Migrating from older generation ERP systems to SAP S/4HANA offers great potential to improve operational performance and transform business processes. However, this major program doesn’t happen in isolation. A smooth transition requires careful attention to SAP S/4HANA integration, especially SAP EDI Integration with external trading partner systems.

5 questions to answer before migrating to SAP S/4HANA

As companies plan for their S/4HANA migration, addressing key SAP HANA integration challenges early on will help mitigate risks, prevent delays, and ensure long-term success. Read on to learn five key questions every enterprise should answer before embarking on their SAP S/4HANA journey.

1. How are we minimizing risk and disruption? 

The average cost for a company to migrate to SAP S/4HANA varies widely depending on organizational size, complexity, and specific requirements. Generally, SAP S/4HANA migration costs range from $250,000 for smaller implementations to hundreds of millions of dollars for large enterprises.

The high costs raise the stakes around managing risks related to the budget, but this is only a part of the story. Since ERP systems play a central role in supporting day-to-day business operations, ensuring minimal disruption during the transition is a key priority for organizations.

In fact, despite the looming 2027 support deadline for SAP ECC, nearly half of SAP ECC customers are still considering staying with legacy ERP beyond that date, citing concerns about complexity, cost, and risk. SAP itself emphasizes that a carefully planned migration approach is essential to ensure business continuity and minimize operational risk.

Integrations with other systems play a central role in managing the migration risks. Unfortunately, in the broad realm that is SAP S/4HANA integration, there is one area that tends to get overlooked. Too many organizations treat SAP EDI integration as an afterthought and set themselves up for encountering delays, unplanned costs, and other issues during implementation. 

2. Do we know all our integration requirements?

SAP S/4HANA integration projects demand precise understanding of how data flows between systems. With internal systems this is usually a lesser issue since they are managed by the organization itself. However, external partner systems tend to cause a lot more headaches since partners can have very diverse requirements.

Making matters worse, existing SAP EDI integrations that hold the key to figuring out these requirements have usually been built over years—or even decades—project by project and without comprehensive documentation.

Because of this, mapping out the specific requirements can be challenging, and many companies resort to a “brute force” approach with their systems integrator manually reviewing individual EDI documents. Alternatively, vendors specializing in EDI can help capture the partner data requirements faster and more efficiently.   

Without clear visibility into current-state integrations and the specific trading partner data requirements, organizations risk missing key details that will create complications in the later stages of the migration. A comprehensive review early on ensures accurate data modeling and avoids costly rework.  

3. How much can we trust the data coming from external partners? 

A survey by IDG found that 44% of the data feeding corporate ERP systems comes from external sources. Business operations, therefore, are highly reliant on the quality of the data exchanged with trading partners. According to another IDG survey, only about two thirds of respondents considered external partner data to be accurate.

With such a high expectation of errors within partner data, it’s important to address this at a very early stage. What’s best is to incorporate SAP HANA data integration and B2B data quality management considerations into your business process design when defining your SAP S/4 migration project.

4. Do we have the tools and skills we need for SAP EDI integration? 

Thanks to the diversity of trading partner data requirements, managing SAP EDI integration can be notoriously complex. The challenges compound when the business has an extensive network of trading partners to manage or the partners span multiple geographies.
 
Problems are often related to using legacy integration tools. In the case of B2B data exchange, generic integration platforms are not designed for managing the complexities and diversity of connecting with external systems and managing partner engagement. However, even with modern, fit-for-purpose tooling, lack of specialist EDI expertise can lead to poor design choices and slow integration support and change management.

To tackle these issues, organizations need a modern integration solution that supports both traditional B2B/EDI integration and API integration use cases and ideally streamlines SAP HANA cloud integration with system-specific tooling. Beyond technology, having skilled integration specialists involved is equally important to execute a successful migration strategy.

5. Are we truly ready for SAP S/4HANA integration? 

Today, most organizations begin their SAP S/4HANA integration journey without clearly defined B2B or SAP HANA data integration requirements. Identifying the requirements in the beginning of the S/4HANA migration project minimizes the risk of encountering surprises and delays during implementation and can even accelerate system blueprinting by speeding up data model definition.
Modern integration technology, in turn, allows for optimal solution design by leveraging the most suitable integration patterns for each use case from real-time API integrations to efficient message-based transaction flows.

Having both a clear understanding of the current integration needs and the solution design options enabled by modern integration technology is an essential component of readiness to embark on the journey to S/4HANA.

Get Started: Ensure a Seamless Transition to SAP S/4HANA

Migrating to SAP S/4HANA is a complex undertaking, but with the right integration strategy, it’s also a powerful opportunity to modernize and future-proof your operations. Asking the right questions before you begin will allow you to identify integration challenges early. This means you'll reduce risk, streamline trading partner connectivity, and accelerate time to value.
OpenText provides the modern integration tools, expertise, and data readiness insights needed to make SAP EDI integration seamless and scalable.  

Explore how OpenText can simplify your S/4HANA migration here.

The post 5 key questions to ask before your SAP S/4HANA migration  appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

As supply chains become more digital, global, and complex, businesses are under growing pressure to modernize the way they connect, communicate, and operate.

Two of the most critical technologies enabling this transformation are Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). While both are used to exchange data between systems and partners, they work in fundamentally different ways—and understanding when and how to use each is key to building a future-ready supply chain. 

In this blog, we’ll break down EDI vs. API, explaining their differences, and why EDI remains vital despite the rise of modern APIs. And, explore how combining the two can give your business the flexibility, speed, and scalability needed to thrive in today’s dynamic environment. 

What is the difference between EDI and API? 

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) are both methods of exchanging business data, but they serve different purposes and operate differently. 

EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is a standardized method for exchanging structured business documents like invoices or purchase orders in batches—ideal for high-volume, stable transactions. 

APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) enable real-time, flexible data sharing between systems, suited for dynamic tasks like live shipment tracking or inventory checks. 

Understanding EDI vs. API is essential because each serves a distinct role. EDI excels at handling high-volume, standardized transactions, while APIs enable real-time, flexible data exchange.  

By understanding their strengths, businesses can strategically use both to create a connected, agile supply chain that balances stability with speed and adaptability. This hybrid approach ensures seamless integration across partners, systems, and workflows. 

EDI simplifies key transactions 

EDI enables fast, structured, and automated data exchange between trading partners, which simplifies key transactions, such as sending orders, giving notice of deliveries, confirming receipt of deliveries, booking transport, sending invoices, among others.  

EDI is understood globally and follows recognized formats, such as EDIFACT, ANSI X12 for seamless data exchange. It’s secure and efficient at handling large volumes of data transactions, but it can be complex and costly to set up the initial configuration and trading partner mappings, especially for smaller companies.  

Despite being trusted and used for decades, for years now, many believed that EDI would be phased out and replaced by Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). However, given its value in delivering structured, error-free data exchange in an increasingly complex global marketplace, EDI usage continues.  

Companies around the world, from suppliers and logistics providers to retailers and manufacturers, rely on an EDI strategy to exchange critical business documents securely, quickly, and in a standardized format. 

APIs enable instant data exchange 

APIs allow instant data exchange without waiting for batch processing and offer integration flexibility with a wide range of systems, such as CRMs, ERPs, analytics tools, and other cloud-based applications within your digital ecosystem. However, where EDI is all about standardization, API formats vary, requiring custom integrations with each partner, which can be costly and time-consuming in multi-partner environments.  

Many businesses use APIs to communicate between disparate systems within their system chain. Since APIs provide real-time data exchange, this can improve supply chain transparency and visibility.  

And, APIs connect to e-commerce platforms and support the integration of analytics tools, allowing businesses to gain insights into performance metrics and adapt to changing conditions.  

The importance of a strategy that connects EDI and API   

The supply chain workforce is changing. Some professionals are retiring, others joining don’t know much about EDI and want to go forward with API-first strategies.  

There are also business challenges, like rising costs, but fewer resources, supply chain disruptions, and technology innovation initiatives, and more. Given these factors, it's less about EDI vs. API, and more about taking a “best of both worlds” approach, which sets you up for success.  

Rather than replace EDI, integrate it with APIs, other cloud platforms, and AI/ML, so you can enhance automation and flexibility within your digital ecosystem. This connected approach will reduce costs in the long term, improve operations despite possible disruptions and workforce changes, and ensure compliance with global standards.  

With a connected strategy, you can bridge the gap between bulk transaction support and real-time data exchange, making it easier to handle high-volume processes and dynamic, immediate updates needed to keep the flow of business going.  

You can more easily integrate with ERP systems, such as Microsoft Dynamics, Oracle NetSuite, Oracle Fusion, and SAP S/4HANA, that are already in place instead of ripping and replacing to make new technology fit with legacy technology. 

How to get started with EDI and API integration 

Every day you try to keep operations running smoothly, find ways to innovate and drive efficiencies, reduce costs, and simplify your supply chain. But you are asked to do this with limited resources and budget, making it hard to keep up with the speed of technology.  

When managing all these connections and the information attached to them, it's important to think long-term, not just one year at a time. You need solutions that evolve with you and continuously add new capabilities to assist you as your business grows. 

You don’t have to go it alone. There are several solutions out there, but what you need is a partner and a solution that will take the time to understand your digital ecosystem, so everything is done right from the start.  

Here are questions to ask when selecting an EDI and B2B integration solution and partner:  

• Knowledge and Know-How: Can they ensure a successful implementation—on time and on budget? 

• Automated Workflows: Can they help you find ways to reduce manual tasks and errors and increase productivity? 

• Enhanced Visibility: Does the solution – as built out of the box - enable access up-to-date information for better decision-making, gaining insights into your supply chain operations? 

• Cost Reduction: Will the solution reduce long-term costs, including total cost of ownership (TCO), and avoid hidden implementation fees? 

• Compliance: Can they ensure adherence to industry standards and regulations? 

• Ongoing Support: Will you receive regular customer support, including help with data validation and mappings from onboarding through implementation and after go-live? 

EDI and APIs: How OpenText can help 

OpenText Business Network supports both EDI and API-based integration—allowing businesses to connect with all partners, regardless of their technology maturity. This hybrid approach ensures end-to-end visibility, flexibility, and scalability across your digital supply chain. 

OpenText's B2B Integration solutions create a unified environment connecting your ERP system (Microsoft Dynamics 365, Oracle NetSuite, Oracle Fusion, SAP S/4HANA, etc.) with EDI and APIs in one digital ecosystem. 

OpenText offers pre-built ERP EDI-to-API adapters on a modern, scalable B2B platform and VAN—enabling faster deployment without requiring deep EDI expertise. 

Our trusted, flexible solutions let businesses connect once to everything. With our expertise, you'll streamline supply chain operations and build a foundation for innovations like AI/ML that maximizes your business data value. 

Ready to get started? Learn more about OpenText’s Easy EDI integration. 

The post EDI vs. API: Why both still matter in a modern supply chain appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

OpenText and Salesforce have been innovating together since 2016, integrating our leading content management solutions for Salesforce to empower Sales and Customer Service teams with 360-degree customer view and process automation. Now, we’re elevating our solutions with GenAI to deliver smarter, more efficient workflows. 

AI adoption surges, driving the need for trustworthy data

AI is transforming Sales and Service: 83% of AI-powered sales teams saw revenue growth, and 93% of service teams report time and cost savings [1]. But with AI adoption surging, 98% of Sales leaders stress the need for accurate, secure, and compliant data [1]. OpenText Content Cloud solutions provide the foundation for trustworthy AI, further strengthening our integrated solutions with Salesforce. 

OpenText and Salesforce: Advancing AI innovation

Last year, we integrated OpenText™ Content Management for Salesforce and OpenText™ Core Content Management for Salesforce with OpenText™ Content Aviator, delivering AI-driven insights.  At Dreamforce 2024, OpenText was selected as a launch partner for the Agentforce Partner Network, showcasing how Content Aviator integrated with Agentforce speeds up claims processing.  Now OpenText is proud to lead as an AI innovation partner with our solution available on Salesforce’s new AgentExchange marketplace to deploy AI agents easier than ever.

Uncover AI insights to drive Agentforce actions

OpenText Content Aviator for Agentforce AI integration empowers Sales and Customer Service teams with AI-driven actionable insights to boost productivity and accelerate processes.  

OpenText Content Aviator extracts valuable AI-driven insights from unstructured data such as documents, contracts, emails and other sales and customer content in OpenText Content Management which is accessed directly in Salesforce. Agentforce then leverages this locked away critical business information to make informed, data-driven AI Actions to maximize efficiency.  

Key benefits:

• Find, summarize, and translate business workspace content, directly with Agentforce. For example, Sales representatives can summarize a customer buying trends and upsell products that resonate or a Customer Service agent can easily summarize and resolve a claim. 
• Seamlessly update your Salesforce information with Content Aviator insights, reducing manual entry and errors. 
• Interact with customers more intelligently: Personalize email responses with Content Aviator AI insights; then create and send it from Agentforce. 

Results:

• Sales teams close deals faster with AI-powered insights. 
• Customer Service delivers more accurate, personalized support to keep customers. 
• Claims processing becomes seamless and efficient. 

OpenText Content Aviator for Agentforce is integrated with OpenText Content Management CE 25.1 and will expand to OpenText Core Content Management SaaS in CE 25.3. 

Future AI integration strategy

AI innovation is accelerating, and we’re just getting started. Salesforce is a key strategic partner in OpenText’s overall AI-to-AI integration strategy, and this integration is the first phase.   

OpenText is expanding AI-driven Agent actions across the entire content lifecycle—from capture to management to delivery. Future enhancements will also include: 

• Additional AI agents for Sales and Service. 
• Industry-specific solutions, starting with banking and insurance use cases. 
• Bi-directional AI responses, blending insights from both AI systems for superior automation and data quality. 

The future of AI-driven customer engagement is here, and OpenText is proud to lead this transformation alongside Salesforce. 

Experience AI-powered efficiency

Explore OpenText Content Aviator for Agentforce on Salesforce AgentExchange, and visit the Salesforce AppExchange to see all our joint solutions.

The post Unlock the power of AI integration with OpenText and Salesforce appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

Tariffs are on many businesses’ minds these days and for good reason. For businesses involved in global trade, tariffs pose a significant challenge. As United States tariffs go into effect, there is a lot of financial pressure on businesses that rely on imports to survive, impacting everything from the sourcing of raw materials, inventory management, operations and logistics, and prices for consumers.  

Adapting to Evolving Global Trade Dynamics

More than economic policy, tariffs can alter how businesses operate. Tariffs can lead to rising costs, disrupt supplier and sourcing relationships, and negatively impact productivity as businesses adapt to changing trade regulations and trading partner relationships.

How AI Can Help You Be More Resilient Against Tariffs 

In recent years, artificial Intelligence (AI) has been a game-changer for supply chain management, paving the way for more automation, enhanced decision-making, and optimization at every stage. For businesses looking to reduce tariff pressures, investing in AI might provide a path toward greater resiliency and adaptability.

Here are some ways AI can help to improve supply chain visibility end-to-end:

• Optimize Sourcing Strategies: Analyze vast amounts of data to identify alternative suppliers, evaluate potential costs, and assess supplier reliability.  

• Improve Inventory Management: Leverage historical sales data, monitor market trends, and other economic indicators to predict demand more accurately to avoid overstocking, optimize inventory levels, and plan production and distribution better.  

• Scenario Planning: Model tariff impacts (or other business challenges) across multiple scenarios to make informed decisions on next steps.  

• Streamline Business Processes: Understand what's happening throughout the supply chain and identify ways to optimize operations, reduce costs and possible downtime. 

• Optimize Logistics: Better understand shipping patterns, customs data, and freight costs via AI to minimize costs.  

• Enhance Trade Compliance: Scan through free trade agreements to identify trade regulations and clauses that may impact you to avoid penalties.

How AI is Already Helping Multiple Industries

AI is helping many industries be more agile, efficient, and responsive to the changing global marketplace, for example:

• Retail: Manage inventory, forecast demand, optimize pricing, and streamline logistics to ensure the right products are in the right places at the right time.
  
• Manufacturing: Optimize production schedules, manage inventories, and ensure that facilities are running efficiently. 
  
• Automotive: Predict supply and demand for parts to optimize logistics and ensure efficient production schedules.
  
• Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare: Optimize sourcing of raw materials, medications, and medical devices and forecast demand for drugs, predict inventory shortages, and optimize distribution networks.
  
• Food and Beverage: Better forecast demand, reduce waste and prevent spoilage, optimize production lines, and improve delivery logistics.
  
• Logistics and Shipping: Manage transportation routes, monitor fuel usage, and track shipments in real-time to minimize disruptions, pre-plan maintenance, and improve last-mile delivery.
  
• Electronics: Forecast demand, streamline production scheduling, manage component suppliers, and predict potential disruptions in the supply chain.
  
• Construction: Procure materials, ensure timely delivery, reduce delays related to shortages, and manage day-to-day logistics.
  
• Consumer Goods: Optimize production and logistics processes, forecast demand, and track the supply of raw materials.

Think of AI as an Essential Business Tool 

The current tariff environment is not a static condition but an evolving dynamic. Businesses that demonstrate agility, strategic thinking, and innovative problem-solving can successfully navigate this complex landscape. Tomorrow's supply chains will look different than those of today — more distributed, more technologically driven, and more adaptive.

AI is an investment in supply chain resilience that can help you:  

• Improve decision making using real-time insights to respond quickly to changing trade policies and/or market conditions. 

• Reduce costs by optimizing logistics and driving inventory management efficiencies.  

• Compete globally by delivering for customers despite external pressures.  

OpenText B2B Integration and Aviator IoT can help your business transform supply chain visibility and gain actionable insights. As global trade evolves, AI can help you reduce business risks and position you for long-term growth. Contact us to learn more. 

The post How AI can help combat tariff pressures  appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

The retail and Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industries are experiencing a profound technological metamorphosis, driven by rapid digital innovation, changing consumer expectations, and the need for operational efficiency.

As we navigate through 2025, five groundbreaking technological trends are fundamentally reimagining how businesses engage with consumers, manage supply chains, and create value. 

Artificial intelligence and predictive analytics: The new competitive advantage 

Artificial intelligence (AI) has evolved from a buzzword to a critical strategic tool for retail and CPG companies. In 2025, AI-driven predictive analytics are no longer optional but essential for survival in a hyper-competitive marketplace. 

Advanced machine learning algorithms now enable businesses to predict consumer behavior with unprecedented accuracy. By analyzing vast datasets encompassing purchase history, social media interactions, demographic information, and real-time market signals, companies can create highly personalized marketing strategies and product recommendations. 

For CPG brands, AI is revolutionizing product development. Companies are using predictive models to anticipate emerging consumer preferences, design products that meet precise market needs, and optimize pricing strategies in real-time. Retail giants are deploying AI to manage inventory with remarkable precision, reducing waste and minimizing stockout scenarios. 

Immersive augmented and virtual reality experiences 

The boundary between physical and digital shopping experiences has become increasingly blurred, with Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies leading this transformation. In 2025, these technologies are no longer novelties but integral components of retail and CPG marketing strategies. 

AR-enabled mobile applications allow consumers to virtually "try on" clothing, visualize furniture in their homes, or see how cosmetic products might look on their skin. CPG brands are using AR to provide interactive product packaging, enabling consumers to access detailed product information, ingredient sourcing, and sustainability credentials with a simple smartphone scan. 

Virtual reality experiences are creating immersive brand storytelling platforms. Consumers can now take virtual factory tours, understand product manufacturing processes, and connect with brands on a deeper, more experiential level. 

Sustainability tech: From buzzword to business imperative 

Sustainability technology has transitioned from a marketing differentiator to a fundamental business requirement. In 2025, consumers demand transparency, and technology is the primary mechanism for delivering authentic sustainability credentials. 

Blockchain technology is now standard for supply chain traceability. Consumers can track a product's entire journey—from raw material sourcing to manufacturing and distribution—ensuring ethical and environmentally responsible practices. IoT (Internet of Things) sensors enable real-time monitoring of carbon emissions, waste reduction, and energy consumption across global supply chains. 

Advanced recycling technologies and circular economy platforms are helping CPG companies redesign packaging, minimize environmental impact, and create closed-loop product lifecycle systems. Smart packaging with embedded sensors can now communicate product freshness, reduce food waste, and provide precise recycling instructions. 

Hyper-personalized omnichannel experiences 

The omnichannel strategy has matured into a sophisticated, data-driven approach that seamlessly integrates online and offline experiences. In 2025, technology enables truly personalized consumer journeys that adapt in real-time to individual preferences and behaviors. 

Advanced customer data platforms consolidate information from multiple touchpoints—e-commerce platforms, mobile apps, in-store interactions, and social media—to create comprehensive consumer profiles. Machine learning algorithms then utilize these profiles to deliver contextually relevant experiences across every interaction point. 

For retail and CPG companies, this means dynamic pricing, personalized promotions, and product recommendations that feel intuitive rather than algorithmic. Conversational AI and advanced chatbots provide instant, context-aware customer support that rivals human interaction. 

Edge computing and 5G: Enabling real-time retail intelligence 

The convergence of edge computing and 5G networks is unlocking unprecedented capabilities for retail and CPG businesses. These technologies enable real-time data processing, low-latency interactions, and sophisticated in-store and digital experiences. 

Smart retail spaces equipped with edge computing can now track customer movements, analyze shopping behaviors, and optimize store layouts instantaneously. Computer vision technologies powered by 5G can monitor inventory levels, detect theft, and provide seamless checkout experiences. 

For CPG brands, edge computing enables sophisticated quality control mechanisms. Sensors can detect microscopic variations in product quality, ensuring consistent standards across global manufacturing facilities. Real-time logistics tracking allows for dynamic route optimization and precise delivery estimations. 

Adaptive innovation is the new competitive landscape 

The technological trends of 2025 demonstrate that success in retail and CPG industries is no longer about implementing individual technologies but creating adaptive, interconnected ecosystems. Companies must view technology not as a tool but as a fundamental approach to understanding and serving consumers. 

The most successful organizations will be those that can integrate these technologies holistically, maintain agile innovation frameworks, and continuously reimagine their relationship with consumers. As technology continues to evolve at an exponential pace, the only constant will be change itself. 

Are you ready to learn more?

At OpenText, we will spend 2025 continuing to focus on meeting the supply chain, sustainability, and customer engagement requirements of our customers - including AI. Learn more about how OpenText solutions for consumer goods and retail industries can help you overcome your challenges.

The post The top 5 trends transforming retail and CPG in 2025  appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

As we close the first quarter of OpenText’s new financial year, our commitment to driving innovation in information solutions remains unwavering. With most enterprises now adopting multi-cloud strategies to enhance flexibility, reduce vendor lock-in, and improve resilience, OpenText is dedicated to equipping our customers with the tools to excel in this dynamic, data-driven landscape. Our focus continues to be on empowering your competitive edge through Business Clouds, Business AI, and Business Technology solutions that drive innovation, streamline operations, and fuel growth with seamless, automated information management solutions.

Today, at OpenText World 2024 in Las Vegas, we proudly unveil Cloud Editions (CE) 24.4. This latest release builds on our robust cloud, AI, and cybersecurity capabilities, offering the ideal foundation for a secure, efficient multi-cloud approach. In today’s multi-cloud environment, seamless data flow across platforms is crucial for data accessibility, informed decision-making, and uninterrupted operations. CE 24.4 enables organizations to unify digital systems into one cohesive solution, supporting compliant and efficient data movement across complex multi-cloud setups while mitigating risk. By leveraging AI, we’re empowering the next generation of work—unlocking workforce potential to drive more strategic, high-impact outcomes. It’s time to let technology handle the details so your teams can focus on what matters. There is still time to join us at OpenText World or please join us via our virtual live stream - registration is still open.

I am also extremely proud to announce the completion of our Titanium X roadmap, that provides organizations with a comprehensive, resilient foundation for intelligent digital transformation while ensuring strong security and regulatory compliance. We’re dedicated to delivering the technologies and innovations that transform challenges into opportunities in a multi-cloud world.

Following today’s announcement, let’s explore how we are reimagining information to lead the digital future:

New innovations in Business Cloud

Fast-changing work environments can only thrive with secure access to knowledge, an essential requirement for staying competitive. We equip engineers, IT professionals, and teams with integrated, secure technologies designed to simplify operations and boost efficiency, ensuring you can thrive in an increasingly complex digital landscape.

OpenText™ Cybersecurity Cloud

In CE 24.4, OpenText™ Secure Cloud is designed to unlock the full potential of Managed Service Providers (MSPs) by offering modern, user-friendly interfaces and streamlined operations. With enhanced analytics, integrated management, and a simplified ordering experience, this platform empowers MSPs to boost growth and reduce expenses while providing comprehensive cybersecurity solutions to small and medium-sized business (SMB) customers.

By offering flexible, low-cost cybersecurity bundles tailored specifically for MSPs and the SMB market, OpenText Secure Cloud helps consolidate vendors, minimizing the complexity and cost of delivering services. MSPs can easily order, deploy, and manage these solutions through a single intuitive console, allowing them to protect customers with cost-effective, all-encompassing security solutions without sacrificing service quality. This simplicity drives efficiency, enabling MSPs to streamline their security stack while delivering positive outcomes for their SMB clients.

OpenText™ Experience Cloud

In this release, we have enhanced OpenText™ Experience Cloud - a fully integrated, composable portfolio designed to elevate customer experiences and engagement within a unified environment. This empowers organizations to reimagine conversations and customer interactions with advanced capabilities in communications and messaging, customer data and journeys, and secure fax solutions.  

Innovations in CE 24.4, include: 

• OpenText™ Communications (Exstream™), our leading customer communications management platform, now includes improved migration tools and design accelerators to simplify cloud transitions and upgraded job management for high-volume communications. Additionally, customer experience leaders can leverage optimized communications orchestration to boost operations efficiency. These updates support businesses to streamline workflows in managing customer interactions, aligning with their goals to modernize both customer experience strategies and technology ecosystems 
• OpenText™ Core Messaging part of an end-to-end cloud-based platform for personalized communications now supports RCS (rich communication services) - whether it’s email, WhatsApp, SMS, web, mobile, or print. This expanded channel offering allows organizations to engage customers through their preferred channels, enhancing their experience with rich media options like images and branded profiles for easy identification. This development emphasizes real-time, on-demand communications, encouraging businesses to deliver tailored, modern experiences that meet customer where they are, every time.  
• OpenText™ Customer Data and OpenText™ Core Journey now offers expanded unified customer data management capabilities, including preference management with real-time, enabling seamless personalization for more tailored, impactful customer experiences. 

Finally, CE 24.4 sees innovations to OpenText™ Core Fax and OpenText™ Fax (RightFax) to transform traditional faxing by offering a secure, private or public cloud-based subscription model, allowing organizations to seamlessly shift from on-premises fax servers without IT disruption. These solutions integrate effortlessly with multifunction printers, electronic medical records (EMRs), and platforms like Webex and Microsoft Teams, ensuring vital communication systems stay fully connected. Designed for industries handling sensitive data - such as healthcare, finance, legal, and government - OpenText’s cloud fax solutions empower global organizations to modernize their fax infrastructure with security and adeptness. 

OpenText™ IT Operations Cloud

To further innovate our IT Operations Cloud offerings, OpenText™ Core Cloud Network Observability is a powerful new addition to our suite of observability solutions, which includes OpenText™ Core Infrastructure Observability and OpenText™ Core Application Observability. Together, these tools equip enterprises with the critical capabilities needed to detect and address cloud performance issues whether infra, app, or network, providing comprehensive visibility to optimize cloud environments and drive business growth.

Let’s break it down:

OpenText™ Core Cloud Network Observability: This new product offers robust cloud network stack discovery, monitoring, and traffic analysis. It enables businesses to visualize their AWS cloud networks through detailed cloud network maps, overlaying performance and application flow data to give a clear picture of network health and performance.

OpenText™ Core Infrastructure Observability: OpenText Core Infrastructure Observability delivers unified observability for multi-cloud and on-premises infrastructure by injecting the root-cause analysis process with analytics and guided workflows. This solution enhances infrastructure content by improving application coverage and integrating with private VMware and cloud clusters, including AWS and Azure. Additionally, it extends content capabilities to MongoDB, further enriching the observability framework.

OpenText™ Core Application Observability: OpenText Core Application Observability offers cost-effective application observability built with native OpenTelemetry. In addition to correlated metrics, logs, and traces, OpenText Core Application Observability enhances the application observability process by integrating with OpenText Core Cloud Network Observability and OpenText Infrastructure Observability to enhance troubleshooting efforts, enabling better incident resolution through a complete understanding of cloud-based networks, infrastructure, and applications.

With this comprehensive solution, businesses can proactively manage their cloud environments, ensuring optimal performance and reliability while cultivating growth in today’s competitive landscape.

Learn More: What is Network Observability?
Learn More: What is Observability?

New innovations in Business AI

Harness generative-AI to help unlock the full potential of your intellectual property. Our AI-powered assistants work seamlessly across large, confidential data sets, ensuring that only authorized individuals access the right information at the right time, safeguarding both security and value.

OpenText™ Intelligence Aviator: Designed to encourage a truly data-driven culture, this innovation starts by empowering enterprise teams to interact with business intelligence data in a more intuitive, user-friendly way. With intelligent LLM-powered capabilities, users can now engage with data through simple, natural language conversations, making the process of accessing, analyzing, and visualizing information far more accessible, even for those without deep technical expertise.

For organizations striving to integrate data-driven decision-making across departments, this tool offers significant advantages. An ecommerce business, for example, needing to quickly assess sales performance across multiple regions, traditionally would require a specialized data analyst to extract and interpret the data. Instead, with OpenText Intelligence Aviator, line-of-business users, such as regional managers, can directly ask for specific data insights and generate instant, actionable results. By simplifying data interaction, OpenText Intelligence Aviator ensures that data becomes a central part of everyday decision-making, making it easier for enterprises to leverage their business intelligence and stay agile in competitive markets.

OpenText™ Content Aviator: Now integrated with OpenText™ Information Archive, OpenText Content Aviator revolutionizes how IT data managers interact with legacy content and archived data. Through an intuitive LLM-powered chat interface, users can easily access, retrieve, and summarize archived data using natural language to uncover relevant insights in a matter of seconds.

With intuitive natural language conversation, users can access rapid answers to unfamiliar archived content, greatly enhancing productivity while assuring sensitive and proprietary information remains secure and adheres to organizational security protocols. OpenText Content Aviator enables smarter, faster, and safeguarded data retrieval from archived systems, making it an indispensable part of the end-user experience when accessing vast amounts of legacy content.

OpenText™ DevOps Aviator: A transformative solution that now harnesses generative-AI and LLMs to automate the conversion of video recordings into manual tests and defect reproduction sequences - completely eliminating the need for coding. This drastically reduces the time developers, testers, and engineers spend creating manual tests, turning hours of footage into actionable tests in just minutes, accelerating project timelines and boosting productivity.

In practice, a software development team troubleshooting a critical bug can quickly generate test cases from recorded user interactions, streamlining defect reproduction. By leveraging the AI-assisted chat feature, teams can also convert AI-generated content into actionable tests using OpenText™ Core Software Delivery Platform, enabling faster iteration with fewer errors. This innovative approach allows teams to focus more on problem-solving and less on manual tasks, delivering higher-quality products faster and ensuring smoother workflows across development cycles.

New innovations in Business Technology

As workloads shift to the cloud, connected data becomes critical. At OpenText, we offer robust, flexible data platforms that can be deployed in private clouds, public clouds, or via APIs, delivering enterprise-grade capabilities no matter the deployment method.

OpenText™ Analytics

OpenText™ Information Intelligence - Thrust API: This new innovation to CE 24.4 brings together the power of OpenText™ Intelligent Classification, and OpenText™ Knowledge Discovery into one single, intelligent solution that allows independent software vendors (ISVs) and businesses to manage, control and prevent sensitive information from being shared inside and outside an organization – a critical asset industries - such as healthcare, financial services, and government - needing to align with stringent personal identifiable information rules and compliance regulations to mitigate risk.

Unstructured data - emails, documents, contracts, and more - often hold sensitive information, but identifying and preventing the sharing of this data can be a challenge. That’s where the Thrust API steps in. By combining AI-powered classification, data analytics, and risk detection into one solution, IT teams can uncover hidden insights, identify anomalies, and preemptively address potential mismanagement of information. Consider a financial services provider handling a high volume of sensitive client information. With traditional methods, identifying potentially risky and sensitive information being shared outside of the organization could be time-consuming and error prone. By using OpenText Information Intelligence – Thrust API, the financial provider can automate this process, ensuring that sensitive content is flagged in real time, allowing the team to address security and compliance concerns before they escalate. This solution is designed to reduce the effort and time required for risk-related initiatives, enabling teams to focus on strategic priorities while maintaining strong data security. In an era where data privacy regulations are tighter than ever, having the ability to analyze and secure unstructured data is not just an advantage - it’s a necessity.

And finally,

I'm pleased to share some exciting news about our latest advancements in security compliance and governance that will benefit our clients across various sectors.

OpenText™ Content Management (Extended ECM), has achieved Protected B certification from the Government of Canada. This significant milestone means that Canadian government organizations can now adopt OpenText Content Management in the AWS public cloud with the confidence that their data and workloads are secure and protected. With this certification, organizations can modernize citizen-facing services and automated workflows - such as grants, benefits, and permitting - ultimately enhancing service delivery and citizen engagement.

Additionally, on September 11, 2024, OpenText received authorization on its OpenText™ IT Management Platform (ITMX) for the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP). The IT Management Platform (ITMX) comprises a suite of solutions, including OpenText™ Service Management, OpenText™ Asset Management  , OpenText™ Universal Discovery and OpenText™ Project and Portfolio Management. This FedRAMP authorization provides United States federal agencies with the confidence to utilize OpenText solutions to deliver modern user services, enhance IT productivity, and reduce both risks and operational costs.

Together, these advancements reinforce our commitment to providing secure, innovative solutions that empower organizations to thrive in their respective sectors.

Looking for more?  

For more on all the CE 24.4 innovations, visit our blog as our subject matter experts guide you on the right solutions for your business as you continue to maximise your AI, cloud, and security journey.

The post Embrace AI Knowledge Work with Cloud Editions (CE) 24.4 appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

At OpenText, we transform knowledge into action. With over 30 years of information management expertise, we understand that trusted data is the foundation upon which AI can be applied to unleash innovation and elevate human potential.

With this in mind, I am pleased to introduce the latest Cloud Editions (CE) 24.3. This release builds on our integrated cloud, AI and cybersecurity capabilities, offering a holistic and sustainable approach to information management.

CE 24.3 helps enterprises turn ordinary information into extraordinary insights. By integrating AI into all our major cloud applications, we empower knowledge workers and equip businesses to overcome and prevent tomorrow’s most complex problems, as outlined in our Titanium X strategic product roadmap; our commitment to delivering a unified platform for accessing all OpenText software and services by CE 25.2.

We continue to innovate at a record pace by integrating cloud, security, and AI - plumbing the ecosystem together to enable seamless scalability - to help our customers stay ahead of future business needs. Moving beyond basic AI, we are proud to offer comprehensive innovations across Business Clouds, Business AI, and Business Technology with solutions that are not only responsive but also anticipatory, revolutionizing the very nature of work.

Whether you're an enterprise struggling with slow traditional app development processes or a CIO looking to support a team of data analysts needing to extract valuable insights from sprawling data landscapes, our 90-day innovation cycles reimagine information, giving you a competitive edge.

Following today’s announcement, let’s dive deeper:

New innovations in Business AI

Data governance, compliance, and authentication are essential. OpenText leverages generative-AI to help customers maximize the value of their intellectual property. With AI-powered assistants operating across extensive confidential data sets, we ensure that the right individuals have access to the right information.

OpenText™ DevOps Aviator: To support software engineers and testers in delivering high-quality applications, this release deploys testing bots that automatically create codeless tests from manual ones, mitigating risks and addressing talent shortages. Its AI-guided smart assistant offers instant answers and summaries on features, tasks, tests, and user stories, streamlining development workflows for enhanced efficiency without compromising on quality.

OpenText™ Aviator IoT: Following its launch in CE 24.2, which revolutionized autonomous supply chain networks and enhanced asset management operations, we have integrated OpenText Aviator IoT with MBIRaaS for improved IoT data trending and analysis. This includes a low-code application builder that facilitates the creation of end-user applications using MBIR and iFrames, ensuring frictionless and secure information exchange.

OpenText™ Trading Grid with Aviator: Designed to simplify B2B integration tasks with generative AI, OpenText Trading Grid with Aviator, the latest edition to our family of practical AI-powered solutions, is a conversational AI-based, self-service virtual advisor for OpenText™ Trading Grid. Users can now save time searching for information and learning about product usability, reducing the need for open support tickets. The result? Enhanced efficiency, productivity, user experience, and more effective new hire training.

OpenText™ Fortify Aviator: We’re committed to furnishing security teams with the most comprehensive and scalable application security solutions on the market. With OpenText Fortify Aviator, enterprises can now automate the auditing and remediation of Static Application Security Testing (SAST) vulnerabilities. This AI-powered tool identifies and fixes issues, seamlessly integrating 'fix' suggestions into workflows and providing clear audits and explanations, simplifying the entire process.

OpenText™ Axcelerate™ with Aviator: In CE 24.2, we bolstered our flagship legal platform by integrating generative-AI capabilities to expedite the summarization of essential documents and concept groups for investigations and document reviews. In this release, we’ve taken it one step further and users can now refine review criteria and test it against subsets of data ensuring that the results meet their needs before deploying Aviator for the initial responsiveness review.

OpenText™ Content Aviator: And finally, we are delighted to offer a no-risk, self-paced interactive demo of our groundbreaking AI-powered intelligent assistant, OpenText Content Aviator. This demo allows customers to immediately get started with AI content management and discover how our transformative technology can help them discover new ways to work. OpenText Content Aviator is also now available in a hybrid deployment model to support on-premises customers.

At OpenText, we recognize that the work landscape is evolving rapidly. Embracing innovation to reimagine work processes is now more crucial than ever to stay ahead and avoid falling behind. OpenText is here to ensure you stay ahead. If you are ready to harness the full potential of AI and elevate your operations, explore our comprehensive AI strategy and the suite of OpenText Aviator solutions tailored for both business leaders and technologists at opentext.ai.

New innovations in Business Cloud

In today's rapidly evolving work environments, secure access to knowledge is crucial for maintaining a competitive edge. OpenText empowers everyone, from engineers to IT professionals, with integrated and secure technology aimed at driving meaningful simplification and efficiency improvements.

OpenText™ Content Cloud

OpenText Content Cloud empowers businesses to work smarter by providing seamless access to essential content, anytime and anywhere.

In CE 24.3, we have enhanced our world-class enterprise content management solution, OpenText™ Extended ECM, by expanding its collaborative content capabilities. Now, users can seamlessly convert, stream, annotate, and clip high-quality video content within the platform, eliminating the need for separate systems and significantly improving workflow efficiency and productivity – a game changer for those wanting to capitalize on the popularity of video content.

Additionally, we enhance support for data teams managing complex investigative analytics, especially when rapid analysis of large volumes of structured and unstructured data is required. OpenText™ Discover ensures all data interactions are retraceable, auditable, and secure. Available with our world-class OpenText™ IDOL™ Unstructured Data Analytics solution, users can fully engage with analytics, from building user roles and teams to analyzing projects and collaborating across entities, creating detailed ‘notebooks’ of analytics that can be reported on and exported while ensuring essential integrity is maintained throughout the process.

New innovations in Business Technology

Connected data is essential as workloads migrate to the cloud. OpenText provides robust data platforms deployed flexibly - whether in a private cloud, public cloud, or through APIs - ensuring enterprise-grade capabilities regardless of the deployment method.

OpenText™ Developer Cloud

OpenText™ Developer Cloud lets developers build smarter by bringing their ideas to life using powerful, developer-trusted APIs quickly and cost-effectively.

In this release, we have three powerful innovations aimed at expediting the application development processes in support of our ISV and developer community.

Firstly, we support developers looking to embed digital signatures in their applications and approval processes. This solution integrates seamlessly via APIs, eliminating the complexities of coding from scratch and enabling a swift transition from outdated printed signature methods to digital approvals, streamlining workflows and improving efficiency.

Additionally, we empower developers and end users to leverage their information lifecycle practices by empowering content storage services to support the benefits of Google Cloud Storage and Archival services. By extending our API support to include Google Cloud Platform archival tier levels, users can efficiently store frequently accessed data, manage short-term storage, and access archiving, online backup, and disaster recovery services instantly and cost-effectively. This integration allows developers to fully harness the power and functionalities of OpenText Storage solutions, expediting and controlling their information management lifecycle and providing peace of mind during application development while also bettering cost management.

Finally, I am delighted to announce the general availability of OpenText™ Thrust Studio, our real-time digital assistant providing developers with seamless and on-the-pulse support, underpinned by the power of generative-AI to accelerate development processes. This acts as a reliable assistant that speeds up end-to-end development processes and significantly increase productivity.

Looking for more?  

For more on all the CE 24.3 innovations, visit our blog as our subject matter experts guide you on the right solutions for your business as you continue to digitally transform in the cloud. 

The post Reimagine information with Cloud Editions (CE) 24.3 appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

In the fast-paced world of supply chain management operations, enabling rapid and informed decisions is crucial. If time is money, then how much does it cost you to:

• Get up to speed with a new tool?
• Wait for support ticket resolution?
• Search for the information you needed yesterday?

Introducing Trading Grid with Aviator, an innovative tool designed to empower supply chain leaders with autonomy and efficiency. This transformative solution leverages the power of generative AI and large language models (LLMs) to revolutionize the way you manage your supply chain operations. It's the first ChatGPT-like solution for B2B integrations, ushering in a new era of efficiency and productivity.

What is Trading Grid with Aviator?

Trading Grid with Aviator is a conversational, generative AI-based self-service virtual advisor. It integrates seamlessly with the OpenText™ Business Network, providing users with instant, human-like, contextually relevant responses and support. Whether you're dealing with transaction issues or seeking information, Aviator is here to assist you, providing the support you need to navigate complex B2B integrations.  

Key features and benefits of GenAI fueled Trading Grid

Most supply chain professionals believe in the GenAI’s potential and are investing in it. We have deliberately selected a starting use case that will help all B2B integration users with no initial costs, no training needed, and no setup procedure. This means you can start using Trading Grid with Aviator right away, putting you in the driver's seat of your supply chain operations.

Gain autonomy in managing your supply chain

With Trading Grid with Aviator, you can manage your supply chain operations on your terms. No longer will you need to open support tickets or scavenge for information. Aviator immediately answers your questions, helping you resolve issues on the go and maintain customer satisfaction.

Instant information at your fingertips

Aviator puts all the information you need right at your fingertips. Engage in human-like conversations to get answers and support quickly and accurately. This tool is designed to help you make smarter, faster decisions, reduce the cost of transaction failures and boost your overall efficiency. With Aviator, you can be confident that you're always making the right decisions.

Elevate user experience and productivity

Aviator helps new hires get up to speed quickly and increases solution adoption, delivering better ROI. By providing step-by-step guidelines to resolve transactional issues, Aviator ensures that your team can operate at its best, minimizing downtime and maximizing productivity. Aviator is not just a tool, it's a partner in your business journey, keeping your team engaged and connected.

Why choose Trading Grid with Aviator?

Starting on August 4, Trading Grid with Aviator will be available free of charge for all Trading Grid Online users enabling these companies to:

Increase employee productivity

By instantly providing the information needed, Aviator empowers your employees to handle their tasks more efficiently. This leads to improved productivity and a more motivated workforce.

Reduce support costs and transaction failures

Aviator reduces the need for support tickets and external communication by assisting users with common questions and problems. Who likes communicating via support tickets?

Drive better engagement

With Aviator, you can enhance user engagement with products by offering a seamless and efficient user experience. This not only improves satisfaction but also encourages continued use and adoption of the solutions you invest in.

It’s just the beginning for Business Network and GenAI

Trading Grid with Aviator provides a modern supply chain and B2B integration experience. It interacts with users in a natural-language, human-like manner and instantly finds the most relevant information. It fuels learning and adoption in a secure environment, improves user satisfaction and streamlines operations.

We at OpenText Business Network are just beginning to implement the pipeline of use cases based on GenAI. We will continue to focus on adoption as the key measure of success and augmenting the user experience.

For more information, visit the Business Network Aviator and Trading Grid webpages.

The post Supercharge your supply chain management with GenAI appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

Companies often struggle with rigid and inflexible B2B integration solutions, hindering their ability to flow EDI transactions efficiently between internal systems such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and their external trading partners. This, in turn, can lead to delays, errors, missed opportunities, and higher costs.

Unlike rigid off-the-shelf adapters, OpenText customers can choose from pre-built components to create a tailor-made solution that seamlessly integrates their Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central with any internal or external system. Our modular approach lets you pick and choose capabilities and services, keeping you within

budget while maximizing value.

This solution provides:

• Rapid Deployment and Affordability: Faster implementation compared to fully custom integrations and lower total cost of ownership.
• Flexibility and Customization: Ability to tailor the solution to specific needs, unlike rigid off-the-shelf adapters.
• Real-Time Visibility and Insights: Instant visibility and management of all EDI transactions, optionally embedded centrally in your Dynamics 365 Business Central user interface.
• Shipment Intelligence: Options to add enterprise-level capabilities such as real-time shipment tracking that can alert for potential disruptions.
• Microsoft-approved Connectivity: Eliminate concerns about compatibility or security.
• Scalability and Futureproofing: Grow your business with a budget-friendly enterprise-level platform that can expand functionality as needed.

Watch our FREE on-demand webinar

This webinar and demo showcase EDI integration adapters for Dynamics 365 Business Central and Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations. The webinar is ideally suited for businesses who want to:

• simplify their B2B infrastructure and develop it into a more flexible and agile system
• maximize the value of their Dynamics 365 ERP with customized integration needs
• keep implementation efforts on-budget and on-time

See Dynamics 365 EDI integration in action.

The power of Microsoft Dynamics 365 and OpenText ERP integration...

When it’s powered by OpenText’s ERP integration solution, the Microsoft Dynamics dashboard is automatically populated with the EDI transaction flowing from external trading partners.

...With the visibility provided by OpenText Lens

OpenText™ Lens™ is a powerful, user-friendly cloud application delivering visibility into the data flows between your enterprise applications and connected systems, customers, suppliers and trading partners.

Why trust your Microsoft Dynamics EDI integration to OpenText?

• Experience you can trust: With over 30 years of expertise managing ERP integrations of all shapes and sizes, we've seen it all. We handle thousands of customer requests monthly, and that knowledge underpins every project we undertake.
• Planning you can rely on: No more surprises or delays! Our proprietary data discovery tool maps out your entire project landscape, including any potential compliance hurdles, before we even break ground. This ensures smooth sailing from start to finish.
• Implementation at warp speed: With over 1,400 customer support resources at your disposal, we ensure your project is staffed and executed based on a clear, mutually agreed-upon timeline. No more waiting in the slow lane.

Stop struggling and start streamlining transaction flows to and from your Dynamics 365 Business Central. Learn more about our customizable ERP integration adapters and B2B/EDI solutions configured to fit any size company and budget.

What is B2B Integration?

The post Customizable Dynamics 365 EDI integration – See the demo appeared first on OpenText Blogs.

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) remains crucial to supply chain collaboration today. As with all other IT solutions, artificial intelligence (AI) developments shape the EDI world. Yet, while the technologies used for EDI connectivity continue to evolve, misconceptions and a general lack of understanding around EDI and B2B integration persist. 

EDI technology continues to evolve, but companies need to deal with a complex mix

Over the several decades since companies implemented the first EDI connections in the 1960s, pundits have pronounced EDI dead several times. Yet, the EDI message standards, communication protocols, and data formats have come a long way. For example, API-based connectivity is becoming increasingly common when building new EDI connections due to the adoption of cloud-based ERPs and other business systems that offer public APIs. 

However, partner requirements, existing investments in EDI connections, lack of resources, and other reasons perpetuate the use of older standards, communication protocols, and data formats—as well as Value-Added Networks (VANs)—which means organizations must have the flexibility to deal with a mix of different connectivity types in the foreseeable future. 

Supply chains require more and different types of information exchange between partners

As organizations look to increase the maturity of their supply chain operations, the need for sharing more and different types of information with business partners increases. This is likely to increase the use of EDI connections for new message types and the sharing of information that does not follow existing EDI standards, such as location data, status updates, and other real-time or near real-time data. B2B integration solutions must support these kinds of data flows and core EDI messaging to avoid fragmentation of supply chain data flows across multiple platforms. 

Considering the increased need for collaboration and information sharing between supply chain partners, partner onboarding becomes increasingly crucial for EDI connections and other collaboration tools, such as supplier portals and collaborative supply chain applications. Companies can support this by tooling, which requires well-defined processes, coordination across different collaboration tools, and skilled resources to ensure successful partner activation, onboarding and management.  

With AI, everything must change – Three impacts of AI in the future of EDI

Like with other technical developments from XML to APIs, the rapid evolution of AI tools and technologies impacts EDI operations in several ways. The three key areas to highlight include: 

Speeding up EDI data mapping

Data mapping has traditionally been the most time-consuming and expensive aspect of setting up EDI connections. AI can speed up the mapping process and improve the business case for EDI connectivity. The key challenges in using AI for EDI data mapping relate to the underlying complexity of EDI in general and to the semantic data models used by different organizations. For example, the same term can be interpreted differently by other organizations. While AI is unlikely to automate EDI mapping in the near term fully, it can still provide significant cost savings in different parts of the mapping process, from requirements gathering to data field mapping and testing.

User enablement and productivity

Visibility into EDI data flows is essential to understanding business process health, identifying errors and exceptions, and fixing them. In addition to process visibility, B2B integration solutions often provide other types of user enablement tools, from self-service connectivity setup and EDI map library access to partner onboarding process tracking and community management. These tools are often powerful, but training users to use them effectively presents challenges. Generative AI, in particular, has the power to streamline user experience through interactive—and even proactive—guidance on how the user can best accomplish tasks that support their job role. In addition to increasing users' productivity, this will likely lower the support costs for B2B integration solutions by reducing the number of support tickets users need to raise.

Embedding AI in analytics tools

EDI data flows are traditionally used to move data between two business systems. However, the EDI data flows contain a wealth of information that users can leverage for in-flight data analytics and, for example, combined with data from IoT solutions across different use cases. Identifying anomalies and exceptions, aggregating visibility in multi-system IT landscapes and analyzing partner performance are some areas where analytics tools help gain additional value from EDI data. Embedding AI capabilities, such as learning algorithms, in these analytics tools greatly enhances this opportunity. This can be crucial in meeting emerging requirements, such as offering business context insights for supplier risk analysis or automating reporting of Scope 3 carbon emissions information. 

Not only are the rumors of the death of EDI greatly exaggerated, but the future of EDI plays a vital role in building digital and automated supply chains. Yet, organizations should not underestimate its complexity. They should periodically assess the need to modernize existing connections to ensure that the organization's B2B integration capabilities meet its evolving business needs. 

Learn more about OpenText enterprise integration solutions.

The post How AI is shaping the future of EDI appeared first on OpenText Blogs.