The annual submission of sales figures to International Trading Groups (ITGs) is a tedious and time-consuming process for parts manufacturers in the independent automotive aftermarket. The six trading groups each use different systems so that the reports must be created in different ways. The process to generate reports for all ITG members can take up to six months for large parts manufacturers; this requires a large investment of time and resources. To simplify and standardise this process, we have developed a standardised reporting structure as an additional functionality of our myITG solution.
The new myITG Reporting Structure was developed as a common standard in close cooperation with Autodistribution International, ATR International, Global One Automotive, GROUPAUTO International, NEXUS Automotive International and TEMOT International. It enables sending of sales figure reports to all ITGs in a single format, greatly simplifying the process. “With the new myITG Reporting Structure we enable a granularity of reporting which leads to unprecedented transparency,” says Marco Monsees, Vice President Business Development at TecAlliance.
“We at Global One Automotive find that a uniform reporting structure makes communication much easier for all parties involved. With the new myITG Reporting Structure, we can better map, standardise and automate our internal processes. We invite all our partners to implement these structures.”
Kai Ballsieper, Supplier Management Director at Global One Automotive.
Seven major parts manufacturers were involved in the development of the reporting template to make sure that it covers the industry’s needs.
“The myITG Reporting Structure serves as a crucial foundation for managing the ITG business today. An accurate myITG Reporting Structure is essential to generate reliable ITG turnover reports and enable precise bonus settlements. The possibility to display the member structure of all six existing ITGs worldwide makes myITG a very attractive sales instrument for our teams.”
Kai Guijo Müller, Vice President Global Accounts – Trading Groups at Schaeffler Automotive Aftermarket
Unprecedented transparency based on an established structure
The myITG Reporting Structure is based on the standardised TecDoc product descriptions (Generic Articles). The approximately 9,900 Generic Articles are categorised for this specific purpose into 32 main product groups and 160 sub-categories. This structure was used because TecDoc Data Suppliers already use it to link their products in the TecDoc Catalogue. Hence, the IT environment of the parts suppliers already supports the use of the myITG Reporting Structure – without any additional major implementation.This saves time and effort. To ensure that the process works as smoothly as possible, we support myITG users with training during the initial set-up process and answer any questions.
“Since our customer data base has been matched with the myITG member structure, the diversity and specificity of reports have reached new dimensions. You can use myITG to manage all kinds of business activities with ITGs. At the same time, companies can improve the report accuracy to unexpected limits. Ad-hoc reports are the new normal with the myITG Reporting Structure”, confirms Müller.
The template is processed offline. Then parts manufacturers submit the completed sales reports to ITGs through their existing communication channels. This way, we do not have access to the users’ data or systems. This ensures data security, giving parts manufacturers control over their proprietary information.
The report template is included in the myITG Pro module. If you want to learn more about the new reporting structure and want to discover how our all-in-one ITG event solution will help you streamline your next meeting preparation, talk to our experts.
