India’s Mansons Achieves Perfect Score for Data Reliability with Infor

Infor and Mansons International, recently announced the go-live of Infor LN and Infor PLM Accelerate. The global components manufacturer and supplier for original equipment manufacturers (OEM) in the automotive industry unified its core business processes across 61 countries and seven locations, elevated operational efficiency by 85% and sharpened data-driven decisions with 100% data reliability to achieve agility and innovation in the dynamic business environment. Choosing to replace its legacy system with Infor LN and Infor PLM Accelerate, Mansons was able to shorten the development cycle from ideation to production. Per the press release, these integrated systems were implemented on schedule and laid a robust foundation for Mansons to build a strong global presence, deliver superior products of exceptional value and quality, and digitalize business to gain competitive advantage. With the pandemic challenging Mansons to meet customer expectation, Infor’s integrated platforms helped to achieve that with end-to-end planning, production, purchase, sales and distribution. Additionally, accessing real-time intelligent data and insights from remote locations allowed Mansons the agility, flexibility and responsiveness for complete control over its business operations, which the legacy system was not equipped for.

 

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PKIX Security Error After Configuring LDAPS

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After making updates to your LDAPS-enabled Lawson environment, you may encounter errors when trying to start the Lawson service.  Check the lase server logs for a message similar to this:

 

20-12-03 14:07:57:455 1 default.SEVERE api.LawsonSecurity.initialize(): Failed to initialize Ldap

20-12-03 14:07:57:467 1 default.SEVERE api.LawsonSecurity.getConfig(): com.lawson.lawsec.authen.LSFSecurityAuthenException:Failed to initialize LDAP. Detailed Message is javax.naming.CommunicationException: simple bind failed: 111.111.111.111:636 [Root exception is javax.net.ssl.SSLHandshakeException: sun.security.validator.ValidatorException: PKIX path building failed: sun.security.provider.certpath.SunCertPathBuilderException: unable to find valid certification path to requested target]

Stack Trace : javax.naming.CommunicationException: simple bind failed: 111.111.111.111:636 [Root exception is javax.net.ssl.SSLHandshakeException: sun.security.validator.ValidatorException: PKIX path building failed: sun.security.provider.certpath.SunCertPathBuilderException: unable to find valid certification path to requested target]

                at com.sun.jndi.ldap.LdapClient.authenticate(LdapClient.java:219)

                at com.sun.jndi.ldap.LdapCtx.connect(LdapCtx.java:2895)

 

This message means that you need to add/update the ADLDS certificate for your OS Java.  Follow these steps to update the certs:

 

  1. Set environment variables (<APPINSTALLDIR>\enter)
  2. Run command “where java” to determine where LAW_JAVA_HOME is located
    1. NOTE: You may have multiple instances of Java, and you need to make sure you apply the cert to all of them!
  3. Back up file LAW_JAVA_HOME\jre\lib\security\cacerts
  4. Run the ikeyman utility at WAS_HOME/bin
  5. Open the LAW_JAVA_HOME/jre/lib/cacerts file and select the Key database type of JKS
  6. Type password “changeit”
    1. This is the default password for the Java certs files
  7. Select “Signer Certificates” in the dropdown
  8. Click “add” and navigate to the ldap certificate exported earlier
  9. Give it a meaningful name

How Modern Technology Is Reshaping the E-Learning Industry

With the current pandemic not going away any time soo, modern technology is as popular as ever, especially in reshaping the e-learning industry. Communications specialist Simon Moser shares an article on Entrepreneur.com  revealing how educational professionals, students and enterprise users are beginning to leverage modern technologies to revamp the way we learn. The goal, according to Moser, is to improve the three E’s of education: efficiency, effectiveness and entertainment. According to the article, certain technologies look to make a huge impact in online education in the coming years.

On-demand tutoring grows
When online message boards and forums became popular in the lat 1990s/early 2000s, they became hubs for information sharing among peers. These platforms at the time had limitations, however, as they were generally disorganized and not everything was a reliable source. With modern technology today forums and tutoring platforms are more polished and credible. There are more platforms for online tutoring and crowdsourced knowledge bureaus, and with this pandemic keeping many students at home, these online resources will be in high demand.

Education goes automated
Artificial intelligence (AI) is already being used in many online learning platforms, including Quizlet, Duolingo, Querium. AI delivers tailored content to students without the need for any human involvement. Many of these platforms also used spaced repetition learning systems and AI-powered chat bots to help with queries and ensure retention, helping to maximize efficiency.

Virtual reality takes off
Virtual reality  (VR) technology has exploded in many industries including video games, sports, military, and tourism. Moser points out if there’s one industry VR is really poised to disrupt, it’s online education. By providing a medium for educators and students to come together in a more engaging, active way, virtual reality is able to offer learning experiences that won’t soon be forgotten. Educations are using VR to help students tackle public speaking, architectural design, and everything else in between. With the help of this modern technology, educators have leveraged the engaging properties of gamification to make learning a more fun experience.

 

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Richmond University Medical Center Modernizes Interoperability with Infor Healthcare’s Cloverleaf

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Staten Island’s Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC) has selected Infor Cloverleaf™ to increase interoperability across its network of healthcare services and providers. The Infor Cloverleaf Integration Suite is an innovative foundation for clinical interoperability and supports many protocols for communication, which can transform messages between various industry-standard data formats. RUMC will deploy Infor Cloverleaf to contribute to improved care outcomes, and to lower healthcare costs for patients. By moving interoperability to the cloud, RUMC will be able to focus more time on care outcomes and business outcomes, less time managing servers and applications, begin leveraging FHIR and API-based data exchange, and benefit from being on the latest version of Cloverleaf with routine upgrades. Per the press release, Infor Cloverleaf will enable data interoperability and integration across clinical applications, both inside and outside of the organization, through support of proprietary and traditional data formats and protocols as well as newer web-based API standards such as FHIR.

 

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LDAPS Certificate Expired Errors

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LDAPS requires multiple certificates, and all must be valid and current for authentication to work in Lawson.  If you are trying to log into Lawson after implementing LDAPS and Lawson is behaving like the user doesn’t exist or the password is invalid, check the LAWDIR/system/security_authen.log.  A certificate issue will be noted by verbiage such as:

Tue Nov 10 16:45:55.359 PST 2020 – default–844051996: Error encountered while getting users DN. Please see logs for details[858vk9nl1gd6d40vdn8r41qhl3]Could Not Bind With privileged identity. User [lawson]simple bind failed: dc.company.com:3269
Stack Trace :
javax.naming.CommunicationException: simple bind failed: dc.company.com:3269 [Root exception is javax.net.ssl.SSLHandshakeException: com.ibm.jsse2.util.h: PKIX path validation failed: java.security.cert.CertPathValidatorException: The certificate expired at Fri Nov 06 11:33:36 PST 2020; internal cause is:
java.security.cert.CertificateExpiredException: NotAfter: Fri Nov 06 11:33:36 PST 2020]
at com.sun.jndi.ldap.LdapClient.authenticate(LdapClient.java:231)
at com.sun.jndi.ldap.LdapCtx.connect(LdapCtx.java:2753)
at com.sun.jndi.ldap.LdapCtx.<init>(LdapCtx.java:329)

This message could indicate that your AD LDS certificate is expired, so you need to check that cert on the server, as well as in WebSphere.  However, it could also mean that the certificate on the domain controller is expired, so you’ll need to check that as well.

Infor and MphRx Announce Global Solution to Help Healthcare Organizations Manage COVID-19 Vaccine Inoculation with Real-World Clinical Data

Infor announced at the end of 2020 a global strategic partnership with MphRx to help healthcare organizations drive vaccine management for the novel Coronavirus. The complexity of the COVID-19 multiple-dose vaccines means it is critical that health systems implement vaccine management solutions to ensure patient health through this crisis and remediation. This applies to pharmaceutical manufacturers, governmental healthcare, hospitals, life-sciences organizations, pharmacies, and payers. The Infor Cloverleaf-Minerva solution provides a unified health record across the enterprise with Minerva’s vendor-neutral SMART on FHIR repository.  Per the press release, Infor and MphRx brings together two best-in-breed platforms to deliver what is critically needed today — an integrated and comprehensive enterprise solution for healthcare organizations to address the challenges in digital transformation including COVID-19 demands. MphRx’s Minerva aggregates data from across healthcare information systems and transforms it into a single, unified, FHIR-based patient record — a digital pathway to a new world of omnichannel care. Complementing this capability, Infor Cloverleaf Integration Suite streamlines the exchange of clinical data to help improve healthcare outcomes and business operations.

 

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5 Tech Trends To Watch In 2021

There were a handful of challenges in the tech world because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Remote work and learning, online collaboration, video teleconferencing, and virtual healthcare to name a few saw more demand than ever. While we do not know when things will go “back to normal”, we should continue to think the tech world will be challenged further in 2021. Innovation & Tech writer Ashley Finnstrom shares 5 tech trends that we should keep an eye on in the coming year.

Quantum Computing – The use of quantum computers has grown during COVID-19, helping the manufacturing industry more accurately determine supply and demand on important products as well as anticipating trends.

Connected Healthcare – The need for telemedicine is growing as the pandemic requires innovative solutions to manage and monitor patient conditions from home.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) – Heading into 2020, AI was taking over innovation for marketing and data analysis. Focus on other industries has introduced the next wave of artificial intelligence, Natural Language Understanding (NLU).

Cryptocurrency – Decentralized finance (DeFi) refers to an open financial system outside the government’s reach utilizing cryptocurrency or altcoin. The rise of cryptocurrency has led to traditional companies Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, and even JP Morgan contributing banking systems and services to the growing trade.

5G Devices – 5G got off to a slow start in 2020 after the pandemic brought phone sales to a near halt. With consumers getting back to normal, industry leaders expect 5G devices to thrive. 2021 will bring more affordable prices, compatibility, and a further crossover into IOS hardware.

As we continue to face the unknown with this global pandemic, we can at least expect the tech world to continue to adapt and make our lives as connected as possible.

 

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Validating the IdP certificate in Lawson and Landmark

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If you are using AD FS to authenticate against Lawson, and having trouble connecting to either Lawson or Landmark, one thing you need to verify is the IdP certificate.  This certificate should be the Token Signing Certificate that is exported from the AD FS manager.

To make sure the certificate is valid in Lawson, use an LDAP browser to connect to your Lawson AD LDS instance.  Navigate to lwsnSecData > svcprop > [your ADFS service name].  Open the properties of the IdPSigningCertificate and validate the lwsnSvcPropValueBinary value.  If it is blank, you need to delete and reinstall the IdPSigningCertificate.  If it is not blank, but you are still having trouble with connecting to Lawson, and you’ve tried everything else, it doesn’t hurt to delete and recreate the certificate.

To delete and reimport the certificate in Lawson, log into ssoconfig.  Select Manage WS Federation Settings > Manage Certificates.  Select “Delete IdP Certificate” and type in the service name for which you are deleting the cert.  Then select “Import IdP Certificate”.  Provide the service name and full file path.

To validate the Landmark certificate, in Rich Client GEN navigate to Service > [the service that is used with AD FS].  In Service Properties, check the IdPSigningCertificateThumbrint.  Make sure it matches the thumbprint on your Token Signing certificate that was exported from AD FS.  If it doesn’t match, then follow the steps to delete and reimport the certificate.

To delete the certificate, in a Landmark command window, type the command secadm -m.  Choose option 30 (Manage WS Federation Settings).  Choose option 1 (Manage WS Federation Certificate).  Select 6 to delete the certificate (provide the service name).  Then, select 5 to import the certificate (provide the service name and file path).

6 Steps to a Successful CRM Implementation

Customer relationship management (CRM) software has since evolved from a tool to help sales teams store customer data into an intricate hub that drives the technology suite of any business. When implemented right, it adds immense value to your company. Marketing expert Jordan Beier shares an article on Business News Daily about the powerful impact a CRM platform can bring to your business when utilized correctly. According to Beier, these six key concepts clarify the required investment and strategies that businesses can follow for a successful CRM implementation process.

  1. Set realistic, actionable goals. You should have a clear and simple vision for your CRM directly related to your most essential business functions.
  2. Do your research to find the right CRM solution. The most important factors in your decision could include pricing, the relevancy of the CRM’s tools to your process, ease of use and available integrations.
  3. Select a CRM team, with department champions. Once you have selected the CRM platform that most closely aligns with your company vision, you can mobilize the creation unit. This requires a specialized team to complete daily tasks and steer progress.
  4. Forecast the costs and benefits. Work with your various teams to forecast the specific effects this CRM will have on your business during the implementation process, the initial six months after launch as your team acclimates, and the following 12 months once the CRM is a fixed part of their daily use.
  5. Migrate and integrate data. Cleaning your data and migrating it into the new CRM platform will be the longest element of the implementation. Consequently, missing or incorrect data needs to be acquired and fixed, or it will reduce the effectiveness of your CRM.
  6. Train the team and test the system. Most CRM offerings include training and consulting programs to enable businesses to get the most out of their platforms. During this testing phase, assign your IT team to perform quality assurance tests. Some bugs are inevitable, but you don’t want the opening launch to be marred by many urgent IT fixes while the system is live.

Beier mentions some common CRM implementation mistakes to avoid such as doing too much too soon or losing team support during the initial implementation period. Take the time to implement the necessary software and programs and invest in training your staff, which includes addressing any concerns early on. Lastly, don’t forget the purpose of a CRM once it’s implemented. A CRM platform helps your team solve problems; it doesn’t solve problems itself. When utilized right, the power of CRM can introduce your business to many opportunities.

 

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Sega Entertainment Replaces Legacy Systems with Infor ERP

Infor Japan KK, the Japanese subsidiary of Infor, recently announced that Sega Entertainment has successfully rolled out Infor LN, an ERP solution for manufacturing, in July 2020. The on-time go-live has enabled arcade manager workloads to be reduced by approximately 20% in some outlets, and the new system is also helping to minimize pandemic infection risks and drive workstyle reforms by cutting arcade work processes. This project was carried out by Hitachi, Ltd., an Infor partner. With Sega Entertainment’s main business in amusement arcades, in recent years it has also launched restaurant merchandising businesses and an official app integrated with electronic payment function at their outlets.  Per the press release, Sega Entertainment is currently endeavoring to streamline both its internal and outlet operations to enable its employees to better focus on new initiatives. That being said, their legacy systems where not up to the task, thus their process in finding the best ERP system led them to deploying Infor LN as its ERP system for handling core management operations including accounting, procurement and logistics. Sega Entertainment’s operations are now running smoothly this new system, and new improved workflows enabled by Infor LN are becoming established. Moving forward, the company plans to leverage Infor LN for other purposes of their growth and expansion, including inventory visualization in logistics management and system support for new businesses, which was difficult under the old system. Ultimately, Sega Entertainment is building an ERP system for business transformation that enables it to support new business projects while scrapping legacy infrastructure and streamlining its business operations.

 

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