Efficient Data Management in e-Business 401 Copyright © 2003, Idea Group Inc. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of Idea Group Inc. is prohibited. Copyright Idea Group Inc. Copyright Idea Group Inc. Copyright Idea Group Inc. Copyright Idea Group Inc. Efficient Data Management in e-Business Transactions Nikos Karacapilidis University of Patras, Greece EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This case reports on the implementation of an open information management system that integrated modern information technology approaches to address the needs of a Greek medium-scale clothing producer towards heading to e-business. The system was able to interoperate with the company’s legacy ERP system and automated intra-business, busi- ness-to-business and business-to-customer processes. The overall approach was designed around open standards for data exchange and integrated as a set of off-the-shelf tools that assured a robust, scalable and fast development cycle. Particular attention was paid to the appropriate synchronization of the internal and external work and data flows, the improve- ment of supply chain management, the reduction of transactions costs through the appro- priate process automation, the reduction of errors occurring during the traditional handling of business documents, the reduction of the company’s inventory levels, and, finally, the establishment of a cooperative environment between the enterprise and its customers and suppliers. BACKGROUND The company that this case reports on is based in Greece and was founded in 1971 after the merging of two small-scale clothing production and wholesale enterprises (which were in turn founded in 1965 and 1969). Since 1985, the company has established a network of eight modern style shops around the country, which operate as its own retailers, under the company’s name. In parallel, the company has 389 customers (as of July 2001), 270 of which are located in Greece and 119 abroad (most of them in Europe). Exporting activities of the company begun in 1971, from France. Currently, its products are sold in Europe, Arab 701 E. Chocolate Avenue, Hershey PA 17033-1240, USA Tel: 717/533-8845; Fax 717/533-8661; URL-http://www.idea-group.com 16#$%' IDEA GROUP PUBLISHING This chapter appears in the book, Annals of Cases on Information Technology, Volume 5, edited by Mehdi Kosrow-Pour. Copyright © 2003, Idea Group Inc. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of Idea Group Inc. is prohibited.