Linking suppliers and externals

In HITGuard you can link suppliers and externals to each other. A link connects a supplier with the corresponding external (from data protection). If a corresponding supplier/external does not yet exist, you can also create it using this function. This relationship is visible on both overview pages.

You can create these links from the supplier list and from the external list.
You can link several records at once or have missing counterparts created automatically.
Existing links are displayed in the overview lists and in the detail view, where they can also be removed again.

Important: The linking itself does not overwrite any data. It merely establishes a connection between the two entries. However, there is a separate function that transfers the data and overwrites certain fields (see below).

Overview lists

You will find the two overview lists under: *Administration > Suppliers *Data protection > Externals Next to the search field of the overview lists of suppliers and externals there is a Link button, which opens the linking modal. This button is only visible under certain conditions. First of all, the button is only displayed at all if at least one management system with an activated data protection module exists. In addition, you can only see the button if you (a) are an Expert in Supplier Risk Management and (b) are a Professional or Expert in data protection. You can find out more about this here.

In both overview lists there is a column that shows an existing link:

In the supplier overview there is the column Linked external. If a link exists, it shows the name of the corresponding external.
In the external overview there is the column Linked supplier. If a link exists, it shows the name of the connected supplier.
You can show or hide the column yourself at any time if required.

Clicking on the button opens the linking modal.

The linking modal

Via the Link button you open the modal in which you create the links. You have several options here:

Pre-filtering

Select direction: In the modal you define the direction of the link. It is already preselected appropriately, depending on where you opened the modal.

Opened from a supplier: direction Supplier > External. *Opened from an external: direction External > Supplier. The direction is particularly important if the counterpart does not yet exist. In the direction Supplier > External, for example, you can create new externals on the basis of the suppliers. In the list below, the columns "Supplier" and "External" are rearranged when you change the direction at the top.

Search: Using the search field you search the linking list by code and name. Depending on the selected direction, the search is carried out for the supplier or for the external.

Apply suggestions: HITGuard compares the names and suggests suitable entries for the link. A match exists if the name is exactly identical or at least 70 % similar (measured by the number and order of the letters). One click selects all rows with a match and sets their action to "Link".

Create new (without match): One click selects all rows for which no match was found and sets their action to "Create new".

Linking list

The list contains the columns Supplier and External, which are arranged according to the direction selected above: the direction starts from the first column (e.g. suppliers) and targets the last one (e.g. externals).

On the left you can select one or more rows by ticking the checkboxes. Rows that are not selected are greyed out.
First column: shows the code and name of the list you are starting from, e.g. the codes and names of the suppliers.

Action column: Using a switch you define whether you link two existing elements to each other or create a completely new element. This selection is retained even if you deselect the row again. The preselection depends on the settings above:
- If you click on "Apply suggestions", HITGuard looks for similar names between suppliers and externals. If there is a match, "Link" is set.
- If you click on "Create new (without match)", HITGuard will select all entries for which it has not found any matching counterparts. In doing so, it will select the action "Create new".
Last column: With the action "Link" you select the external or the supplier here.
- If a counterpart was detected automatically, the badge "Exact" (identical) or "Suggestion" (similar) appears.
- If you change the suggestion or select an external manually, the badge "Manual" appears.
- With the action "Create new", no selection is possible here. Instead, a note appears stating that a new external will be created with the data of the supplier.

Apply / Cancel

The Apply button becomes active as soon as you have selected a row using the checkbox on the left. The button shows you the number of selected records, and when you click on it, HITGuard saves the selected links.

With Link, the supplier is connected to the selected external. HITGuard does not copy any data between the records here.
With Create new, a new, already linked external or supplier is created. The name, code, address (street, city, postcode, country) and contact data (e-mail, telephone) are adopted from the already existing element. Afterwards, a completion window appears showing how many links and how many new entries were created. With "Close" you exit this overview.
With the Cancel button you end the process. No changes are saved and no confirmation prompt is displayed.

Link in the detail view

Detail view in a supplier. The data has already been transferred once.

In the detail view of a supplier or external you will see a field at the top right with which you can manage the link. In it you can see which external or supplier a link exists to. You have three buttons available:

With Transfer data to external you overwrite the data code, name, address (street, postcode, country, city) and contact (e-mail, telephone number) at the linked element. This means that the data is always transferred from the page that is currently open to the linked page (if, for example, you currently have the supplier open, you transfer the data to the external).
Via Jump to supplier you switch directly to the detail view of the linked counterpart.
With the third button you can remove the link. The two elements are then completely independent of each other again. Whether this area is displayed and whether the buttons are active depends on the same conditions and permissions as the Link button in the overview list (see above).

Important notes / best practices

Linking does not overwrite anything: With pure linking, all existing data remains unchanged. Only "Transfer data to external" specifically replaces fields at the external.
Check before transferring: Before using "Transfer data to external", check that the supplier data is up to date and correct, as existing values at the external will be replaced.
Check suggestions: Suggestions from 70 % similarity onwards may also contain unsuitable matches. Use the badges "Exact", "Suggestion" and "Manual" to check the selection before applying.
Missing or deactivated button: If the Link button is not displayed or is deactivated, check the conditions (data protection management system or existing supplier) and your permission (data protection Professional or SRM Expert).
Show columns: Show the column "Linked external" or "Linked supplier" in order to see existing links directly in the overview.

Examples / use cases

Link several suppliers at once: Open the modal in the supplier list, click on "Apply suggestions", check the suggested externals and click on "Apply x records".
Create missing counterparts: For suppliers without a matching external, click on "Create the rest as new". HITGuard creates new, already linked externals and adopts their master data from the supplier.
Navigate to the counterpart: Show the link column and click on the linked name to switch directly to the detail view of the counterpart.
Align data: If the supplier data has changed, open its detail view and use "Transfer data to external" to transfer the current values to the linked external.