New Target DVS requirements for the 855

EDI Purchase Order Acknowledgement

Did you know that Target DVS recently changed their requirements for sending the EDI Purchase Order Acknowledgement (855)? And guess what? If you’re a supplier, you now have even less time to get it to them. In fact, their new requirements demand that you send it — and they receive it — within 30 minutes.

30 Minutes?!!! For an EDI Purchase Order Acknowledgement (855)?!!!

30 minutes. That’s just a bit longer than one episode of The Office on Netflix. It’s a not-so-great workout. Or a pizza delivery in the 1990s.

In other words, it’s fast. Really fast. And if you want to maintain your Target DVS business, it’s a standard you simply must meet.

Talk about high stakes. If there was ever a time for automation, this is certainly it. Humans are, after all, human. They have real human lives with real human activities. There is traffic to beat, people to meet, and conference calls that run long. Getting an 855 out in 30 minutes — every time — is not something humans want to worry about.

Get it done. Automatically.

With Lingo, you don’t have to. An 855 is automatically generated and sent directly to Target DVS in less than 30 minutes. Right now, the average time it takes is 22 minutes, well within the 30-minute window.

After learning about Target DVS and the 30-minute standard, we got to work. In about ten seconds, we realized we needed a way to automate the 855 — and we made it happen shortly after that.

We introduced this feature for the same reason we are constantly upgrading our software: a Trading Partner changed their requirements. And whether it’s Target DVS or another retailer, when our customers face new standards, we work to make sure they have tools to meet them.

We’re all speed freaks now.

The reality of modern business is that speed matters. A lot. Everyone — consumers, retailers, suppliers — want things faster than ever before. The on-demand economy isn’t limited to Netflix or ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft — every business must be able to get things out in a hurry. Automating as much of your business as possible lets you meet the needs of your customers while freeing you up to focus on expanding your business.

Of course, the pace in retail has always been quick. Consumer tastes change overnight and technology has ushered in an era unlike any other, where shoppers can scan reviews and compare prices from online and brick-and-mortar outlets. It’s not only the 855 that needs to be fast — all your order transactions put a premium on speed. That’s why we build so much into Lingo to reduce manual entry, merge data and information from ERPs and other back-end systems, and process multiple orders in batch. Now, more than ever, time really is money.

A comprehensive understanding of Trading Partner requirements.

Building automated transmission of the 855 into Lingo is another example of how we stay on top of the regular changes that retailers make to their mapping. We work with hundreds of Trading Partners across all kinds of categories — staying current is part of the value we offer to our clients. In a business world that is already full of challenges, knowing that you don’t have to worry about keeping up with evolving standards is a game-changer.

If they change it, we build it.

The one thing you can count on when it comes to Trading Partner requirements is that they will change. Regularly, in fact, and with scant notice. No matter who you choose as your EDI provider, make sure that when changes happen, like they did for the 855 for Target DVS, the company you work with is ready to adapt.