During the pandemic, EDI professionals and the technology they support kept the wheels on the economy and supply chains moving—and still do. In fact, even in the face of newer technologies such as APIs, 78% of all electronic B2B sales are done via EDI. This equates to more than $7 trillion in annual sales.
As industries move forward from the pandemic and the disruption left in its wake, EDI remains firmly integrated into the revenue cycles and operations of a vast swath of companies that drive the global economy.
From our client work, we see three reasons that account for the enduring adoption of EDI: resiliency, security, and high compatibility with other data exchange platforms.
Little wonder then, that in part because of accelerated digital transformation initiatives, demand for EDI professionals is high in four categories:
- Analyst
- Mapper
- Developer
- Architect
This article details the skills and typical duties for all levels of EDI consultants and explains why managers with responsibility for EDI and B2B integration are using them to fill skills gaps.
EDI Consulting Titles and Responsibilities
Be aware that titles and duties for each position may vary somewhat depending on the individual company. You can download the Remedi EDI Job Descriptions resource for complete details on the experience, education, KPIs, and skills expected at each consultant level.
EDI Partner Analyst Responsibilities
- Planning - Assists with the definition of Trading Partner onboarding priorities, plans, and strategies.
- Origination and Support - Initiates contact with trading partners to establish B2B document exchanges, troubleshoot issues, and help resolve time-sensitive B2B data exchange problems and issues.
- Communications - Builds and manages the relationships, details, and expectations related to EDI partner onboarding and updates with key internal stakeholders, internal and external technical partners, and external trading partners.
- Negotiates Standards - Negotiates with internal and external stakeholders and partners to create a business solution to obstacles preventing B2B exchanges.
- Implementation - Helps manage and drive successful partner implementation against agreed-upon and sometimes critical deadlines.
EDI Mapper Responsibilities
Keys to Success: While solid communication and collaboration skills are a plus, mappers focus more on the work they’re assigned within a team structure. As such, they are not typically expected to be as outgoing.
Beyond technical chops, what sets successful mappers apart is tight time management. Customer teams and hiring managers favor mappers who manage their time well and have shown they can stay on top of the critical details and tasks involved in building trading partner maps and other EDI documents.
- Documentation - Creation of (MRS) specifications, mapping documentation using formal or ad-hoc tools.
- Mapping - Creation and modification of EDI maps in a variety of formats and standards including XML, ODBC/JDBC, FF, iDocs, X12, and EDIFACT.
- Trading Partner Testing – Create trading partner profile, communications testing.
- Trading Partner Implementation – Create trading partner profile in production, move resources to production environment.
- Communications - Understand technical concepts involving partner communication packages.
- Documentation – Create, update, and maintain documentation.
EDI Developer Responsibilities
Keys to Success: EDI developers who add significant value to internal teams bring great communication skills, a passion for problem-solving, and technical mastery.
But the EDI developers who get invited to discovery calls without being asked for a resume have something extra—the ability to see the big picture.
They’re also confident enough to step up and step in when needed.
- Mapping - Creation and modification of EDI maps and advanced mapping functions (ex. user-exits) in a variety of formats and standards including XML, ODBC/JDBC, FF, iDocs, X12, and EDIFACT.
- EDI Development - Creation and modification of business processes and workflows with and without the use of a graphical process modeler.
- Communications - Understand technical concepts involving partner communication packages.
Documentation – Create, update, and maintain documentation. - Business Process Scripting and Modification.
- EAI-based development.
- Web services deployment.
- Complex ERP integration.
EDI Solution Architect Responsibilities
Keys to Success: Expectations and fees at this level are high and for good reason. EDI solution architects must quickly grasp the entire landscape of the integration environment, particularly in scenarios such as a migration from a legacy EDI translation solution or where an ERP upgrade is involved.
Their solutions often require significant investments of time and capital. Their intellectual work product directly impacts a company’s revenue cycles and trading partner relationships—in other words, the health of the business.
EDI solution architects must also be crack people and project managers. Often, they’ll have a team of mappers and developers working alongside them for whom they provide guidance and set benchmarks and milestones.
At the same time, much of the quality assurance and testing may be carried out by internal customer personnel. Yet, because of task dependencies, the architect may occasionally ask in-house staff to adjust their work priorities to accomplish a critical project milestone.
Situations like these demand finely calibrated diplomatic skills to avoid friction at a critical juncture.
Bottom line, EDI solution architects who consistently deliver their solutions with maximum efficiency and minimum friction are rock stars in the eyes of customers— and everyone else in their orbit.
- System Implementation, Migration, Upgrades – Installation and/or upgrade work involving EDI systems.
- Troubleshooting & Support - Identify failing processes, assess general EDI system(s) health, and provide recommendations for increased efficiency
- Project Management - Managing scope and system-wide deliverables for clients.
- System Analysis - Hardware and software requirements planning and sizing.
- Solution Design
- Impact Analysis
- Performance Tuning
- Best Practices - Review and implementation of best practices.
- Communications - Understand technical concepts involving partner communication packages.
Want to Discuss EDI Consulting Solutions?
Short-term staffing? Managed EDI services? Outsourcing? If you’re facing EDI staffing shortfalls and you’re not sure which option makes the most sense for you, talk to a Remedi EDI talent expert.
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