quote to Cash Process: By outsourcing custom mapping services, you can automate this critical business function without investing in EDI infrastructure or training new employees.
  3. Accelerate EDI Implementation: By cutting out time-consuming map development, you can reduce the amount of time it takes to launch your EDI program, ensuring a smooth integration with a new or existing ERP.

Beyond the Basics: Additional Uses for Custom EDI Mapping

Custom maps not only get your EDI implementation up and running, they can help you streamline even the most complex and unique business processes.

  1. Enable Specific Business Processes: Processes like rebates and special bank transactions may require customized mapping solutions that go beyond what your current EDI environment can support. IDEA’s custom mapping services can help you EDI-enable these specific processes, ensuring they’re integrated seamlessly into your broader EDI strategy.
  2. Handle Stand-Alone Processes: With our custom EDI mapping services, you can automate business processes — including, processing freight invoices, state tax filings, or POS tracking — that may not tie directly into your ERP system applications without manual intervention.
  3. Support Hybrid EDI Systems: In some cases, a hybrid EDI system may be the best solution for your business, with both your company and IDEA working together to create and manage maps. This approach can help balance the workload, ensure more consistent turnaround times on map-related projects, and provide 24/7 coverage for your EDI needs.

Custom EDI Mapping from a Top Provider

Recently named the 2024 Top Electronic Data Interchange Solutions Provider by CIOReview, IDEA Exchange Managed Services can create the specific maps you need to maximize EDI return while minimizing investment.

Whether you’re looking to handle complex maps, reduce your backlog, expand your EDI capabilities, or enable specific business processes, our team of experts is here to help. We work closely with you to understand your unique needs and develop customized solutions that fit seamlessly into your existing operations. Our custom EDI mapping services are just one part of our comprehensive EDI Managed Services offering, designed to support you at every stage of your EDI journey.

To learn more about how IDEA’s custom mapping services can benefit your business, please contact your IDEA Exchange Account Executive or Ilene Bromberg at 703-562-4689 or ibromberg@idea4industry.com. We look forward to helping you unlock the full potential of your business with EDI.

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