Outsourcing some or all of your manufacturing is old news for technology companies. The focus on core competencies, the need to scale quickly while managing cash, and the availability of high quality suppliers have all helped to drive this trend. At the same time technology companies retain the ultimate responsibility for production and on-time delivery to customers. Supply Chain Management (SCM) systems help tech companies manage their supply and demand, and integrating and consolidating information from the distributed suppliers is often an important part of this process.

Advancements have been made in SCM systems and technology support data integration – yet the reality of SCM data integration eludes many. Technical Standards Committees, including RosettaNet, have tried to improve this process by developing data dictionaries and transfer protocols. Recently I’ve partnered with semiconductor industry veteran Ron Jones ( n-Able Group CEO) on a white paper that looks at data integration in the fabless semiconductor industry. If you’d like to review our insights, this paper is now available by clicking here.