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Is"Checking it Twice" CostingYou Money? A System-Driven Concept Can HelpYou Eliminate the Redundancies & Slim Your Bottom Line By Glen Juliano, President TRX Integration, Inc. glen.juliano@trxi.com B y definition,doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is insanity.Yet many organizations do it on a daily basis, justifying it as a way of controlling costs.Does this sound familiar?A customer order is checked for accuracy, margin, and credit by salesmanagement before entering it into the sys- tem.The purchasing agent reviews the order for accuracy, margin, and credit before placing a PO.The shipping department checks for credit clearance before shipping and then the invoice is reviewed for accuracy andmargin before send- ing it to the customer. Finally, the vendor check will not get paid until the signer sees an invoice already sent to a customer or backup for a stock purchase. If two or more of these sound famil- iar, duplication of effort is costing you money. Even so, some argue that too many controls still costs less than no controls at all. In fact, I know of dozens of companies following two or more of the procedures above right now. The real question is "how can dealerships keep con- trolled results and cut costs at the same time?" The answer is in the concept of a system-driven organization, a process that helps a company do things right the first time while delivering continued on page 42 How to Tell if You are Not a System-Driven Organization If your organization catches mistakes only after shipping and invoicing, you are probably not a system-driven organization, according to Juliano. Also, if you are constantly reacting to negative customer feedback from incor- rect orders, pricing or product, as opposed to proactively seeking ways to serve them better, you are probably not a system-driven organization. Finally, if it takes longer than 30 days to collect non-contract receivables, you are not (but should be) a system-driven organization. 1 8 FEDA News & Views