What does it cost us to build an ICC? We collect xRM on the pipeline
Have you noticed how popular designers are: from children's play sets and website templates to finished panels and log cabins for construction? And the point here is not at all in the element of gamification - the designer’s charm is that the user receives a set of high-quality “blocks” from the professionals and creates his own, unique solution on this reliable base. All preparatory, difficult, draft work falls on the supplier (developer) of basic elements, and the user needs to combine his skills with the ready parts of the solution and create a house, structure, website, CRM for himself. Several years ago, our team thought about this phenomenon - this is how the information systems generator appeared, which both customers and partners managed to evaluate.
In posts on Habré, on vendor sites around the world, in profile discussions you can find nostalgic references of CRM developers to the software from which this or that corporate information system originates: electronic notebooks, planners, etc. In the last post, we talked about the fact that the roots of the Ruli24 system go back into the recent past of the Soviet ACS (automated control systems), in particular, the ACS of the VAZ. But this is only part of the truth - in fact, the logic of the system was borrowed from ... the usual desktop. The same physical, wooden desktop. The structure of interaction between the office worker and the table helped us not only to design the Rule24 system itself , but also a whole generator of information systems. But about him a little later, but for now let's pay attention to our unique ancestor.
So, the employee comes to his workplace, sits at the table and begins preparing for work: analyzes the results of yesterday, considers the information received for the current day (letters, documents for signature, etc.), writes a plan and starts working with documents . If an employee closely follows order and prefers to quickly and easily find the right one, rather than rummaging through a pile of papers, each document lies in the appropriate folder and in the right drawer (on the right shelf). And here the employee is faced with four main types of documents:
With the listed documents, the employee performs a certain set of actions: views, corrects, copies, destroys and processes in another way. Approximately the same scheme works in almost any corporate information system (CRM, xRM, ERP), only the KIS has several advantages: an organized database, precise forms and procedures, the ability to create templates and automatically fill out documents, loading information from the card product, customer, employee, and so on. Visual correspondence can be seen in the picture:
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Compliance can also be traced between the actions of the user with physical documents and his work in the AWP (automated workplace). For clarity, we present this in the form of a diagram:
It is convenient for a person to work at the desktop, he is used to logic and structure, so why not keep his habits and approach the development of the interface and logic of the system from this point of view? No sooner said than done: we implemented the approach in the Information System Generator (GIS) and those AWPs that were created in the GIS environment. In addition, we took into account that one employee does not perform all actions at once (well, in general), which means that he must also have access to the execution of one or several tasks in the AWP. Accordingly, depending on the assigned rights, the user, after logging in to the system, can work with one or several databases, with each database individually, a table, a record, and record attributes. And the developers, in turn, received the Information System Generator (GIS) - a platform on the basis of which they can quite easily create (generate) information systems, customizing them for the industry, business, profile, and company characteristics. Moreover, we decided not to be greedy and give the right of such modifications to all authorized partners who in the regions can implement various solutions based on Ruli24 .
First of all, let's talk about the technologies that underlie our platform. Immediately warn: a third-party developer can not modify the desktop and web-based interface of the system, therefore, from the above, he should be familiar with the language Delphi and Oracle DBMS, PL SQL, understand the structure and logic of the databases.
Using the generator of information systems, partners can create custom systems: from business logic to screen forms and print forms. It is possible to do integration with other business software. In addition, GIS is also used for designing, administering, and managing configuration.
GIS tool complex:
Inside the GIS, several tools are built in, with which you can customize the interface and documents within Rule24 and the systems developed on its basis.
“Information Systems Navigator” is a built-in tool with which the system objects are viewed and managed. This tool is provided to the system administrator. Navigator allows you to change the list of system objects, customize the task interface, graphically represent the coordination of system objects as a tree of systems, subsystems and tasks. The system is the main custom entity, the subsystem is a part of the system designed to automate the subject area, the task is part of the subsystem covering one of the user's activities (documents, directories, operations, reports, etc.)
"Report Designer" allows you to create new report forms. This is a tool for building corporate reporting, which is an embedded module of the system and contains tools for building almost any required reporting based on the data of the system.
For the convenience of the developer, a lot of settings are performed with the help of a peculiar designer (we said at the beginning why this is good), that is, in the GUI. For example, the generator of information systems includes a register of tables, a register of fields, and many other related components that provide convenient developer work and relatively quick creation of the required CIS.
Thus, we have tried to create a rather thin and accessible tool for working with information systems of the xRM class based on Ruli24 , which allows companies to get xRM exactly for their needs, and development partners to earn money. In addition, the capabilities of the information system generator are also available to our direct clients: if there is a programmer on the staff who has the necessary knowledge or is ready to learn quickly, the client can slowly create the configuration that he needs. By the way, it was thanks to the existence of the platform that we were able to implement our commercial strategy - selling the system in modules and further easy integration of the necessary add-ons to the “grown up” business.
Of course, the listed technical knowledge is a worthy set of developers, but one possession of them will not allow creating the necessary system for a company or an external customer. Here is a sample list of steps you need to take in order to get a working tool as a result, and not a set of disparate functions with a beautiful interface.
Automation is an increase in performance through technology. However, no automation is meaningless if it is not based on the real situation in the business and existing business processes. Remember the association with the office desk? So, the workstation should remain a workplace, that is, be as clear and convenient as the desktop. But do not forget that automation, the introduction of EIS is a chance to make corrections to current processes, to get rid of annoying and habitual problems, to bring things in order.
Of course. Literally offhand, there are several ways to automate a company, each of which is available almost anywhere in the world.
Each company chooses the most appropriate implementation option, based on the budget and system requirements. It happens that companies change the system after some time of use - this is a direct consequence of the hasty decision and errors in the assessment of business processes. Plus, it is important to know that the chosen system will be able to adapt to the conditions of the company's growth and expansion. Alas, not every vendor in the Russian market is able to cope with this challenge. Business automation is the case when you need to measure seven times and cut one. The result of a thorough and in-depth approach will be reports from your xRM system — reports on success and goals achieved.
PS: we are always waiting for intelligent and reliable partners (developers, implementers, consultants and just sales agents) throughout Russia and the CIS. If you want to earn on the implementation of integrated corporate systems, write, call. Teach, explain, work together.
How does xRM start?
In posts on Habré, on vendor sites around the world, in profile discussions you can find nostalgic references of CRM developers to the software from which this or that corporate information system originates: electronic notebooks, planners, etc. In the last post, we talked about the fact that the roots of the Ruli24 system go back into the recent past of the Soviet ACS (automated control systems), in particular, the ACS of the VAZ. But this is only part of the truth - in fact, the logic of the system was borrowed from ... the usual desktop. The same physical, wooden desktop. The structure of interaction between the office worker and the table helped us not only to design the Rule24 system itself , but also a whole generator of information systems. But about him a little later, but for now let's pay attention to our unique ancestor.
So, the employee comes to his workplace, sits at the table and begins preparing for work: analyzes the results of yesterday, considers the information received for the current day (letters, documents for signature, etc.), writes a plan and starts working with documents . If an employee closely follows order and prefers to quickly and easily find the right one, rather than rummaging through a pile of papers, each document lies in the appropriate folder and in the right drawer (on the right shelf). And here the employee is faced with four main types of documents:
- regulatory reference: laws, methodologies, classifiers, directories, industry standards, etc .;
- operational: invoices, payment orders, primary documentation, certificates, applications, etc .;
- archival: waste and archived;
- settlement: analytical documents and documents for intermediate operations.
With the listed documents, the employee performs a certain set of actions: views, corrects, copies, destroys and processes in another way. Approximately the same scheme works in almost any corporate information system (CRM, xRM, ERP), only the KIS has several advantages: an organized database, precise forms and procedures, the ability to create templates and automatically fill out documents, loading information from the card product, customer, employee, and so on. Visual correspondence can be seen in the picture:
')
Compliance can also be traced between the actions of the user with physical documents and his work in the AWP (automated workplace). For clarity, we present this in the form of a diagram:
It is convenient for a person to work at the desktop, he is used to logic and structure, so why not keep his habits and approach the development of the interface and logic of the system from this point of view? No sooner said than done: we implemented the approach in the Information System Generator (GIS) and those AWPs that were created in the GIS environment. In addition, we took into account that one employee does not perform all actions at once (well, in general), which means that he must also have access to the execution of one or several tasks in the AWP. Accordingly, depending on the assigned rights, the user, after logging in to the system, can work with one or several databases, with each database individually, a table, a record, and record attributes. And the developers, in turn, received the Information System Generator (GIS) - a platform on the basis of which they can quite easily create (generate) information systems, customizing them for the industry, business, profile, and company characteristics. Moreover, we decided not to be greedy and give the right of such modifications to all authorized partners who in the regions can implement various solutions based on Ruli24 .
Information system generator - ax or file?
First of all, let's talk about the technologies that underlie our platform. Immediately warn: a third-party developer can not modify the desktop and web-based interface of the system, therefore, from the above, he should be familiar with the language Delphi and Oracle DBMS, PL SQL, understand the structure and logic of the databases.
- The entire repository is stored in Oracle DBMS - you need to have an idea about this system. We were repeatedly asked why Oracle, with which we are already 18 years old? We worked with different DBMS, including MS SQL, My SQL, Adabas, Informix, Postgress and many others. First of all, we are satisfied with the reliability, functionality and performance - something that cannot be achieved on some DBMS or with a combination of DBMS. Perhaps now there are DBMS that have 10-15% of advantages compared to Oracle, but the transfer of such a large-scale project is unprofitable alongside these not-so-strong advantages.
- All business logic is written in PL SQL.
- The Windows desktop interface is written in the Delphi language, which is still used by developers of many well-known corporate information systems.
- Web-interface is written in JavaScript - everything is expected and simple here.
Using the generator of information systems, partners can create custom systems: from business logic to screen forms and print forms. It is possible to do integration with other business software. In addition, GIS is also used for designing, administering, and managing configuration.
GIS tool complex:
- It provides a multi-window graphical interface that includes the standard features of the Windows operating system. Screens for working with data include the tools for sorting, searching, filtering, counting totals, grouping, and saving to favorites. Parameters of the visual presentation of data can be configured according to the individual preferences of the user.
- Provides organization of access to data: for each automated workplace, access rights are separated and the available data sets and system functions are configured, which guarantees complete protection of corporate data from unauthorized access.
- Includes tools to get any form of analytical reporting.
- It has a mechanism for exchanging data with other information systems on the basis of import-export templates that define data formats and exchange conditions, control the correctness of the transmitted information.
Inside the GIS, several tools are built in, with which you can customize the interface and documents within Rule24 and the systems developed on its basis.
“Information Systems Navigator” is a built-in tool with which the system objects are viewed and managed. This tool is provided to the system administrator. Navigator allows you to change the list of system objects, customize the task interface, graphically represent the coordination of system objects as a tree of systems, subsystems and tasks. The system is the main custom entity, the subsystem is a part of the system designed to automate the subject area, the task is part of the subsystem covering one of the user's activities (documents, directories, operations, reports, etc.)
"Report Designer" allows you to create new report forms. This is a tool for building corporate reporting, which is an embedded module of the system and contains tools for building almost any required reporting based on the data of the system.
For the convenience of the developer, a lot of settings are performed with the help of a peculiar designer (we said at the beginning why this is good), that is, in the GUI. For example, the generator of information systems includes a register of tables, a register of fields, and many other related components that provide convenient developer work and relatively quick creation of the required CIS.
- The Registry of Tables directory describes the database tables and includes the table identifier, the unique name of the table in the Oracle database assigned by the developer, the view — a virtual table from the database used to store query text or requested data, type, visibility, report name, control flag.
- The Directory of Fields Registry (one of the tabs of the Registry of Tables) contains a list of fields of all tables registered in the system and includes the table ID and fields, field name, visibility, access, type, input mask (important field in terms of unification and verification information in xRM), the default value, the name of the stored procedure, the field decryption tex, and so on.
- Classifier of operations - the directory contains a list of operations of the information system and their main characteristics. When an operation is added to the directory, the operation code, the function name (the function itself as a database object is created by third-party software, for example, SQL Navigator, SQL Plus, TOAD, etc.), the type of function are assigned, a combination of hot keys is assigned.
Thus, we have tried to create a rather thin and accessible tool for working with information systems of the xRM class based on Ruli24 , which allows companies to get xRM exactly for their needs, and development partners to earn money. In addition, the capabilities of the information system generator are also available to our direct clients: if there is a programmer on the staff who has the necessary knowledge or is ready to learn quickly, the client can slowly create the configuration that he needs. By the way, it was thanks to the existence of the platform that we were able to implement our commercial strategy - selling the system in modules and further easy integration of the necessary add-ons to the “grown up” business.
How to create a corporate information system?
Of course, the listed technical knowledge is a worthy set of developers, but one possession of them will not allow creating the necessary system for a company or an external customer. Here is a sample list of steps you need to take in order to get a working tool as a result, and not a set of disparate functions with a beautiful interface.
- It is necessary to describe the goals and objectives of the implementation of the system, how to achieve them. For example, goals: to increase the number of repeat purchases or to achieve revenue growth of 12%. Objectives: increase the number of hits, increase lead conversion. Ways: customer rotation, lead management through attraction channels, and so on.
- Select key goals and metrics that will indicate achievement of goals.
- Collect the requirements for the future KIS divisions of the company, establish the intersection of the requirements, highlight the specific requirements for each unit. To gather requirements, it is best to conduct a series of meetings with all functional groups of companies.
- Describe using BPMN, UML, or simply using simple schemes all business processes to be automated. The computer does not know how to sell and manage the company according to the goals and does not know how you do it. Therefore, only by creating diagrams and writing the smallest details into them, you can successfully automate them.
- Make a list of reports, documentation (management and operational), operations that xRM should be able to do. Build interconnections.
- Make a list of data requirements (this is already the task of the development service): data entry by the user should be as simple as possible. If it is possible to choose something from the filled reference books - be sure to use this choice, so you will get unified field values ​​and greatly facilitate the further processing of information collected in the system (not to mention integrity and reliability).
- Plan the stages of system implementation and the sequence of commissioning of each section.
- Think of the interface. It should be borne in mind that the interface is not only and not so much beautiful tables and nice looking labels and icons. The interface above all is the interaction of the system and the user. The user must understand what the system means, which means that the inscriptions on the buttons, table names, menu items should not be understood in two ways.
- Start developing the system in order of priority for launching modules. Test the system together with internal customers - future users of the system and make changes at each iteration.
- Make changes as your business requirements change.
Automation is an increase in performance through technology. However, no automation is meaningless if it is not based on the real situation in the business and existing business processes. Remember the association with the office desk? So, the workstation should remain a workplace, that is, be as clear and convenient as the desktop. But do not forget that automation, the introduction of EIS is a chance to make corrections to current processes, to get rid of annoying and habitual problems, to bring things in order.
Are there any other ways to implement a corporate information system?
Of course. Literally offhand, there are several ways to automate a company, each of which is available almost anywhere in the world.
- Buy a turnkey solution. If your business is standard, there are no industry specifics and all processes are fairly predictable, then any vendor (including Rule24 ) will offer you a ready-made solution that is deployed and configured in minutes.
- Order a revision from the vendor - another option that will allow you to deploy the system quickly and efficiently. It is logical that no one knows the system better than its developer and engineer. Ordering a revision from the vendor, you are guaranteed to get a working system, but at the same time pay for the new functionality.
- Order a revision from a freelancer - the exchange is literally overflowing with requests for modifications of a particular CRM / ERP system. This is a rather risky option: you can face amateurishness, ignorance of business logic and the system itself. As a result, the customer will return to the professional developer and the company management will remember the saying about the stingy who pays twice.
- Using an open source CRM or ERP system is a good option if you have a professional in your staff who can customize the software to fit your needs. However, experience shows that, as a rule, you have to hire a qualified specialist with high salary expectations or a developer company, which ultimately costs more than a commercial project.
Each company chooses the most appropriate implementation option, based on the budget and system requirements. It happens that companies change the system after some time of use - this is a direct consequence of the hasty decision and errors in the assessment of business processes. Plus, it is important to know that the chosen system will be able to adapt to the conditions of the company's growth and expansion. Alas, not every vendor in the Russian market is able to cope with this challenge. Business automation is the case when you need to measure seven times and cut one. The result of a thorough and in-depth approach will be reports from your xRM system — reports on success and goals achieved.
PS: we are always waiting for intelligent and reliable partners (developers, implementers, consultants and just sales agents) throughout Russia and the CIS. If you want to earn on the implementation of integrated corporate systems, write, call. Teach, explain, work together.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/274933/
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