New Product Procurement & Order Tracking

Challenges Before Using Linkincrease:

Before the Linkincrease platform, as a buyer or procurement professional, you might have encountered these situations that could make workflows feel fragmented or require extra time for confirmation:

• Order Tracking Convenience: When an order involves multiple stages or requires communication with different suppliers, getting a complete picture of its latest status might require checking multiple emails, spreadsheets, or records, which could feel less intuitive at times.
• Supplier Information Access & Updates: Finding specific supplier contacts, past collaboration records, or updated product catalogs sometimes required gathering information from different sources while ensuring accuracy.
• Collaboration & Confirmation Efficiency: While effective, email exchanges or phone calls for confirming order details, modifying requirements, or addressing unexpected issues could sometimes impact the timeliness and accuracy of information transfer.
• Visibility into Production Progress: For critical orders, understanding specific production progress on the supplier side often required frequent communication and information synchronization.

Supply Chain Scenario: New Product Procurement & Order Tracking

Scenario Description: Buyers/procurement professionals need to source components for a new product line and ensure all orders are completed within the scheduled timeframe.

Steps Using Linkincrease Platform:

1. Create or Join SCCS:

   • Action: Buyers/procurement professionals log into the "Trade End" platform, selecting "Create SCCS" (if suppliers haven't created one) or "Join SCCS" (if invited by suppliers).
   • Value: SCCS serves as a dedicated collaboration space, centralizing all communication, orders, and documents related to this new product line.

2. Invite Suppliers & Collaborate on Template Setup:

   • Action: Within the SCCS, buyers/procurement professionals invite component suppliers to join. Using team-configured "Business Templates" (e.g., new product procurement order template), all parties jointly confirm form fields and milestone nodes (like "First Sample Approval", "Mass Production", "Shipping Plan", etc.).
   • Value: Ensures all participants share the same understanding of order processes and information fields, standardizing data collection.

3. Create & Assign Orders:

   • Action: Based on the template, buyers/procurement professionals fill in detailed information for the new product procurement order (specifications, quantity, delivery date, etc.) and assign it to the relevant suppliers.
   • Value: Order information is clear and directly linked to the SCCS.

4. Real-time Order Progress Monitoring (Order Schedule & My Tasks):

   • Action:
     • Order Schedule: In the "Workbench's" "Order Schedule", buyers/procurement professionals can see all milestone planned start and end dates for the order, providing an intuitive overview of overall progress.
     • My Tasks: In "My Task Statistics", they can view the status of their assigned order tasks, like "Pending Approval", "Updated", etc.
     • SCCS List & Order List: In the SCCS details page's "Order List", they can check real-time status of all orders under that SCCS (e.g., "In Progress", "Completed").
   • Value: Eliminates the need for frequent supplier inquiries by providing real-time visibility into every key milestone, helping identify potential delays early.

5. Resource Library Reference & Information Verification:

   • Action: When creating orders, buyers/procurement professionals can reference standardized product specifications, quality inspection standards, and other information from the "Resource Library", reducing manual entry errors.
   • Value: Ensures accuracy and consistency of procurement information, minimizing rework due to data errors.

6. Handle Exceptions & Approvals:

   • Action: If suppliers encounter issues requiring plan adjustments during production, they submit relevant information within the SCCS. Buyers/procurement professionals receive approval reminders in "My Tasks" on the Workbench, can quickly review submitted information, and complete approvals or provide feedback directly on the platform.
   • Value: Streamlines communication processes with traceable approval records, significantly improving handling efficiency.

7. Completion & Review:

   • Action: After order completion, buyers/procurement professionals can review the entire order lifecycle within the SCCS. They can use the "Reorder" function to quickly generate future procurement needs based on this order, referencing relevant data from the "Resource Library".
   • Value: Enhances efficiency for repetitive tasks and provides valuable reference for future procurement activities.