A brief comment on ERP systems

In order to achieve a proper management, enterprises need all the necessary information and as actualized as possible.  The Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is a software that integrates all the information from each department with the objective of optimizing results by improving the flow of internal process’ interaction, increasing productivity and service response while reducing costs.

Although the implementation of an ERP system may seem highly attractive for enterprises, before adopting it, it is convenient to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages involved, such as:

• Offers automatic an coherent work flow between departments or functions
• Complete visibility of all the processes across the entire organization (or at least of those departments covered by the ERP)
• It can be parameterized so as to adjust it to the needs of the organization
• It is compatible with other software such as Microsoft Office (which is the most commonly used software)
• Secure policies can be applied to the ERP system as well as it can track every transaction that has been done in the system.
• It can be break down into different modules, hence it’s not necessary to buy a whole ERP system “package”, but only the modules that are really required.
• ERP system are expensive
• The implementation of a new ERP system in an organization involves operational costs, these often go hand by hand with frustration issues reflected in those who use it. The implementation of a new system, as flexible as it may be, it will always require users to manage new ways of performing some of their original processes. In my personal experience, people tend to reject new ERP’s implementation due to this matter, thus the effort that has to be apply to adapt to the new set of “boundaries” the system imposes can be very frustrating. Nevertheless, in the long run, this cost disappears because users acquire sufficient practice that allowes them to work in a coherently way with the software.
• The IT sector evolves at a high rate, ERP systems have high risks of becoming rapidly obsolete.

One of the most valuable modules ERP offers is the Datawarehouse. This module allows users to develop statistical reports, management reports and scorecards to control the different key performance indicators (KPI) of the business. This is essential for managers and director to keep close control of what is going on and improve their decision-making process.

Comentarios desactivados en A brief comment on ERP systems / 06 Feb 2013 por Sebastian Salimei
MBAftmad /

Comentarios cerrados.