Charge Record Data Structure for Multi-Source Billing Reconciliation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional approaches struggle to efficiently reconcile and manage charges from multiple sources in a business environment, leading to complexity in generating reports and forecasts across disparate systems like CRM and ERP, due to the need for multiple customized interfaces and inefficient data handling.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a 'charge record' as a single-source data point that enables synchronization of critical business information across multiple systems, supporting billing, revenue recognition, reporting, and forecasting by abstracting modifications away from the codebase and using custom transactions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple customized interfaces are maintained to interface with multiple types of charges across disparate subsystems, then each subsystem can handle specific charge types, but the system complexity and effort to maintain multiple interfaces increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal charge record data structure that can represent multiple types of charges (subscriptions, one-time sales orders, projects, etc.) through a common interface. This single data structure serves multiple functions across different subsystems (billing, revenue tracking, reporting), eliminating the need for multiple customized interfaces while maintaining the ability to handle diverse charge types through standardized fields and attributes
2Adaptability or versatility
If conventional approaches are used to reconcile charges from multiple sources, then charge data can be collected from various sources, but the reconciliation process becomes difficult and complicated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a charge record as an intermediary data structure that mediates between multiple charge sources and various subsystems. All charges from different sources (subscriptions, sales orders, projects, CSV imports, third-party rating engines) are converted into this standardized charge record format, which then serves as the common language for reconciliation across billing, revenue tracking, and reporting systems, dramatically simplifying the reconciliation process
3Adaptability or versatility
If each subsystem is programmed to interface with multiple types of charges, then each subsystem can process different charge types, but the customization effort and error-proneness increases
Solution Approach 1:
The charge record serves as a universal data structure that all subsystems interface with through the same standardized methods. This eliminates the need for each subsystem to be individually programmed to handle multiple charge types, reducing customization effort and minimizing errors through consistent, standardized interactions across the entire system
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and apparatuses for improving the handling and interaction of charge events in a business using services of a multi-tenant computing platform, such as accounting, CRM, ERP, and the like. Embodiments are directed to implementing and using a charge record to enable efficient use of charges originating from multiple sources to generate reports and forecasts for multiple other services and/or recipients. In one embodiment, the charge record defines a single-source of data which enables maintaining critical business information in synchronization through a single repository of data. One aspect is to define a single abstraction, the charge record, which all sources can create. Thus, instead of multiple relationship between multiple sources and multiple processes, a charge record provides a single data point for a charge such that charges sources and processes that utilize data from the charge sources may interact using a single type of data record.