Data consulting

Data consulting contains the following subjects:

• Analyzing data
• Classification consulting
• Supplier integration

Analyzing data

Delays in projects are caused more and more by wrong data. Reasons for this can be bad data migration, incomplete existing data or the quality of data. To avoid delays caused by this, we suggest to start with analyzing very early in the project, because results and advices can cause high effort in the organization.With the experience of hundreds of different projects with data migrations for new systems, we have very good experience to see how the quality of the existing data is.

Softlution has the big advantage to know how the data must be transformed and if necessary manually reorganized and/or enhanced.Target is to reduce manual steps as much as possible. For this we are using different ETL Tools (Extract, Transform and Load) or if necessary we program specific java programs to automate as much as possible.
 

“It was a success, that we imported all 52.000 items into the new PIM without losing information”
Terje Taugbol, Product Manager at Elektroskandia Norge AS

Benefits

• Avoid project delay by wrong/bad data
• Reduce manual enhancements/actions to a minimum
• Normalize and harmonize data
• Advices for high data quality in long term
• Long term experience of data maintenance

Classification consulting

Standards are more and more important, in the beginning internally, and later also externally when you start sharing information with other companies and partners. If you receive some of the following questions from the internal organization or by external customers and partners, we can help you to setup a flexible classification system.

• Do you know national and international standard classifications?
• Do you know what a classification is?
• Did you have the request from your customer or prospect to deliver your product information assigned to an industrial classification?
• You didn’t know how granular you must define technical attributes of your products?

The classification consulting contains the following steps:

1. Analyze and requirement workshop
2. Definition of classification together with the customer
3. Convert existing classification information into the new definition with high automation
4. Write guidelines for the user group
5. Manual definition (by the customer)
6. Review of the work and approval

“The customer does not know how many levels he should use in the hierarchy. He is very often not aware that in a technical classification he should not add attributes as a level in the hierarchy. In this moment the technical classification lost flexibility – be aware of it!”
Stefan Herold, Director Consulting Softlution Group.
 

Benefits

• High experienced in local and international organizations
• Knowledge about industrial standard classification
• Define a common standard as an example inside the company
• Today ready for the future and against the competitor

Supplier integration

By integrating suppliers into the supply chain of a company it is important to spend a lot of time with the supplier to discuss the steps for a deep integration. Both sides must have a benefit if you want to have a successful integration.

Softlution spent time with the different departments and the suppliers to find the key factors and possibilities for a perfect integration. That starts with the regular exchange of supplier information like product catalogs, price catalogs, etc. up to electronically orders, delivery information and cancellation.

Beside the consulting around the processes, Softlution deliver tools for this like supplier self service portals or ETL Tools (Extract, Transform, Load) with different standard interfaces to the supplier (e.g.: EDI, XML, etc.).

Benefits

• Long time experience with supplier integration
• Deliver supplier manual (rules for the supplier)
• Show supplier and customer benefits
• Supplier information day
• Services for import of supplier catalogs
• Provide ETL tools in an ASP Model