Cleo Adds Order Automation Solution to Enhance B2B Buying Experience

Cleo has introduced an order automation solution designed to help suppliers offer an enhanced B2B buying experience to their customers.

The new CIC ORCA (Order-to-Cash Automation) portal delivers an “eCommerce to EDI [electronic data interchange]” workflow without requiring B2B buyers to understand or invest in EDI, the company said in a Tuesday (April 30) press release.

“Order automation is a critical must-have for every manufacturer, wholesaler or distributor doing business today,” Mahesh Rajasekharan, president and CEO of Cleo, said in the release. “CIC ORCA not only improves the B2B buying experience, it reduces risks inherent in less secure, more error-prone and antiquated ordering methods, such as email, phone calls and faxing.”

This new portal offers a single digitalized point of control and automation for B2B order management, eliminating the inefficiencies of a manual, non-EDI ordering, fulfillment and invoicing process, according to the release.

For sellers providing the portal, CIC ORCA translates B2B eCommerce orders into EDI transactions, integrates them into back-office enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and provides a gateway to order-to-cash automation, the release said.

For B2B buyers using the portal, CIC ORCA creates a more B2C-like buying experience that features ease of use, self-service and efficiency in procurement, delivery updates and getting invoices, per the release.

“By enabling these suppliers to digitalize their order management process and simultaneously give customers the eCommerce-like experience they expect, CIC ORCA delivers competitive advantage by improving operational efficiencies, reducing cost of goods sold (COGS), improving margins and accelerating revenue cycles,” Rajasekharan said in the release.

PYMNTS Intelligence has found that businesses see B2B payments friction as a customer experience issue and are looking to technology to solve their financial management and payment challenges.

Many corporations are seeking to consumerize B2B payments by offering simple, secure and convenient tools to facilitate and manage transactions, according to “The New User Experience: Tracking the Consumerization of B2B Payments,” a PYMNTS Intelligence and FIS collaboration.

In another recent development, Cleo unveiled another cloud-based B2B integration platform extension, Cleo Integration Cloud (CIC) for Logistics and Transportation, in February.

This solution enables organizations to onboard shippers, carriers and customers in hours or days, rather than weeks.

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