COMPUTER MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS -- The MISsing Link

Another printer, Chicago-based R.R. Donnelley & Sons, is developing a Web enabling strategy for its operations that will include three components—customer, employee and supplier portals, reveals Eva Chess, director of communications for Donnelley's Business Process Redesign project.

The customer portal allows users to check the status of their orders, from scheduling through shipping. The employee portal, or corporate intranet, is for internal use only and encompasses back-office functions such as order entry, scheduling, inventory and production management. Employees also can access human resource functions, including benefits, policies and online training. The supplier portal enables XML-based transmission of supply chain transactions.