5 Operations Small Businesses Must Optimize When Using ERP

ERP software is a specific type of software aimed at managing end to end business processes within a single software system. Originally, these systems were very complex and expansive to implement, but extremely efficient in improving large-scale, complicated production operations and accounting procedures.

Lately, more and more ERP vendors have been targeting small businesses with an easy to implement software that can provide much value at a low price. Some ERP solutions are can be even downloaded and used for free - these are open source ERP solutions.

Small businesses can benefit greatly from these type of software. In particular, most basic commercial operations can be dramatically improved with a minimal investment in implementing these software.

5 operations small businesses should manage by ERP:

1. Maintain Customer and Product data - ERP systems are great for creating,updating and linking customer and product data. Replace those huge excel files with a software system that will later allow you to use these records for your ope rationals activities like getting customer orders and maintain stock.
2. Manage Customer Orders - the blood flowing through the veins of every business in the world is its customs' orders. Once you set up your customer and products, you are ready to get your first customer order. In is usually as simple as selecting the customer, the product he ordered, the quaint and the unit price. Averting else (e.g. calculating the total price,creating invoice) is taken care by the software.
3. Manage Inventory - ERP systems are very strong at inventory management. It allows you to receive stock into the warehouse, allocate and pick stock to cover customer orders,as well as proving real-time insight into the stock availability of your entire product line.
4. Manage Procurement- Every small business needs to purchase something, be it raw material,finished goods or office supply. To get the real picture on where the money you are spending really goes to, you need a software that manages your vendors and purchasing orders. An ERP system will provide you with seamless integration with your inventory management requirements and customer orders to enable maximum efficiency in fulfilling your customers' orders.
5. Accounting - We all have to do it,nobody likes doing it. Let the software take care of your chart of accounts, account payables and receivables, journal entries, profit and loss reports and a lot more. And the great part is that since all transactions -sales or purchasing-are already managed by the same ERP system, accounting is almost completely automatic!

To summarize, if you really care about operational efficiency and customer satisfaction, you must consider ERP solutions.

Open Source ERP solutions are perfect for small-medium businesses looking to take their commercial activities to the next level of excellence. They are free,flexible and easy to use, while providing great value. Open Source ERP Guru is the leader in knowledge around open source ERP solutions with solutions comparison, in-depth analysis, flash tutorials, how-to guides and useful advice for small-medium businesses looking to achieve operational excellence through enterprise software

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By Joe Benjamin

ERP Makes Things Easier To Handle for Businesses

Seeing today’s fast paced life, nobody wants to get into complicated tasks. The focus is on time management and accessing what you want on time and with complete ease. One need to make the best out of the available resources and what can be better than using the latest technology, which saves on time and efforts. Let me introduce you to one of the latest software in the industry which is cost effective and integrates all the facets of the business. Yes its true, ERP is what it is commonly known as.

Enterprise Resource Planning or ERP; whatever name you may call it by, is a system that integrates different data and processes of an organization into one unified system. In simple terms, ERP software package provides Payroll as well as Accounting functions. ERP is one step ahead of the software named Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP II).

Integration of multiple system modules into single unified database is the key feature of ERP. ERP module can also work as a controller of the various business activities namely sales, marketing, delivery, billing, production, inventory management, quality management, human resources management and other related activities.

A layman cannot operate ERP software; you need to seek the help of an ERP vendor or third-party consulting companies. Consulting in ERP consists of three levels - top level systems architecture, business process consulting or re-engineering and technical consulting (primarily programming and tool configuration activity). System’s architect is into designing the overall data flow for the enterprise including the future data flow plan. On the other end, a business consultant studies current business processes of the organisation and matches them to the corresponding processes in the ERP system, thus 'configuring' the ERP system as per the needs of the organisation. Technical consulting involves programming. Most of the ERP vendors make modification in their software to accommodate with the business needs of their customer to the best.

Advantages attached to the ERPs are that it includes computer security to protect against both outsider crime and insider crime. It integrates various systems of the organization and targets comprehensiveness and effectiveness of the whole.

Each coin has two sides and the same holds true for ERP. Though, there are various benefits attached with ERP but you also need to know about its limitations, so that you can derive best out of it. Facts that need to be kept in consideration are that installation of ERP software involves investment of huge funds; its customization is limited as it may involve changing of the ERP software structure which is usually not allowed and following the standards prescribed by the ERP system may lead to competitive advantage loss.

Before implementing ERP system ensure that whether you want to go for customizing the software or modifying your business processes to make the best out of it. All relies on your decision that whether implementing ERP is a bane or boom for your business.

Sally Thompson has been writing articles for many years. She is a Commerce graduate and has done her post graduation in Journalism and Corporate Communication.

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By Sally Thompson

What is ERP? Part One - A Very Brief History

The greatest mysteries of the ancient world usually revolve around how something was made. The Pyramids of Egypt, Greek Parthenon, and Roman Colosseum are all immense structures that required organization and many associated industries for their completion. Chances are, though, the coordination and production requirements of these wonders of the world were not much different than what we expect today in modern manufacturing. Then, as now, resource management included labor, materials, physical plant, and administration. The mystery, of course, lies in the question of how the sheer size of these projects and the resources they necessitated allowed for successful coordination. For example, the various data centers for the building of the Pyramids, like all other great ancient structures, were geographically dispersed with, of course, no form of immediate production communication available.

We also know that ancient productions were not lean operations, and the subsequent progression of manufacturing production technique moved very slowly over the centuries. The major change in production development from Dynastic Egypt to Depression America was in the capability of producing more items in the same amount of time despite working within the same generally inefficient system. And, though he is considered the father of the modern manufacturing system, not even Henry Ford's assembly-line system resulted in cost reductions through continuous improvement and the elimination of waste. Rather, while Ford is credited with being the first to employ the procurement of raw materials just in time for use in production (JIT), he was still quite inflexible when it came to evolving his overall production style and management to meet a changing society and economy. As an automobile company, Ford also maintained large quantities of finished goods inventories, with profits resulting mainly through economies of scale-not reduction of waste.

It was the post-World War II advent of lean manufacturing that introduced the notion of significant profit enhancement through waste reduction in the entire organization. In what later became known as the quality movement, manufacturers (particularly those in Japan) discovered that workers had much more than muscle to contribute to a company. They could, in fact, contribute ideas and greater efficiencies in the manufacturing process through their actions, especially if they were teamed together in smaller units or cells. In addition, many companies realized that the limited, specialized production of only one item (i.e., Ford's approach), created problems of its own and was a philosophy susceptible to the vagaries of an ever-increasing global economy. Through the 1960's, diversification of the shop floor became the mantra of new manufacturing process, and with diversification came more problems-those associated with the set-up (and break-down) conversion times of computer numerical control machining tools.

So, with considerations of materials management, labor time and costing, and large scale pull-production incorporating JIT approaches to inventory, by the late 1970's manufacturers saw themselves as part and parcel of a seemingly never ending cycle-stream of materials providers-members of the supply chain. To streamline production operations, improve on-time delivery within the supply chain, and to ensure greater profit margins through waste reduction, enterprise resource planning (ERP) emerged as a software concept for every sort and size of company. ERP software was designed to take what heretofore had been disparate data from separate areas of the manufacturing operation (i.e., production, inventory, shipping, administration, etc.), and coalesce it into one central point for the real-time interpretation of it all.

Today, ERP software offerings run the gamut, from simple single-module spreadsheet data entry for a sole proprietor job shop, to massive custom programs handling tens of thousands employees and hundreds of processes across dozens of multi-national facilities. While the former is made more aware of basic business functions and profit/loss through simple bookkeeping computations, the latter requires the automation of advanced and robust ERP software to keep the organization in line and on track. Located between these two extremes are packaged ERP solutions that offer the combination of performance and value for small to medium sized business needs. The best of these are customizable to a certain degree in order to provide a better interface with business operations.

Ultimately, ERP software solutions are designed to bring together all of the data generated by the organization into one, manageable database. In turn, this allows for better production planning, and much quicker reaction time as problems emerge. ERP software streamlines the modern manufacturing operation through constant communication, and does it in such a way that the ancient world could never dream of. In Part II, we will explore the particulars of modern ERP and the software developed today for its facilitation.

http://globalshopsolutions.com/

Dusty Alexander is the President of Global Shop Solutions. Global Shop Solutions is the largest privately held ERP software company in the United States.

Copyright 2007 - Global Shop Solutions. All Rights Reserved Worldwide. Reprint Rights: You may reprint this article as long as you leave all of the links active, do not edit the article in any way, and give the author name credit.

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By Dusty Alexander

ERP Isn't About IT in the SME Market

ERP is about streamlining processes and integrating a tool into your business effectively and efficiently. The people charged with selecting and implementing the software should not be IT personnel but the people who are going to be using the system. Don't get me wrong in some cases the IT person(s) know the processes of companies intimately and understand how the end user needs to work with the system. The key word in that statement is some.

While it is important for IT to be involved in the process, there role should be very minor. In smaller organizations this person is usually a one man show or an outside contractor so charging them with this task is a stretch from the get go. The people who need to be involved besides the ultimate decision makers are the key users of the system. What does the software do for these people, how will it improve their departments and the overall performance of the system.

In smaller companies these "key users" or power users are generally the busiest people so their time is precious, there is no doubt. Having said that to have them waste it when the wrong solution is chosen is more of a travesty. Get them involved early and often through out the process. Ensure that their needs are being met and if not what if anything can be done to meet them. This also helps greatly with buy in, if the are part of the decision they will be more likley to be involved and lead the way.

SME's can't afford to make mistakes or waste a lot of time implementing software. I am sure everyone know someone who has purchased the wrong system, spent way too much money and way too much time to try to make it work. Only to be left with nothing at all or a completely different system. Do your self a favour and make sure the people who will use and benefit most from a system are the ones who decide what system you will use and the functionality you will use.

ERP is not about IT, it is about the continuous improvement of your administration, tracking and execution of day to day activities. No one knows more about improving and maintaining those things than the people that do them every day.

Mr Eybel writes the ERP advice blog IntegrateIT, provide affordable ERP software to Small Business Contact Ken by email at info@integrateit.ca - Request a demo by sending an email .

Visit the IntegrateIT - http://www.integrateit.ca

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By Ken Eybel

Increasing Importance of ERP in Small Business Undertakings

ERP, as we all know, refers to a software system that helps in the automation of business processes of an entire organization. Businesses big or small benefit greatly from the increased efficiencies resulting from successful ERP implementations. Scalable and robust ERP applications, which can adapt themselves to the changing requirements of the enterprise, are in high - demand these days.

ERP solutions designed for small businesses help in improvements in various processes like supply chain, production management and customer relationship management. Incremental improvements in these systems help businesses to respond faster to the queries of their customers. By providing a responsive and alert customer service businesses can cultivate a loyal base of customers.

These days, web-enabled ERP systems, which provide authorized users to access an organizations information network from any location across the globe, are in high demand. ERP systems help organizations to integrate all the functions of a business like finance, accounts, and human resources on to a single framework. Web enabled ERP systems allow users to view this framework from remote locations and conduct business effortlessly across the globe.

ERP systems can transform the way organizations conduct their businesses and can be a source of sustainable advantage in the marketplace. Most small businesses are family managed businesses and are perceived to be slow when it comes to technology adoption. The high costs associated with ERP also deter some of them from adopting it wholeheartedly.

Stories of ERP related nightmares abound in the marketplace. The high level of customization required in the software systems has the potential to sap an organization of its time and money. Companies who have adopted proprietary software's for their ERP have found themselves hostage to the ERP vendor. Every change, every little customization requires the permission of the ERP vendor. Such experiences prove to be a deterrent for ERP adoption in the SME segment.

On the other hand, open source ERP systems allow the source code to be modified and reduce an organizations dependence on its vendor. Open source ERP is the way to go for small businesses. ERP software, which have been built from ground up using open source technologies, have the potential to significantly lower marketing and licensing costs. Since open source software's allow the source code to be modified to suit the organization's requirement, certain security issues arise. But rising cost pressures and the steep cost of using proprietary ERP software have forced organizations to consider open source ERP systems.

Icreon an ERP Consulting Service Provider in India that holds years of experience along with the best and certified ERP software developers. For more information on Erp solutions India, SAP Solutions, SAP Implementation India, and ERP Navision Visit ERP India.

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By Manoj Salwani

Implementing Successful ERP Through Continuous Improvement

On the one hand, you have the need for making the change to a manufacturing information system that will help you gain a competitive advantage. On the other hand, you're faced with a wealth of anecdotal horror stories about the time and effort it takes to implement such a system. Confusion. Delays. Downtime. Many of the problems that you hear about seem to be common mantras from those companies that have had problems with ERP implementation. By the volume of the protestations, it would appear that ERP implementation is nothing but trouble. However, it must be kept in mind that the old 'squeaky wheel' adage rings most true here. That is to say, those majority of manufacturers that have little or no problems with ERP implementation are usually less vocal in public about their successes, while those that encounter difficulties are the first to complain.

What separates the successes from those less so? In a word: Involvement. ERP implementation is more than a fix and more than a series of processes; rather, implementation is the dedicated system-wide effort of continuous improvement that researchers tell us employ people, education, management, and timing for success. All four of these elements are often seen as hurdles to overcome for implementation, and indeed if there is not a sense of involvement regarding each then implementation can be a grueling and, perhaps, unsuccessful, task. In every sense, though, implementation must be seen as a period of change necessary to make a better company through the benefits found in information flow. Otherwise, what's the point of bringing ERP into the operation in the first place?

With regards to people, real continuous improvement necessitates users getting involved all the way through full integration. Of course, changes can usually be expected to encounter some resistance somewhere. Many workers or managers can be stuck in a certain way of doing things, and new processes bring fears of either additional work or unfamiliarity with techniques or technologies. As well, the cost accounting measures employed by ERP systems seem, to some employees, as involving too much accountability. For example, scrap is more closely monitored in ERP and in-direct labor is better tracked. Still, without a total buy-in of all employees, implementation can be slowed or even halted while those reluctant or unwilling to change are encouraged to join in.

Of course, education will go a great way toward producing a total buy-in to a new ERP system. What seems to many like such an ominous beast can be easily tamed through education of the system. This is where a good, robust ERP software system that is both easy and quick to use will be a tremendous advantage. That is to say, while some ERP software systems are either unwieldy or include sometimes dozens of functions that, while glitzy, are useless, a lean manufacturing approach is helped by a lean ERP software.

Management involvement in ERP implementation is of absolute necessity in giving the project structure and offering a visible means of support for its purpose. Continuous improvement as a means to ERP implementation must be seen by everyone as something that is needed and something that is wanted. Management involvement, of course, means time taken for the effort, and it is here in the notion of time availability that implementation is often stymied by management. Management must dedicate their own time to the implementation product if they expect their own workers to do the same. In other words, total buy-in is just that-a buy-in by shop floor, front office, and management.

Finally, we get to timing. ERP implementation is not to be haphazardly brought into play and thrust into a manufacturing or production system. When to implement is, perhaps, the most important aspect when it comes to notions of success. It is often the case once ERP implementation is begun, things get a little worse before they get better. Realizing this reality will go a long way in maintaining confidence in the project. As well, timing is often a function of process mapping. Mapping is another way of building high levels into the changes that are made, over time, to production processes. In any case, timing the implementation start to coincide with anticipated slower production cycles or seasons is the better way to a successful continuous improvement effort.

http://globalshopsolutions.com/

Dusty Alexander is the President of Global Shop Solutions. Global Shop Solutions is the largest privately held ERP software company in the United States.

Copyright 2008 - Global Shop Solutions. All Rights Reserved Worldwide. Reprint Rights: You may reprint this article as long as you leave all of the links active, do not edit the article in any way, and give the author name credit.

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By Dusty Alexander

5 Minute Guide to ERP

By Natalie Aranda

Information technology has transformed the way we live and the way we do business. ERP, or Enterprise Resource Planning, is one of most widely implemented business software systems in a wide variety of industries and organizations. In this short article, we’ll try to concisely explain the basic yet important concepts relevant to ERP.

What is ERP - ERP is the acronym of Enterprise Resource Planning. ERP definition refers to both ERP software and business strategies that implement ERP systems. ERP implementation utilizes various ERP software applications to improve the performance of organizations for 1) resource planning, 2) management control and 3) operational control. ERP software consists of multiple software modules that integrates activities across functional departments - from product planning, parts purchasing, inventory control, product distribution, to order tracking. Most ERP software systems include application modules to support common business activities - finance, accounting and human resources.

ERP Systems - ERP is much more than a piece of computer software. A ERP System includes ERP Software, Business Processes, Users and Hardware that run the ERP software. An ERP system is more than the sum of its parts or components. Those components interact together to achieve a common goal - streamline and improve organizations' business processes.

History of ERP - Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is the evolution of Manufacturing Requirements Planning (MRP) II in 1980s, while MRP is the evolution of Inventory Management & Control conceived in 1960s. ERP has expanded from coordination of manufacturing processes to the integration of enterprise-wide backend processes. In terms of technology, ERP has evolved from legacy implementation to more flexible tiered client-server architecture.

Benefits of ERP - ERP software attempts to integrate business processes across departments onto a single enterprise-wide information system. The major benefits of ERP are improved coordination across functional departments and increased efficiencies of doing business. The implementation of ERP systems help facilitate day-to-day management as well. ERP software systems is originally and ambitiously designed to support resource planning portion of strategic planning. In reality, resource planning has been the weakest link in ERP practice due to the complexity of strategic planning and lack of adequate integration of ERP with Decision Support Systems (DSS).

ERP Failures - We couldn’t conclude our brief guide to ERP without mentioning ERP failures. The failure of multi-million dollar ERP projects are reported once in a while even after 20 years of ERP implementation. We have identified the four components of an ERP System - 1) ERP software, 2) Business Processes that ERP software supports, 3) Users of ERP systems, and 4) Hardware and Operating Systems that run ERP applications. The failures in one or more of those four components could cause the failure of an ERP project.

Copryright @2006, 4th-Media Corporation

Natalie Aranda writes about business and technology. ERP is the acronym of Enterprise Resource Planning. ERP definition (what is ERP) refers to both ERP software and business strategies that implement ERP systems. ERP software attempts to integrate business processes across departments onto a single enterprise-wide information system. The major ERP benefits are improved coordination across functional departments and increased efficiencies of doing business. The implementation of ERP systems help facilitate day-to-day management as well.

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ERP in India

By Rakhee Chowdhary

ERP stands for enterprise resource planning. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software can be defined as a complete business software solution. The basic purpose and aim of ERP software is to arrange and assimilate all the systems of entering data and processes, as related to business. ERP software is one of the most crucial elements for any business firm which aims to harmonize its business efforts.

Now talking about the scope or the trend of ERP in India, one can clearly make out that today India has emerged as a well known name and a key player in global ERP market. These days every top educational institutes and companies are constantly working towards promoting and expanding the IT market. In this context today ERP actually holds lot of promises both in terms of supply and demand.

As per Frost & Sullivan research analyses conducted in India, it has been found that due to rising competitive pressure many Indian companies are looking forward to equip themselves with modern business processes like ERP solutions that can further provide unlimited access to information and enable them to compete effectively. Some of the factors that are influencing the growth of ERP market in India are higher ROI, Rapid industrialization and ease of integration with legacy systems. Enterprise Resource Planning which was considered to the most critical buzzword in mid-90s has now readily opted by many companies.

ERP is much more than a piece of computer software. It has changed the way businesses were conducted in India and at present, more and more organizations and industries are operating it. Many Indian organizational performances have been greatly improved by the use of software applications like ERP that includes resource planning, management control, and operational control. Today if anyone says that ERP holds a great promise then many of us will certainly agree with this statement. ERP has brought some "core competence theory" into many Indian organizations.

ERP has brought new opportunities for many companies to trade with foreign counter parts in the name of outsourcing, implementation and deployment of the existing ones. It has also contributed in the growth of Indian economy. ERP has brought a new revolution in the thinking process, rules and procedures in the organization.

As Indian software industry is growing at great pace and so the growths of ERP packages promise a strong future. They have greatly contributed to the growth, welfare and dynamism in many companies, and stand out individually on account of its scope and utilities. No doubt this is an industry which has vast scope for development and great prospect in future in both software and non-software sectors.

Rakhi, is a SEO copywriter at ERP Softwares India, offers enterprise and customized solutions. e-tomato offers myriad services within the spectrum of SAP B1.

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