GE Healthcare Automates Order Entry with Esker — Achieves Multiple Business Benefits

Esker, a worldwide leader in document process automation solutions and SAP^® software solution and technology partner, announced today it has been selected by GE Healthcare to automate Sales Order Processing operations with Esker DeliveryWare, while also integrating with GE’s SAP harmonization program.

Due to the nature of GE’s products, order entry is a critical operation within the company. Products containing radioactive material have a limited shelf life; therefore, creating an effective and error-free procedure is vital to maximizing business efficiencies and customer satisfaction — especially in a "lean practices” environment.

"The limitations of our order entry operation presented a number of challenges to key areas of our business,” said Peter Langworthy, Head of Customer Services Europe at GE Healthcare. "We were restricted by all of the paper in our order entry process as well as issues with order archiving. This meant limited resources to focus on Customer Service activities. We were also looking to reduce order entry errors and standardize our processes.”

Significant order entry improvements

Having identified a number of business-critical deliverables, GE Healthcare sought to achieve a range of financial benefits from its improved order entry system. Today, with Esker DeliveryWare, 34% of the company’s fax and email orders are processed automatically (with expectations that the percentage will significantly increase), setting the stage for further improvements in Customer Service productivity and overall customer satisfaction.

"The electronic workflow of the Esker solution brings improved efficiencies for our company, such as enhanced visibility during the order life cycle,” said Langworthy. "This offers better transparency and enables the tracking, tracing and escalation of orders with the option to increase sales and improve order-to-receipt timescales.” A specific Esker DeliveryWare feature that has been well received by GE’s Customer Service team is the ability to retrieve archived orders quickly with little effort. Added Langworthy, "This not only saves time, it allows our team to provide a higher level of service to customers by being more flexible and responsive if questions are raised.”

Alistair Nicholas, Managing Director of Esker Northern Europe, said, "We are delighted that GE Healthcare has chosen Esker to improve their order entry operation. The Esker solution automates every phase of order entry — from the receipt of a customer document to the creation of a corresponding sales order in the ERP system. With the ability to handle any type of incoming order format, Esker makes every order electronic and instantly accessible.”

Automated sales order processing delivers multiple business efficiencies, including improved productivity (Customer Service can focus more on added value activities such as customer care and opportunity detection), improved sales growth and quicker cash collection. "This is particularly advantageous in the current economic climate, where pure revenue growth can be difficult to obtain,” said Nicholas. "However, by removing operational costs, streamlining core business processes, and better utilizing the time saved through sales order automation, it is possible to improve on meeting revenue objectives.”

About GE Healthcare

GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies and services, shaping a new age of patient care. They are committed to serving healthcare professionals and their patients in more than 100 countries. Expertise in areas such as medical imaging and information technologies, medical diagnostics, and patient monitoring systems helps their customers deliver better care to more people around the world — at a lower cost. GE Healthcare has a long history of working closely with healthcare professionals in the Department of Health, NHS and private sector to develop and implement better patient management, using improved diagnosis and monitoring.

About Esker

Esker is the worldwide leader in document process automation solutions. Addressing all types of business processes from accounts payable and accounts receivable to sales order processing and procurement, Esker cloud computing solutions enable companies to automate the reception, processing and sending of any business document with one platform. Esker helps over 80,000 companies across the world to reduce the use of paper and eliminate manual processes while improving their productivity, efficiency and environmental impact.

With 40.3 million euros in sales revenue in 2012, Esker operates in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific with global headquarters in Lyon, France and U.S. headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin. Esker is listed on the NYSE Alternext in Paris (Code ISIN FR0000035818). Follow Esker on LinkedIn at Esker – Northern Europe, or on Twitter at twitter.com/eskerinc and join the conversation on the Esker blog at www.quitpaper.com.

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