NetSuite Release 2021.1 Release Preview Summary

Introduction

The new year is here and it seems, barely started when Netsuite reminds us all of the relentless progress of software development with its 2021.1 Release appearing on the horizon like a sailing ship of yesteryear.
The release notes are, as expected substantial, and frequently contain links to informative and instructional videos.
The team at AVT has cast their collective, and experienced, eyes across the new offerings and chosen a few that they consider to be real nuggets for their clients and the following paragraphs detail AVT’s thoughts on these and their implications with regard to level of improvement and the implementation thereof.

Untangling the Supply Chain

The majority of AVT’s clientele keep inventory in varying numbers,types, complexities, and quantities so let’s start with the continuing expansion of the tools they can use to improve the ROI on this critical asset by optimising holdings and delivering formidable customer service.

Supply Planning

The substantial upgrading of the Demand Planning Module (Demand and Supply Planning) started to be seen in 2020.2 with the expansion of planning options to include Material Requirements Planning and the introduction of the Supply Planning Workbench.
NetSuite has separated the Demand Planning element which now feeds Demand data into both the Generate Supply Plan and the new MRP functions. The older product will presumably be retired in the coming year or two.
New Supply Planning offers significant advantages over the older module with the new Workbench the highlight and this is enhanced significantly in 2021.1 with features designed to improve visibility over what has happened, is happening and is expected to happen.

Supply Allocation

Introduced in 2019, this functionality is delivering great flexibility to clients in wholesale distribution by giving them the ability to allocate stock that is on its way to specific Sales orders in a rules based process.
The process is largely automated and expands on the standard Available-to-Promise feature that allowed a Sale to be linked to an incoming order but did nothing to guarantee that the promise would be kept.
2021 add a range of new functionality including a dashboard specifically for those in charge of managing the allocation process, the ability to allocate a quantity of stock to a particular Channel e.g. Online Customer, a button to select the Best Location to supply from, integration with Blanket Purchase Orders and Purchase Contracts, and inclusion of allocations into the Supply Chain Snapshot (making this truly useful).
For businesses with supply chain pressures, this is something that must be evaluated.

Other Inventory Management Morsels

Here are some other elements worthy of a look:
Warehouse Management : Enhancements for Inbound Processing for Mobile device uses and the use of Inventory Status; as well as new Wave picking capabilities
New Mobile device Pack Station functions
First Expiry, First Out logic for Lot/Serial Items

Procurement Management

For those who want to establish a centralised processing centre, NetSuite now supports Centralised Purchasing and Billing by permitting the Target Subsidiary and Target Locations to be added to TPO Lines.
The Centralized Purchasing and Billing feature enables the automation of intercompany cross charges
between the billing subsidiary and the target subsidiary. This mirrors the Cross Subsidiary Fulfillment function available for Sales Orders.

Suiteanalytics

On top of new functionality offering new formula functions in workbooks and conditional formatting to brighten up those graphs and tables, there is now the option to try NetSuites Beta Data Warehouse functionality. From the horse’s mouth:
“NetSuite Analytics Warehouse (Beta) enables you to analyze historical data from multiple sources and determine how to improve their business. When enabled, you can begin transferring your data to NetSuite Analytics Warehouse (Beta). You can then blend your NetSuite data with data from other sources and analyze it with a wide set of visualizations.”
There also enhancements to allow more sophisticated Pivot Tables with the introduction of Custom Formulas.

Banking

The old Reconciliation Function that we have all known for so long is to be put out to pasture.
The new matching technology now comes with a raft of updates concerning the import and match processes.

End of an Era

 

 

This button has been removed from all Standard Forms and Records and resetting back to the original record or form will now be in the hands of your trusted browser.

Summary

There are 89 pages in the Release Notes PDF and lots of videos available via SuiteAnswers.
Please browse and if there is something you would like AVT to delve more deeply into then please drop us a line.

NetSuite · Accounting

• Advanced Numbering
• Enhancements to Advanced Revenue Management
• My Transactions Standard SuiteAnalytics Workbook
• Changes to Name and Display Name Fields on Account Record
• Balancing by Segments Status in Transaction Search
• Advanced Localization Features
• China Localization Enhancements
• Country-Specific Reports Enhancements
• Germany Localization (Beta) Chart of Accounts and Financial Statements Enhancements
• Fixed Assets Management Enhancements

NetSuite · Account Setup and Maintenance

• Enhancements to the Customer-Scheduled Maintenance Page
• Change to Default Setting for Available Without Login
• New Help Links Available in APM Tools
• Treatment of Null Values in Record Pages Monitor

NetSuite · Authentication

• NetSuite as OIDC Provider (OP)
• Enhancements to NetSuite OAuth 2.0 Support
• Deprecation of the NetSuite Inbound Single Sign-on Feature
• Relying Party-initiated (RP) Logout for OpenID Connect Single Sign-on (OIDC) for Web Store
• SAML Single Sign-on Logouts for the NetSuite UI and Web Store
• Deprecation of HMAC-SHA1 for Token-based Authentication (TBA)

NetSuite · Banking

• Deprecation of Reconcile Bank Statement and Reconcile Credit Card Statement Pages
• Enhancements to Bank Import
• Clear Account Transactions
• Enhancements to Import Process Performance
• Bank Feeds SuiteApp Enhancements

NetSuite · Employee Management

• Performance Management Enhancements
• New Payroll Item Groups
• Include Specific Payroll Items in an Off-Cycle Payroll Batch
• New CSV Import for Bonus Record
• Retract Weekly Timesheets
• Expense Report Policies Enhancements
• Time-Off Portlet Enhancement
• Enhancement to the Employee Base Pay Change Template
• Manager Access to Employee Timeline

NetSuite · Internationalization

• Intercompany Framework Enhancements
• Record Localization Context Support Expanded with New Record Types
• New Formatting API Available for Use in SuiteScript 2.0
• Enhancements to Manage Translations
• Workbooks Are Now Translatable

NetSuite · Inventory Management

• Supply Planning
• Supply Allocation Enhancements
  • Projected Available Inventory Balance from the Supply Chain Snapshot
  • Channel Allocations
  • Exclude Predicted Risks
  • Blanket Purchase Orders and Inbound Shipment in the Snapshot
  • New button for Best Location
  • Automatic Numbering in Snapshot
• Warehouse Management Enhancements
• Basic Bin Management Enhancement
• Multi-Book Accounting Support for Allow Partial Receipt Against a Fulfillment in Transfer at Cost
• Quality Management Enhancements
• New Pack Station Mobile App
• Shelf-to-Sheet Count Enhancements
• FEFO Lot Allocations First expiry first out

NetSuite · Manufacturing

• Automated Work Order Lead Time Calculation
• Routing Work Order Support in Manufacturing Mobile

NetSuite · Order Management

• Invoice Groups Feature Enhancements
• Charges Based on a Total Contract Value
• Removing Usage Records on Active Subscription Lines
• Removal of One-Day Charges from Termination and Reactivation Change Orders
• ACH Payment Instrument
• Separate Credit and Refund Payment Operations
• Dunning Letters Enhancements
• Electronic Bank Payments Enhancements
• Germany Localization (Beta) Chart of Accounts and Financial Statements Enhancements
• Deduction and Chargeback Management
• Auto Close Back Orders Enhancements

NetSuite · Projects

• NetSuite Content and Experience Enhancements

NetSuite · Vendors, Purchasing, and Receiving

• Centralized Purchasing and Billing
• Default Vendor Payment Account
• Print Vendor Bills and Vendor Credits
• Create Bill from Item Receipt
• Set Purchase Contract Maximum Amount on Request for Quote Transaction

NetSuite · Taxation

• SuiteTax
• Multi-Book Accounting and Adjustment-Only Book Support for Tax Reporting Framework
• Mexico Deferred Taxes
• Belgium Localization Tax Reports Enhancements
• Germany Localization (Beta) Chart of Accounts and Financial Statements Enhancements
• Netherlands Localization VAT Report Enhancements
• Legacy Tax
• Period End Journals Support in Tax Audit Files

NetSuite · User Interface

• Advance Notice: End of Support for Some Browsers
• End of Support for Reset Button on Standard Form Pages

NetSuite · SuiteAnalytics

• NetSuite Analytics Warehouse (Beta)
• Calculated Measures Now Available in SuiteAnalytics Workbook
• Conditional Formatting Now Available in SuiteAnalytics Workbook
• NetSuite IP Addresses and SuiteAnalytics Connect
• Removal of Some Connect Tables and Columns
• Changes to Phone Number Length in SuiteAnalytics Connect Columns
• Translation Collections for User-Defined Text Supported in Workbook
• 2021.1 Connect Browser

If you have any questions about the upcoming New Release or would like help preparing your organisation for the transition, please contact us at support@abvt.com.au.

Please also consider book-marking the AVT Support Services – your go-to resource to submit support tickets and access knowledge base articles. The AVT Support Services also contains a direct link to NetSuite’s system status page.

Kind regards,
AVT Business Solutions

Need more info?

Find out more at the NetSuite Blog page