Electro/Telecom Industry Trends
e-Business Solutions
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Brought about by the Internet, the greatest driver of business change today is e-business. Already, this revolution is having a significant impact on business-to-business transactions worldwide. To conduct e-business transactions, companies need a common language through which to exchange structured information between their computer systems. HyperText Markup Language (HTML), the first-generation language of the Internet, is not suited for this task as it defines only the formatting of information, not it's meaning.
Extensible Markup Language (XML), like HTML, consists of text delimited by tags - so it is easily conveyed over the Internet. In addition, XML can be used to define the meaning of the information. While XML promises to be the ultimate e-business solution for the small and medium sized organization it isn't quite there yet. "XML is a popular Web standard solution as it is oriented for single transactions. It is much more interactive and easily read, and therefore, is more approachable for less sophisticated users, as compared to X12 Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)," explains David R. Barkley, Director of e-Commerce Relations for Freddie Mac. "Eventually, XML will be ideal for a one-time business order, making it possible for organizations to reach an audience they weren't able to reach previously. However, XML is just not there yet - so much is still in development."
"The mortgage industry recognized the value of electronic information exchange in the late '80s and had problems because of proprietary standards," recalls Barkley. "It was necessary to find a neutral, third party. So, we brought our business needs into the X12 committee." The ASC X12 body meets three times a year to design and maintain standards to facilitate inter-industry business transactions such as order placement and processing, shipping and receiving, invoicing, and payment and cash application. Currently, they have developed over 300 EDI transaction sets, available through Global Engineering Documents as the ANSI/ASC X12 Complete Set in hardcopy or CD-ROM.
"X12 is a solid data format which is very robust and compact in carrying the information you need," comments Barkley. "However, it does work best with established trading partners because you do need a certain level of expertise to translate the messages, Barkley continues. " When it comes to mapping and implementing, XML will broaden the reach of our existing standards."
As e-business crosses country lines, the need for a group that represented both national and international EDI applications was identified. The United Nations Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce and Transport (UN/EDIFACT) was formed to develop a single international EDI standard that was flexible enough to meet the needs of government and private industry. "The exciting thing is we're now doing a better job of incorporating the international aspects," comments Barkley. "We're working jointly, trying to understand each other's needs and coming together on common goals."
ASC X12 and the UN/EDIFACT Working Group recently initiated work to create a single set of business objects (core components) that are valid within the UN/EDIFACT and ASC X12 business processes. This single set of business objects (core components) will be the basis for future developments in XML. "As we move towards more ubiquitous networking and computing where the recipient of the data may be a Palm Pilot or a cell phone, it gets really tricky to say to people that there is only one way to accomplish the goal," Barkley explains. "A recognizable set of data gets more and more important and it is essential to understand the business application and then pick the standard foundation that gets you there."
David Barkley represents Feddie Mac's strategic interests on both domestic and international standards committees. He is currently chair of the American National Standards Institute's (ANSI) EDI organization known as the Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) X12. He is an ex officio member of the Board of Directors of the Data Interchange Standards Association (DISA), and secretariat for ASC X12. Barkley also chairs the Governance Committee of the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO) and is an active member of the Mortgage Bankers Association of America's (MBA) Technology Committee and Technology Work Groups.