Transport for Greater Manchester Makes Travel Easier with Infor EAM

Infor recently announced that Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has selected Infor Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) on a SaaS (software as a service) basis. TfGM is a a local government body responsible for delivering Greater Manchester’s transport strategy and commitments. This new collaboration will be supported by Infor partner Sapphire Systems and is expected to deliver the company a full return on investment (ROI) within five years. TfGM has a diverse asset portfolio, including the UK’s largest light rail network Metrolink, 24 bus interchanges, 12,500 bus stops and 4,300 bus shelters, and a network that hosts more than 5.6 million journeys daily. The company aims to have a more consistent asset management system in place so passengers can access transport facilities when they need them, and those facilities are maintained to a good standard at an affordable cost. Infor EAM will support this aim by allowing TfGM to capture fault details more accurately, issue works faster and complete repairs quicker, as well as make earlier payments to contractors. Mentioned in the press release, the system will be configured to cover a diverse range of functions from buildings and equipment maintenance, to vehicle management and servicing, through to property management and disposals, and will integrate with supplier and financial systems.

 

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Custom Scripting in IPA

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Sometimes complex IPA flows can become cumbersome to maintain, or they can experience degraded performance for large record sets. One way to combat these issues is to create custom scripts within your flows to do the “heavy lifting” of the process. Our favorite scripting language to use is Perl, because it is simple, doesn’t have to be compiled, and is already installed on your Landmark and LSF servers. We use a File Access node to create the script at runtime. This works best because it is more secure and subject to versioning (remember, Perl doesn’t have to be compiled), and you can put flow variables right into your script. To do this type of scripting, you will create your script in a File Access node, and then run it in a System Command node. It is important to note that this will not work in a cloud multi-tenant environment, because system command nodes are not allowed.

3 ways to leverage CRM data to boost retail sales

Email marketing is a great way to keep loyal customers informed of the latest happenings with your brand. However, it’s not the only (and most popular) outlet. It’s no longer as simple as sending an email or buying advertising space, rather brands must change their customer relationship management (CRM) efforts and the way they speak to each consumer. The greatest challenge is understanding when they should, what they should, and how they should talk to each customer. David le Douarin at DigitalCommerce360 suggests to utilize other platforms in addition to email marketing. However, he warns not to use any or every platform available as it would be a waste of your marketing efforts. Instead, le Douarin suggests to Bring performance back with adapted CRM marketing efforts – understand your customers and know what interactions your audience prefers. Below are 3 ways he suggests to leverage your company’s CRM data to boost sales:

  1. Provide an answer to the drop in contact ability – Marketing teams must find new ways to reach out to customers other than their email lists. It’s the digital age and social media is the hottest thing around. By enabling your marketing team to push timely individualized messages to each customer on Facebook, Instagram or Google, brands can thus contact an average of 4X more individuals than they would have with a simple email campaign, increasing their ability to send their message.
  2. Provide a response to the decline in responsiveness – One way to counter the decline in email response is to identify why your are sending a message, to whom they want to convey it to, and the best way they would follow through with your call to action. Encourage the individual to click and go to the website to consider and prepare their purchase. Marketing actions must be taken as soon as possible in the current context of the consumer that we want to activate in order to introduce a relevant discourse that takes into account the offer proposed to them.
  3. An answer to lower conversion rate – Conversion is the most crucial since it carries the final value. Individualized marketing and personalization allow marketers to optimize the conversion rate of their campaigns by offering each of their customers the most relevant offers and products closest to their preferred needs. This includes recommending complementary or similar products. Product customization takes advantage of all the data available to retailers, who can, through artificial intelligence and models, predict the past or current behavior of the customer, what they are precisely interested in today and what could interest them tomorrow.

In order to understand the impact of your firm’s CRM actions, your team must better understand your customers’ new purchasing paths and communication mediums. Mass marketing was a great idea in it’s heyday, but we are now in the age of individualized marketing, so adjust your CRM efforts accordingly.

 

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Saudi Bugshan Barmaja Co. Ltd Partners with Infor for Success

Infor has recently partnered with one of Saudi Arabia’s major diversified business group, Saudi Bugshan Barmaja Co. Ltd as they digitally transform businesses in their home market and overseas. With the help of Infor’s diverse suite of IT solutions, namely Infor LN, Saudi Bugshan is hoping to provide a single integrated digital platform. Saudi Bugshan aims to digitally transform and automate key business functions including human capital management, customer relationship management, finance, procurement, warehouse and supply chain management. The company was formed in the 19s0s as a textile business in Makkah and has since diversifed into consumer brands with 30 businesses spread across 10 countries and 3 continents. Saudi Bugshan is involved in diverse sectors including fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), automotive, healthcare, education and real estate.

 

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Landmark Security Access

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To maintain Landmark Security (classes and roles), in the Gen environment in Rich Client, go to Start > Configure > Security.  If you don’t see the Security or Configure, you will need to have your Security Administrator give you access to it.  The Infor delivered role for this is “ConfigConsoleSecurityadmin_ST”.  Have that role added to your account and wait about 30 minutes for the sync to complete.

Infor Integrates Amazon Business

Infor has announced its integration of Amazon Business. This marriage between two tech giants allows Infor to deliver integration and consulting solutions that help joint customers throughout their procurement journey. The Infor® CloudSuite Supply Management Procurement Punchout provides customers access to Amazon Business to leverage processes and workflows of Infor CloudSuite Supply Management and the power and usability of the Requisition Self Service system. Infor Healthcare customers now have access to Amazon Business, so they can drive spend management with thousands of suppliers in one easy-to-use location. From their press release, “within Infor Procurement Punchout, Amazon Business is represented by an icon on the Infor Requisition Center home page. When a user clicks on the Amazon icon (called “punching out”), the Amazon Business catalog appears in a separate browser session. From the Amazon Business catalog, Infor Requisition Center users can choose items and return them to the Infor Requisition Center application. This allows Infor customers the freedom of having large catalogs of supplies to choose from without the requirement of maintaining those items in the item master, which is time consuming to maintain and keep current and clean.”

 

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South Western Railway Keeps Track of Rolling Stock with Infor

UK’s leading transport operator South Western Railway, part of FirstGroup-MTR, has selected Infor Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) as part of a project designed to consolidate and modernize maintenance processes at the train company, and support compliance with ISO 55001. Maintenance is crucial to the smooth running of South Western Railway’s services as the company operates more than 1,800 services to over 200 stations daily across South and South West England. Adam Carter, head of continuous improvement at South Western Railway, says of the system, “Infor EAM will allow us to view everything in one place, driving greater efficiency and the agility to react and rectify defects quickly.” The process will be led by Infor Sapphire Systems and the implementation will go live for an expected 200 users.

 

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What Is A Workflow, And Why Do You Need It?

The terms “productivity” and “workflow” are synonymous in the workplace. Having to-do lists, checking off each tasks and maximizing your time is the key to a successful work environment. In order to be this productive at your job, many people often set up workflows. What is a workflow? Lauren Moon at Trello explains it like this, “A workflow is…’the sequence of processes through which a piece of work passes from initiation to completion.’ To put it plainly, it’s the method you create for getting your stuff done.” The term “stuff” can be anything from weekly to-do lists, project goals/objectives, or even fulfilling client tickets or payments and invoicing. Lauren explains that we create workflows in our every day lives without even realizing it. There are different kinds of workflows you can utilize, and Lauren has rounded up a few to start using right away.

  • Simple To Do’s And Personal Productivity – This is the traditional to-do list. Make a list, check things off, and you’re done!
  • Scrum And Agile Methodology Workflows – Many business teams use a workflow process called agile, which basically structures project tasks in short (one or two week) bursts. All tasks are queued up in a “waiting area” called a Backlog list. Each person takes up a task and completes it. This type of workflow process requires team involvement and it’s a great process for a group to stay aligned towards one goal with regular opportunities to check in and keep productivity running smoothly.
  • Managing Incoming Requests Workflows – Another popular process is one that involves keeping on top of many frequent incoming requests that need to be filtered out to different users or handled in an organized process. From there, depending on the order’s needs, each step will be funneled to a different user. The Incoming Requests workflow can be applied to all sorts of use cases: managing your email inbox, generating leads and improving lead flow, handling asks from managers or other teams, or any kind of incoming ticket systems.
  • Handoff Workflows – Another collaborative workflow is one where, after you’ve created and completed your part of the work, you assign the next step to someone else. When they’ve done their part, they pass it to the next person, and it automates the chain of command.

Each of these workflows can be automated on a Trello board for easier productivity. Keep in mind that a workflow only works if it works for you. So choose the one you prefer get started with your workflow processes!

 

Original post by Lauren Moon from Trello.

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How to Find the Best ERP Software for your Business

Searching for the right enterprise resource planning (ERP) system can be a complex process, but it can be very effective if you want to grow your business. ERP offers to manage a wide variety of business functions such as invoicing, payroll, warehousing and much more on the field of varied and customizable options.  Not all ERP systems are made the same and not all systems are right for your business. There are features you need and features that are meant for another industry or larger scale firm.

Charles Richard at TechNative wrote an informative article sharing tips to choose an effective ERP system for your business. It’s a daunting task to have to search for the right ERP system, so keep in mind a few things to consider:

  • Research according to your needs
  • Select the right option
  • Be selective when choosing partners

These 3 simple tips can help you in the long run when implementing an ERP system for your business and utilizing it to it’s max potential.

 

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IPA Dynamic Commands

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One way to control the “clutter” on your more complex IPA processes is to utilize the concept of “Dynamic Commands”.  Many times your flows will follow a pattern of reading some sort of data, validating/manipulating the data, then taking action on that data.  You can move much of this work into Stored Procedures and set up a configuration table to tell your flow which command to execute next.  This method also allows for more granular error handling and logging.

Here is a sample configuration table and flow.  The flow will read this in and follow each step in order, and use a SQL Query node to get the command text.  The Action field shows what type of action will be completed once the stored procedure brings back the command.