Market Data Reporting

Transcription

1 Introduction The purpose of this document is to introduce the components and process of Market Data Reporting. Tracking, managing, reporting, and billing for data consumption pose unique requirements on Customer Relationship Management and Financial Reporting systems. These systems and the processes required to maintain them are reviewed and discussed. Market data reporting is the process of managing data vendors, customers, and associated access charges and fees. The reporting process allows the market center (the data provider) to track the consumption of their information products by data vendor and by end user customer. This inventory information can then be used for demographic analysis reports, audit purposes, and for customer or vendor billing. The two critical factors in the reporting process are: a) accurate and timely reporting by vendors and customers and b) efficient software and administrative processes to manage the reported data. Accurate and timely reporting is possible by creating and receiving inventory reports using the Automated Reporting Services System. Components to this system include: o VARS Report Processing centralized reporting and processing of subscriber inventory information reports o SOLAR web-based interactive system for creating inventory reports o Usage Reporting web-based interactive system for reporting quote counts, voice response ports, and similar processes o Automated Data Feed Reporting web-based interactive system for use by internal redistributors to report their uncontrolled terminal accesses Market centers download these reports and update their databases with this information. These reports can be loaded into an internally developed system or loaded into The Market Data Information Manager System (MDiM). MDiM provides an integrated database for customer resource management, reporting, and invoicing and has been designed expressly managing market data information. The following sections of this document outline the components of market data reporting and how these components relate to each other.

2 Customer Management Understanding one s customer base requires a set of information be maintained on each customer. There are two levels of information that can be maintained to achieve this: Customer Demographics To understand where your customers are located geographically requires that you obtain AND MAINTAIN your customers and all of the locations that are using market data information. The functions that you need to implement to understand customer demographics are: Current customer location address information. This information needs to be updated monthly because customers move, and companies merge. Customer device inventory information by location. This information changes daily and needs to be updated each month. Customer Relationship Market Centers can gather information on how much use customers make of their data by evaluating the number of terminals using the data (across vendors). This requires current customer inventory to be reported by market data vendors when the vendor maintains entitlement control. Monthly inventory reports are used to maintain the database Customers who receive data via data feed and who control their own device access report their device inventory quantities quarterly. Accurate device inventory cannot be reported by data vendors because they do not collect this information on a timely basis. Vendor Management Managing market data vendors requires the market center to maintain information each vendor and their customers. This information can provide three levels of management detail: A vendor database of firm and contact information. An inventory database of their customers and device inventory. This inventory is required to rank the size of each vendor and to reconcile charges and payments. A database of vendor charges and payments. With this information, several vendor management areas that can be maintained: Vendor Overview The vendor overview is a profile of each vendor. It is maintained by itemizing key elements of the contract with each vendor, and by storing contact and relationship notes. Some of the elements maintained are: Vendor name and address information Contact information Description of services offered Contract dates Audit history

3 Vendor Customer Overview Managing customers requires the market center to know about their customers and how they receive data from data vendors. A database of customers and the inventory that each data vendor has installed at each customer location must be maintained. The components required to maintain this information are: Monthly vendor reports that contain customer inventory must be processed to update customer inventory databases. Customer inventory must be summarized both to the vendor and to the customer levels. Vendor Financial History Financial history information allows the market center to manage vendor charges and payments. There are two levels of information that can be maintained: A database of the monthly vendor payments received. Vendors who have not paid can be identified. Future receivables are estimated by using historical payment amounts. This information is only a log of payments received and no billing and invoicing is performed. Billing functions that calculate vendor charges based upon customer inventory and save these charges in a Sales Journal database. Calculating charges gives the market center control of their product pricing, vendor charges, and income projections. Financial Reporting Financial reports are generated after the monthly cutoff where the billing charges are calculated, invoices produced, and interface reports to other systems are performed. There are four types of Financial Reporting functions: Internal Reports, External Reports, Account Reconciliation, and Interfaces to External databases. Internal Reports Internal Reports are for management purposes only. Examples of Internal Reports are: Revenue by vendor Revenue by customer Aged receivables by vendor Aged receivables by customer Revenue projections and pricing scenarios Demographic analysis reports External Reports External Reports are for Vendor and customer use. They can be printed internally or if volume requires it, transmitted to a third-party printing service for creation and distribution. Examples of External Reports are: Vendor invoices Customer invoices Aged receivables and statements Electronic invoices and web data hosting

4 Account Reconciliation The account reconciliation process entails comparing vendor inventory with their billing charges. There are three methods for reconciling a vendor accounts: Electronically compare a vendor s customer inventory against the MDiM inventory and calculated charges. Electronically compare a vendor s customer inventory against the payment a vendor remits. Perform an on-site audit of the vendor and determine how well their own billing data compares to their reported customer inventory. Interfaces to Other Systems After the billing is calculated and financial reports generated, outputs to the accounting ledgers or other databases are performed. Administrative Functions Several types of administrative functions are required to maintain the system software and databases. Due to the critical nature of the data and of the processes, more than one individual should be able to perform all of the processes. The level of technical support varies upon the level of vendor and customer detail maintained and processes performed. System support The MDiM software and databases require periodic maintenance. Examples of maintenance functions are: Database administrator functions such as optimizations, purges, data set extractions, and backup & recovery processes. Program modifications One-off (ad hoc) queries and reports Enhancements, integration with other systems, and strategic long-term planning require on-going resources. Improvements in communicating with vendors and customers that are introduced by TCB Data Systems and others will need to be evaluated and integrated with the MDiM software and databases. Report processing Most vendor and customer information updates are received monthly from the Automated Reporting Services Systems as vendors submit electronic customer activity reports. During this process, resolving discrepancies and setting up new customer accounts require staff resources in an otherwise automated process. Report processing includes functions such as: Maintaining vendor profile data Maintaining vendor product codes Processing reports and following up on missing transactions, and data content errors Creating new customer profile records and linking new vendor services to existing customer locations

5 Calculating charges To calculate vendor (and/or customer) billing, each month a cutoff date is assigned. Prior to cutoff all customer inventory changes must be processed and one-time adjustments entered. Vendor inventory is used to calculate current charges based upon the market center s pricing structure. Changes to prior period inventory (known as retroactive adjustments) are identified and adjusted with the current billing. Each month this process must be monitored and the billing checked and approved. Producing Invoices Invoices are generated based upon the calculated charges. Producing invoices yields several benefits when compared to not invoicing vendors. These benefits are: More accurate invoices. Invoices calculated by the market center always correctly apply pricing rules. Vendor invoices often do not. Vendors prefer to be invoiced so that they have an invoice to apply payment to. Producing invoices allows the market center to include a Statement that shows payments, credits, and other miscellaneous charges Invoices provide a monthly correspondence between the market center and their vendors and customers. Information such as policy changes, service notifications, and late due notices can be included on each invoice. MDiM Invoices can be printed, or ed. Invoices and customer inventory detail can be displayed on the MDiMWeb Internet server. Inventory information available on the web allows those users who are granted access a convenient way to reconcile their inventory with their charges. Applying payments As payments are received from vendors (and/or customers), they must be applied to an invoice. Unpaid invoices must me followed-up upon and uncollectable invoices identified. There are two methods for applying payments: The administrative staff records payments and follows-up with unpaid invoices. A third party Collection Agency applies payments and follows-up with overdue accounts. This requires that the Collection Agency have access to the invoices and that the market center can read the payment information into their databases.