Schneider Electric, a global leader in energy management and automation is laser focussed on achieving optimal Zero-Touch outcomes. After decades of EDI installations and pushing their own B2B portal, MySE, Schneider had a persistent long tail of customers who were still sending sales orders by email. Different PDF-to-EDI systems had been implemented in different regions around the world to try to achieve order processing efficiencies.
With global headquarters in France, in line with a Technical Debt Reduction program and an obsession for optimal Zero-Touch, Schneider set out to consolidate Sales Order processing globally with a single PDF-to-EDI system that would achieve their Zero-Touch goals. Nine leading software providers were shortlisted for extensive benchmark testing, including Portalink. Schneider’s Innovation Hub in Boston MA was tasked with testing each of the nine platforms by processing orders from their global operations in simulated live environments. Schneider’s expert team of technologists concluded that “Portalink delivers a lot of value. It was the only system that could scale cost effectively[1]” and that Portalink’s built-for-purpose and fully supported Order processing system outperformed the other systems across their six key performance benchmarks. In 2020, Schneider partnered with Portalink for a global rollout. In under three years, Portalink successfully deployed 42 portals across Schneider’s Customer Care Centers worldwide, achieving over 70% Zero-Touch processing for non-EDI customer sales orders.
[1] Mark Minnucci | Schneider Electric Global Director of Innovation
Schneider Electric is a multinational energy company, generating €34 billion in annual revenue and employing 162,000 people globally. Known for its innovative energy management and automation solutions, Schneider Electric operates in numerous markets worldwide, with a diverse range of ERP systems tailored to each region.
In 2020, Schneider Electric selected the Portalink™AnyOrder solution for a global rollout after testing its capabilities extensively against eight other digitization systems.
The challenge
Schneider Electric faced several challenges managing its vast volume of customer purchase orders across different regions around the world:
- High volume of manual order processing: In the DACH Zone alone (Germany, Switzerland and Austria), Schneider’s Customer Care Centers (CCC) manually processed 118,000 sales orders (totalling 578,000 lines) in 2019.
- Reliance on legacy OCR systems: Prior to Portalink, Schneider DACH installed a well-known OCR system. This system “took eighteen months to implement and never achieved Zero-Touch, even after four years”[1]. Inefficiencies and errors were unacceptably high, with approximately 26% of orders containing inaccuracies that needed manual correction. Other OCR systems used in other regions were similarly disappointing.
- Integration with multiple ERP instances: Schneider needed a solution that could seamlessly integrate with a variety of different ERP systems to cater to their global business.
- Global Security and Compliance Requirements: As a multinational organization, Schneider Electric required Portalink to meet strict security standards, including achieving security certification and implementing Single-Sign-On (SSO) according to Schneider’s global requirements.
Given these challenges, Schneider sought a solution that would reduce manual processing, increase Zero-Touch orders, and integrate securely with its diverse ERP landscape.
[1] Jan Bernhard | Schneider Electric’s AI Portfolio & Performance Excellence Manager driving Innovation & Digital Transformation
The solution
1. Deployment of Portalink™AnyOrder (2020 Onwards):
Following the comprehensive testing of nine shortlisted digitzation engines at Schneider’s Innovation Hub in Boston MA, Schneider selected Portalink and set out to implement the Portalink™AnyOrder solution globally. By capturing the data within PDF documents with 100% accuracy rather than depending on outdated and error prone OCR scanning, Portalink’s system allowed Schneider to automate non-EDI sales orders and significantly streamline their order entry operations, reducing unproductive manual workload and errors. Portalink’s rapid order template mapping service was able to automate thousands of customers, from the biggest to the smallest, with accurate data context that could be trusted. Most customer templates were mapped and deployed before go-live in each country.
Key features of the solution included:
- Zero-Touch Processing: Portalink’s system processed over 70% of Schneider’s disparate non-EDI customer sales orders without manual intervention, greatly increasing efficiency.
- Seamless ERP Integration: Portalink integrated with Schneider’s various ERP systems, ensuring a consistent and unified approach to order processing worldwide.
- Enhanced Security and Compliance: Portalink achieved Schneider’s Global security certification and implemented Single-Sign-On (SSO) functionality to meet Schneider’s compliance and data protection requirements.
- Rapid mapping Service: Portalink mapped thousands of customer order templates in quick time.
2. Scalable Global Rollout:
In less than three years, Portalink successfully deployed 42 portals across Schneider’s global Customer Care Centers. By working closely with Schneider’s ‘Global Zero-Touch Director’ and the teams in each global region, Portalink tailored its solution to meet Schneider’s complex needs, enhancing the overall efficiency of Schneider’s customer care operations.
Hours delivered back to the business
SOX compliance in Settlement process automation
Success rate of bot case completion
For functional release of OBT, RTS and OGS
The Portalink effect
The implementation of Portalink™AnyOrder has delivered significant benefits for Schneider Electric:
- Reduced Manual Processing: Schneider’s Customer Care Centers have achieved over 70% Zero-Touch processing, substantially reducing the need for manual intervention and freeing up customer service representatives to focus on higher-value tasks.
- Improved Accuracy and Efficiency: The automation of purchase orders has decreased error rates and accelerated order to shipment processing times, leading to faster customer response times and improved operational efficiency.
- Scalable and Secure Integration: With its ability to integrate seamlessly across different ERP systems and its compliance with Schneider’s global security standards, Portalink has provided a scalable solution that supports Schneider’s diverse and expansive operations.
- Significant reduction in manual processing and errors.
- Deployed across 42 global customer care centres.
- Achieved 70%+ Zero-Touch order processing.
Moving forward, Schneider Electric continues to optimize its global operations using Portalink’s technology, ensuring that it is providing the highest standard of customer care in a way that is efficient, accurate, and scalable across all regions.
