Purchase orders can create issues if you don’t have standardized procedures and electronic means of transmitting data. Lost orders, email attachments in spam, sticky notes on monitors—the list of problems goes on.
EDI 850s solve these problems. Here at Corsica Technologies, our clients use 850s to create, send, receive, and consume orders electronically. This empowers them to reduce human error and operational cost.
But EDI 850s aren’t simple. Even if you’re familiar with EDI 101, it takes expertise and a strategic approach to get 850s right.
Here’s everything you need to know.
What is an EDI 850?
EDI 850 refers to the purchase order document specifications set forth in the ANSI X12 data standard. Buyers use this document to place an order with a supplier, ensuring that the supplier’s systems can easily consume the document with no errors or exceptions.
This EDI document is one of the most common among our clients, as it’s used extensively in numerous industries. For trading partners using the X12 standard, it’s an essential component in both the order-to-cash and procure-to-pay cycles.
How do you send or receive an EDI 850?
You can’t interact with EDI 850s in a vacuum. EDI is a specialized technology that requires commitment from your organization.
Here’s what it takes.
You’ll need an EDI solution.
EDI requires dedicated software. Since the 850 is an ANSI X12 document, both you and your trading partners will need technology that supports the X12 data standard. This could mean that your solution only processes X12 documents. But if you need to work in multiple formats, you may need an EDI translation solution to handle documents from partners who use a different format.
Either way, you need to be able to transact on the X12 standard. That’s why we build and maintain EDI solutions for our clients.
You’ll need EDI professionals.
EDI requires expert attention. Any time an integrated system gets updated, your data maps can break—which means your integration as whole can stop working.
But EDI isn’t “just another IT function” like networking or desktop support. It’s incredibly complex, and it requires years to master the technology.
To keep your EDI 850s flowing smoothly, you’ll need access to career professionals who know EDI inside and out. That’s why we have career experts working on our EDI team. Many of them have worked in EDI for decades, and they bring all that experience to every client they serve.
You’ll need proven processes.
How will your EDI experts maintain your solution?
Here at Corsica, we use processes that have been tested and refined over many years and many clients. It’s how we keep your EDI solution running smoothly.
The power of EDI 850s
The ability to send and receive 850s comes with numerous benefits.
1. You gain access to new trading partners
Some companies won’t even do business with you unless you’re EDI capable. In fact, that’s a primary driver for our clients to adopt EDI (or upgrade or replace their aging solutions). At the end of the day, you have to comply with your trading partners’ standards, and EDI 850 is a key component of that.
2. You become more efficient
Since EDI documents can be generated, sent, received, and processed automatically, they’re far more efficient than the alternatives. Placing orders through phone calls, email, or snail mail creates unnecessary costs for both parties—because these methods require more human labor. And wherever humans are responsible for data entry, you’ll find more errors. All this means our clients experience significant efficiency gains from using EDI.
3. You get greater transparency for planning purposes
If you accept purchase orders on paper or over the phone, your orders may end up living in multiple systems. This makes it tough to get a comprehensive view of all your orders in real time.
EDI 850s solve this problem. With a functional EDI solution and proper B2B integration, your backend systems will always display accurate information in real time. You get the transparency you need to make informed business decisions.
4. You strengthen your relationships with existing trading partners
Clearly, EDI is essential for some trading partners. Yet even those that accept non-EDI orders will love the fact that you’re using EDI. The standardized formats and automated processing make life easier for your trading partners—which is good news for you.
Common challenges with EDI 850s
If your EDI solution is no longer a good fit, if it wasn’t built right the first time, or if you don’t have the support services you need, you may encounter challenges with 850s. Here are some common problems we see when clients come to us for help.
No (working) backend integration
For most companies, backend systems like ERP, CRM, SCM, or WMS have the final word on business documents. These systems provide “one true truth” for business data.
Clearly, then, EDI documents need to flow into and out of these systems seamlessly, with ERP integration being the most common.
But backend integrations often break down—particularly if the company doesn’t have a great EDI support partner. This can lead to errors and lost data in processing EDI 850s. That’s why we hold ourselves to a high standard when it comes to backend integrations.
No process in place for testing 850 transactions regularly
Given the fact that EDI integrations receive constant updates, it’s essential to test your document transmission on a regular basis. Any good testing regimen should include 850s, since they’re one of the most common EDI transactions. Our team regularly tests EDI 850s and more as part of a standardized process.
Aging EDI solution is no longer a good fit
What worked yesterday may not work today. This is particularly true if you’ve experienced a significant change in the number of trading partners you work with—or if your transaction volume has gone way up or way down. Right-sizing an EDI solution depends heavily on these two factors (i.e. number of partners and transaction volume). A wrong-fit solution can introduce unnecessary costs, a significant support burden, or frequent errors in processing 850s as well as other documents.
How to become EDI capable for 850s (and more)
EDI takes dedication—yet midmarket companies usually can’t hire their own EDI staff. These professional resources are just too expensive.
The answer is to outsource EDI services to an expert EDI service provider. This is the most economical way to become EDI capable.
But not all partners are created equal. Here at Corsica Technologies, we offer unmetered EDI services for one predictable monthly price. You get the services you need without wildly fluctuating costs. Contact us today to explore a better way to do EDI.
Ready to become EDI capable?
Download our FREE guide to getting up and running with EDI.
