Managing Automation - April 2008 - (Page 35)

we are about people-to-people collaboration.” The idea is to get a group of companies working as one virtual company to go after a particular market opportunity. It is what AMR Research calls the performance-driven business network (PBN), the next phase beyond demand-driven supply networks where management of business processes is added into the mix. PBN unites business strategy, organizational principles, and enterprise architecture, not only internally, but also across the partner network. “The real difference here is it’s gone beyond just exchanging information and messages to applications that let you organize, manage data, make decisions, and take action,” says Bill Swanton, vice president at AMR Research. And it gives manufacturers something they have been requesting from their B2B vendors for a long time. “In every survey we’ve ever taken on the supply chain, the number one thing people want is visibility,” AMR’s Fontanella says. “Definitions are different, but fundamentally what they are saying is, ‘I’m blind and I need to see.’ ” MULTI-ENTERPRISE SOA As with any integration effort, technology is at the heart of the new B2B managed services. Aside from the architecture — which is best described as an Internet-based data pipe — shared business processes are needed. That’s where service-oriented architectures (SOA) and business process management (BPM) tools factor in. If this new model is going to work, manufacturers need to implement formal processes that model the business. To that end, organizations such as the Supply-Chain Council are beginning to recognize the importance of building those reference models into the Supply-Chain Operations Reference Model (SCOR) (see sidebar, at right). BPM, however, requires SOA to expose fundamental business services and externalize critical business processes, according to AMR Research. The partner network — or supply chain — operates along multiple tiers. Perhaps an order comes in directly from a customer, but it is fulfilled through a distributor, for example. All of those layers need to be managed and governed in the same way, which is where SOA comes in. “That gets to the notion of a multi-enterprise SOA, which is just a fancy term for how to do better integration inside and outside of the company with all different applications running,” says Richard Douglass, global industry executive for manufacturing at Sterling Commerce. Sterling Commerce, which has been in the integration business for more than 30 years, has added to its core B2B messaging platform appli- cations that focus on execution, Douglass says. The company’s Gentran Integration Suite (GIS) allows for high-volume electronic message exchange, complex routing, translation, and interaction with internal systems, as well as external business partners. GIS typically sits behind a company’s firewall, as most large companies prefer to manage data movement in-house, he says. But Sterling Commerce can also deliver the application on-demand, if so desired. “The message we have is around best practices, having that single integrated platform,” Douglass says. Best practices start with a common method of viewing documents. Therma-Tru Doors, a division of Fortune Brands that manufactures fiberglass and steel exterior doors, began using Sterling Commerce’s GIS VAN solution about five years ago when one of the big stores it was trying to do business with required it to use EDI. At the same time, however, the company continued to do business with mom-and-pop SCOR One for BPM he Supply-Chain Council is beefing up its Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model with the addition of business process management tools from IBM and IDS Scheer. SCOR describes the business activities of supply chains, using process building blocks based on a common set of definitions. These standard models allow organizations to focus on the relationships among partners, suppliers, and customers. By adding BPM into the mix, the SCOR model will also simulate how different actions will impact these relationships. Last year, IBM’s TIBCO Software Inc. announced that the SCOR model 8.0 was available for use with TIBCO Business Studio, providing users with “living” models of their supply chains. Separately, in February 2008, the Supply-Chain Council and BPM vendor IDS Scheer announced that they would work together to develop new versions of SCOR, as well as the related Customer-Chain Operations Reference (CCOR) and Design-Chain Operations Reference (DCOR) models. Under the agreement, SupplyChain Council members will be able to leverage IDS Scheer’s BPM tool, ARIS, which offers predefined reference content and extensive modeling and analysis to help users identify supply chain constraints and improve existing processes. “Business process modeling shows how transactions execute,” says Allen Johnson, IDS Scheer’s director of partners and channels. “But [IDS Scheer reflects] the business side, where rules are defined and the effect on business are measured It’s like the steering wheel for business, the command and control.” This new SCOR model including BPM will be an important element of the performance-driven business network, as outAllen Johnson lined by AMR Research, because companies will need more than just a strategic plan. They’ll need tools that can simulate and test changes in their business, according to Bill Swanton, AMR’s vice president. “How do you take a $10 billion corporation and turn it on a dime?” Swanton asks. “Once you have a new business model, you need to turn to operational systems to help execute. That’s what the tools from IBM and IDS Scheer are doing.” T Photo courtesy: IDS Scheer 35 April 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Managing Automation - April 2008

Managing Automation - April 2008 Contents Take 1 Camstar to Introduce Software that Combines Quality, MES, and Intelligence SAP Revamps Maintenance, Raises Fees 29% New TAGSYS Chief Sees Opportunity in Broader Approach Siemens Turns to Security Weaver for Compliance Supply Chain Company Takes Next Step in U.S. Notes Cover Story: The Long Climb Special Report - Undertanding Enterprise Performance Management Caught Between Supply and Demand Taking Off the Blindfold No Room for Error Product Scan Advertiser Index Next

Managing Automation - April 2008

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