The SCM Process dialogue supports Supply Chain Manager by providing a number of utilities that enable the execution of a variety of functions.
Location: Supply Chain Manager, Various
Overview
SCM Process is used to tell Business Administrator what’s going on in the supply chain. Orders are posted, Deliveries are recorded and managed, supplier invoices are acknowledged and Credit Notes can be recorded from this system.
Product serialisation is also managed from here because the best time to manage serialisation is when the products are delivered.
Watch out for Ways forward, which will allow you to move quickly on to other processes.
Posting orders: Orders can be submitted to suppliers via print, post, email, fax or phone. Indeed, you may have agreed a deal and only want to record the event. All of this is possible here. In the Q&A alongside, simply state your choices as you require, and I will carry out your request.
Deliveries: Business Administrator wants to know when products have been delivered. This is even true of services from the supplier. When Business Administrator receives information that products have been delivered, it will know that the order was successful, and it will move to expecting an invoice. Being aware of an expected invoice is important for cash flow management and forward business planning.
Supplier invoices: these are just as important, because it allows Business Administrator to get into the position ready to pay an invoice. It will ask you if you dispute any part of the invoice, and, if you have, it will record such information, and expect a credit note. Whether it is expecting to pay an invoice, or receipt of a credit note, both have a huge bearing on cash flow forecasting. It’s also important to record the information, because then you will have a record of its existence and how it was managed, and Business Administrator will prevent you from paying it twice!
Credit Notes: credit notes are part of life while having suppliers. This system will allow you to record credit notes that have been received from a supplier. Business Administrator will then manage the process of setting the values against the invoices you have received, and accounting for them.
Product serialisation: many products are required to have serial numbers by law. As products are delivered, this dialogue can help you keep a record of those serial numbers, and can help you manage the product as it changes hands. Business Administrator sees serial numbers as a special level of product characteristic.
Business Administrator can also look out for serial numbers turning up again on the second hand market.
Product serialisation is the only part of this that is not managed by the Q&A system: it is only expecting a series of serial numbers. You can enter single numbers, single numbers separated by commas (e.g., 1,2,3), or ranges where the first and last are separated by a hyphen (e.g., 123-129)