Overcoming the B2B Solution Gap: Business-to-Business Interaction with Small to Mid-Size Businesses

All businesses, big and small, manage many interactions with different communities each day. The enterprise interacts with employees, consumers, small businesses, mid-size businesses, and large businesses (see figure 1). These interactions are critical to the daily operation of the business. Inefficiencies that exist in the interactive processes of the enterprise create several business problems. These problems range from costly delays and errors in business execution, to slow responsiveness to market shifts. Delays often arise from tracking down faxes, emails, and phone conversations to determine the status of a purchase order, invoice, or shipment. Labor-intensive processes have a direct impact on the bottom line of business: profit margins and shareholder value.