OrderBillingStatus Collaboration Template

The OrderBillingStatus collaboration synchronizes order billing status data from an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) application to a Customer Interaction Management (CIM) application. As status information on invoices against orders changes in an order management system, the collaboration sends the change in state to a collaborating destination application.

To synchronize the status of an invoice against an order between the ERP and CIM applications, the orders must already exist. The collaboration verifies that the order exists in the destination application before it sends the request to update its status. Because each status change is made against an existing sales order, the collaboration sends business objects with the Update verb only.

Every status business object reflects the format of the invoice whose status it tracks. For example, if the invoice contains three line items, the status business object contains the order header and the three line items from the invoice. The header information provides a summary view of the entire invoice's status.

Typically the sales order process originates in the CIM application when the Telesales Representative or the Customer Service Representative (CSR) takes an order or makes a quote while talking with a customer. After the order is saved in the front-office application, the Telesales rep or CSR sends the order to the ERP application, where it is processed and booked. ERP processes include order generation, delivery of the products, billing to the customer, product returns, and any service or repairs.

Future requests or changes made by the front-office representative are also sent to the ERP system, where the changes are processed. Any change of status that occurs to the invoice in the ERP system is immediately pushed back to the CIM system by the OrderBillingStatus collaboration.

Using multiple generic objects to report the order life cycle

The OrderBillingStatus collaboration uses the generic OrderBillingStatus business object to provide status data on invoices made against orders.

The order life cycle can vary from a simple process to a complex one.

The OrderBillingStatus collaboration uses a generic OrderBillingStatus business object to report a specific type of change to an invoice's state during the sales order lifecycle. For example, if a full or partial invoice is created against an order in the ERP application, this triggers an update to the OrderBillingStatus which is synchronized into the CIM application. Also, when a consolidated invoice (an invoice against multiple sales orders for the same customer) is created in the ERP, an update to the OrderBillingStatus is triggered.

As long as the sales order in the ERP application exists as an order in the CIM, the order in the CIM application can be of any type; that is, the ERP sales order can synchronize with a quote, a contract, a return, or a sales order in the CIM application. However, the orders must exist in both the ERP and CIM applications because the OrderBillingStatus collaboration treats updates to invoices in the ERP as updates to the sales order in the CIM. The order number serves as the link between the objects in the two applications.

Synchronizing from the ERP to the CIM application

An ERP application always serves as the source, because updates to the sales order are always made in the back-office application. Whenever the ERP application notes a change in state to an invoice, the collaboration sends the specific status change of the invoice to the CIM application.

Although the synchronizations performed by the OrderBillingStatus collaboration are intended primarily for a CSR or Telesales Rep who responds to customers' queries through a front-office application, the collaboration is not triggered by a customer's phone call to the front office. Instead, status changes are pushed to the CIM application at the time they are made in the ERP application. Because the status of invoices is synchronized in the CIM application as soon as they are changed in the ERP application, the CSR or Telesales Rep has access to the current status of an invoice when a customer requests it.

Collaboration object setup

This section includes information on port bindings and required steps for setting up collaboration objects based on OrderBillingStatus. For information on standard features, ports, and configuration properties for collaboration templates, and for general information on creating collaboration objects refer to the Collaboration Development Guide.

Port information

Figure 1 illustrates ports of OrderBillingStatus as they are displayed in System Manager. The tables that follow the figure provide information about each port.

Figure 1. OrderBillingStatus collaboration ports

Note: To prevent the collaboration object from using a port, bind that port to the Port connector. Binding the port indicates that the port is unused without causing the collaboration object to provide additional functionality.

Port name: DestinationAppRetrieve
Business object Bound to Function Verbs used
OrderBillingStatus The destination application's connector Sends a reference-valued business object to retrieve the full-valued business object. The result determines the verb to use when synchronizing the Order.

Retrieve


Port name: From
Business object Bound to Function Verbs used
Contract Source application's connector or calling collaboration. Receives the triggering business object. At the end of a synchronous call, this port also returns the triggering business object to the source application when the collaboration ends successfully

Create Retrieve Update Delete


Port name: To
Business object Bound to Function Verbs used
OrderBillingStatus Source application's connector or calling collaboration.

Receives the triggering business object. At the end of a synchronous call, this port also returns the triggering business object to the source application when the collaboration ends successfully.

Create Retrieve Update Delete


Port name: To
Business object Bound to Function Verbs used
OrderBillingStatus The destination application's connector Sends the triggering business object out of the collaboration

Create Update Delete

Setting up the collaboration object

Using OrderBillingStatus as stand-alone

OrderBillingStatus is designed to be used as a stand-alone collaboration. To set up OrderBillingStatus as a stand-alone collaboration object, follow these steps:

  1. Create the OrderBillingStatus collaboration object.
  2. Bind each of the collaboration object's ports as described in Port information.
  3. Set the Configuration properties for OrderBillingStatus.  

Collaboration template processes

This section illustrates the process logic for this collaboration template:

Overall process logic

Figure 2 illustrates the OrderBillingStatus process logic.

Figure 2. OrderBillingStatus collaboration process logic

Inherited process logic

This collaboration template uses the following standard collaboration business processes:

For information on these processes, see the Collaboration Development Guide.

Compensation processing

InterChange Server Express can roll back a transaction when any step in a transactional collaboration fails. For example, when OrderBillingStatus is a member of a collaboration-object group that participates in a transactional collaboration, its actions are one subtransactional step of a larger transaction. If any step in the collaboration-object group's business process fails, the transactional collaboration details how InterChange Server should roll back the processing of every collaboration in the group.

When a OrderBillingStatus collaboration object is used independently of other collaboration objects or the collaboration object's From port is bound to a source application rather than to another collaboration, its process comprises a single transactional step. In such a situation, it is not necessary to perform rollback.

To cause a collaboration object or a collaboration-object group to perform rollback requires modification of the collaboration template. To understand transaction processing in the IBM WebSphere Business Integration Server Express Plus system, see the System Implementation Guide. For information about adding transaction processing to the collaboration template, see the Collaboration Development Guide.

To extend the collaboration object to handle transaction processing, complete the following steps:

  1. Add this capability to the collaboration template and to every other collaboration template in the collaboration-object group.
  2. Set the minimum transaction level of the collaboration object and all members of the collaboration-object group to a value higher than None. If a failure occurs in any subtransaction step, settings of Minimal Effort or higher cause this collaboration object and other collaboration objects in the group to execute compensation for Create, Update, and Delete operations performed on all business objects.
  3. Set the USE_RETRIEVE property of the collaboration object and all other members of the collaboration-object group to "true". Forcing the collaboration objects to retrieve values before changing them allows the collaboration objects to restore the original values in an Update or Delete process.

Configuration properties

Note: OrderBillingStatus does not have unique configuration properties. All of its properties are standard.

Standard properties

This collaboration template uses the following standard configuration properties for collaboration templates:

For information on these configuration properties, see the Collaboration Development Guide.

Collaboration messages

To view an explanation of the messages of this collaboration template, launch the Log Viewer and open the collaboration template's message file. To launch the Log Viewer and open the collaboration template's message file:

  1. In the Start menu, click Programs > IBM WebSphere Business Integration Express > Toolset Express > Administrative > Log Viewer.
  2. In the File menu, click Open.
  3. Use the Look In field to change the current folder to ProductDir\collaborations\messages and select the message file for this collaboration template.

Upgrade information

Upgrade process

To upgrade to a newer version of the collaboration, perform the following steps:

  1. Stop the OrderBillingStatus collaboration.
  2. Back up the repository. For information about backing up the repository, see the System Implementation Guide.
  3. If you have customized the collaboration template:
  4. Install the new OrderBillingStatus collaboration template.
  5. Add your customizations to the new collaboration template.
  6. Create the new collaboration object, binding it to the appropriate connectors. For more information, see Collaboration setup.
  7. Run and test the new collaboration object.
  8. Make changes to the collaboration object based on any problems found during testing.  

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