Real World Case Studies

Real World Case Studies

#1 Guess.com may be able to apply the same transactional scoring techniques that it uses for traditional card payments to other forms of e-payment. However, it's going to require a host of new interfaces and processes to accommodate non-credit card payments such as say a link to a payment bureau such as PayPal or the Bankers Automated Clearing System. In some instances different forms of e-payment may negate the need for transactional scoring depending on the ability of the payment service to support and guarantee immediate payments.

#2 The online credit card payment system allows Guess.com to reduce fraud and engage in international commerce with support for currency conversions, local tax calculations and local policy compliance. In addition, the system facilitates great customer service by supporting high-volume transactions both quickly and reliably, allowing the company to scale its services to a high-volume and internationally dispersed audience even under conditions of peak demand.

The entire process from order request to invoice payment becomes less costly and more efficient. Without this type of automated system, Guess.com would require a tremendous amount of staffing resources and access to many information sources to fulfill requests and would frustrate electronic commerce consumers who have come to expect instant gratification when purchasing goods online.

#3 International currencies, taxes and policies are localized and dynamic. Guess.com's system automatically calculates payments and taxes in real-time based on the appropriate jurisdiction. Further, the system automates compliance with foreign government regulations and with the policies of business partners and service providers and validates buyer's information in foreign countries.

#4 LensDoc's problem is very different from that of Guess.com. Its customers are returning lenses that they are not happy with even though U.S. regulations prevent the resell of lenses after they have been used. Therefore, LensDoc had to take a loss on the lenses rather than returning the items to inventory for resell. Thus, to resolve this issue, LensDoc requires special manual procedures for processing credit cards. This is a very unique situation where the disadvantages of automated payment systems outweigh their benefits.

#1 For order fulfillment, order requests and make-to-order processes are addressed by Dell's automated online system. Order requests are processed online and automatically routed to the production area for configuration. Once it's determined what components and parts are required, Dell has a computerized global network of components and parts inventories that facilitates delivery so that computers can be assembled and shipped the next day. The global network is also used for product services orders such as repairs, upgrades and demanufacturing.

#2 Xelus' solutions combine planning and execution to optimize global inventory and collaboration in the multi-enterprise service supply chain. The company has four major product lines, XelusParts, XelusRepair and XelusReturns and XelusTrade.

XelusParts provides real-time visibility and physical control of inventory. The product automatically considers new, used and alternate parts and lets the user factor forecasted returns in supply chain decisions. XelusRepair and XelusReturns manage the reverse logistics process to improve asset utilization and velocity, reduce new purchases, and reduce inventory costs. Specifically, XelusRepair allows a company to analyze and monitor:

Work center operations

Repair tracking

Order management and business transaction workflow

Part usage and failure;

Shipping/receiving

Inventory visibility, supplier metrics, asset utilization, process efficiency and failure analysis.

XelusReturns allows a company to analyze and monitor:

Order management and business transaction workflow

Return disposition routing decisions/engine

Shipping/receiving

External user order creation and visibility.

XelusTrade facilitates multi-tiered, online trading for balancing, sharing, sourcing and disposing of service inventory with trading partners and customer-defined trading communities. XelusTrade allows an organization to:

Balance service inventories and optimize their utilization by providing visibility of both demand and available supply to all internal organizations and trusted partners outside the enterprise.

Source items faster, smarter and at the best possible price and lead-time from a customer-defined vendor base.

Maximize investment recovery by selling excess inventory and idle assets through controlled electronic trading community.

Facilitate automated, effective communication between buyers and suppliers, thus reducing procurement transaction costs and cycle time

#3 Dell has automated its warranty service as much as possible by providing online support resources (performance and security, troubleshooting, frequently asked questions, system documentation and system configuration details). Additionally, information regarding individual services and warranties are available online (support history and status, service plans, ownership transfers, and frequently asked questions).