Freight Forwarding ERP: Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains customization & setup ? overview Computers Articles | May 28 Antonio Brown Womens Jersey , 2005 Microsoft Great Plains may be recommended for international freight forwarding transportation company. Great Plains has such features as multicurrency (Euro, Pound, Yuan, Yen, Peso, Real) Derek Carr Womens Jersey , Spanish, French, Brazilian Portuguese (and if needed Unicode-specific languages such as Chinese, Japanese). If you have operations in East Europe ? you can have Polish version as well as you can have several screens (SOP Entry, Inventory Item Maintenance, CustomerVendor Maintenance Bo Jackson Womens Jersey , etc) translated to Russian, Lithuanian, Latvian.
Plus ? if you consider Great Plains as a platform for custom tailoring and developing ? you can have reasonably priced solution for horizontal business, such as freight forwarding, cargo delivery, consignment Authentic Hunter Renfrow Jersey , transportation. Let?s consider industry specifics and the way to implement them in Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains
Agent Settlement. Freight forwarder usually deploys agents to deliver shipment. And agents are usually paid on the monthly or semimonthly basis. This means that you should have agents as customer. Daily Agent MBL invoicesstatements. Assuming that agent is handling several shipment with Master Bill of Ladings (MBL) and House Bill of Ladings (HBL) per day ? freight forwarder emails to the agent daily invoices. Then these daily invoices are settled and paid one time per months Cargo Tracking System. This is usually custom in-house made system, specific to each freight forwarder or industry specific stand alone software. The important requirement is the integration between Shipment Tracking System and ERP, such as Great Plains Accurate in-time payments. Payments are required to stay in highly competitive business, such as freight forwarding Bill of Lading report. Where you usually need additional info to standard invoice form: Carrier, MAWB, Airport of Departure Authentic Foster Moreau Jersey , Airport of Destination, Flight #ETA, Weight in KG, Lbs, number of packages, etc. Technologies and customization tools:
Great Plains Dexterity. This is Great Plains Software and currently Microsoft Great Plains programming language and IDE. It will allow you seamless integration with Great Plains user interface. You should realize agent settlement screen and inquiry Authentic Isaiah Johnson Jersey , MBSHBL profitloss inquiry form and probably Bill of Lading in Great Plains Dexterity. SQL Integration. Integrating with Cargo TrackingDelivery system should be done via SQL stored procedures. Use ODBC Linked Server to link to your tracking system database (MS SQL Server, Oracle, DB2, Unidata, Pervasive SQL, CtreeFaircom Authentic Maxx Crosby Jersey , mySQL). Web Order Entry. Use eConnect to avoid high user license cost in Great Plains. eConnect is SDK to reference Great Plains objects ? you will need SOP and POP orders entry CustomerVendor Consolidation. For agents, who are customers and vendors at the same time use consolidation module. It is available for Great Plains Professional only ? if you?d like to stay with Great Plains Standard ? use Great Plains Dexterity to program the consolidation. Good luck in implementing and if you have issues or concerns ? we are here to help! If you want us to do the job - give us a call 1-866-528-0577, 1-630-961-5918! help@albaspectrum
I spend a lot of time consulting with family members in family-owned businesses. I grew up in a family business so much of my experience is firsthand. My father was the youngest son among eight children and became the managing partner of a business his father and two uncles founded in 1894.
Just as there are unique problems in publicly-held firms, there are challenges that are just as unique in family-owned and operated businesses. All companies have strengths, but the secret to both profitability and perpetuation is a willingness to step up to the plate and deal with each business and family issue in a professional manner.
In writing this article, I'm drawing on my experiences as a consultant to family-owned businesses as well as information I have been taught in family business seminars and workshops that I've attended over the years. My purpose is two fold: The first is to bring these "deadly sins" to the attention of family members who have perhaps not yet been exposed to them Authentic Trayvon Mullen Jersey , and secondly, to offer recommended solutions. No matter how bad business problems sometimes seem, it's rarely too late for a full recovery.
Deadly Sin #1: "Daddy" Dominance ? In most family businesses, there's a "daddy" who is actively involved. Sometimes he's first generation, but he could also be second, third Authentic Johnathan Abram Jersey , and sometimes forth. "Daddy" is often highly reluctant to let go of the reins.
The "boys" or the "kids" are all too frequently little more than "hired hands" because only "daddy" is qualified to make the important decisions. And although some of these "kids" are well into their forties and fifties, to "daddy" they are and will perhaps always be "kids".
Solution: The father ? the patriarch of the family ? can never be assured that either the business will survive him or his offspring will survive him in management unless he systematically gives up his "important" jobs and delegates them to a qualified subordinate.
Granted, "daddy" may perform these duties better than anyone else, but no one will ever approach his level of expertise unless he gives them a chance. And to do that, he must allow someone else to now and then make a mistake or two. He must be willing to make the transition from player to coach.