technology – Erpadvisers

Home | Using ERP to Prepare For the Post-COVID Economy

The COVID-19 crisis has impacted every industry across the globe. Many companies have pivoted faster than others, making operational changes to every element of their business. While governments navigate the re-opening of the economies in some areas, business are strategizing how to get on a path that will help them recover quickly when the time is right.

These businesses are faced with an interesting challenge, because ‘going back to normal’ simply isn’t going to happen. There will be a new normal, and that new normal will bring many opportunities for businesses to capitalize on if they plan properly. In order to be successful in the post-COVID economy, businesses must be agile. They must be ready to act quickly when laws, regulations, resource availability and demand spikes change. This will require a deep understanding of every part of the business so that whether a change affects the sales, marketing, finance, production or development department, every area is ready to pivot and take advantage of any opportunity that arises. Proper ERP is critical to developing this type of agility.

This is why.

Setting the foundation
ERP sits at the centre of a business and bring together its value chain. By tracking, amalgamating and analyzing every element of the business, ERP provides data-driven insights that give decision-makers the visibility into business operations needed to understand what is happening today, what can/will happen tomorrow, and set the stage for years of success.

Responding faster
Cloud-based ERP gives business stakeholders all the information they need about what is currently happening within the company to make decisions around its future processes, operations and agility. It helps them understand all the intricacies occurring behind-the-scenes in the business, where the risks lie, which resources or inventory is needed, plus it gives them access to these insights all day, every day. It also provides the ability to analyze information to learn from past mistakes, understand the current business environment that they’re operating in, and look for opportunities that may not have been visible otherwise.

Imagine knowing which areas of the supply chain will be impacted by a pandemic or any other major crisis. What if, pre-COVID, the decision-makers at Clorox or Lysol had known about the pending demand for their cleaning wipes? How would things have changed? A proper, cloud-based ERP system could make this possible.

Feel free to reach out with any ERP software, implementation or business technology needs. ERP Advisers are open to help you and your business thrive in any economy.

Home | Choosing Your ERP Software Partners

The right enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is important to the continuity of your business, but choosing who to work with to help select, customize and implement this software is critical to its success.

What is ERP?
Enterprise Resource Planning is the integrated management of a business’ main processes, and ERP software is a way to execute and monitor this integration. ERP software facilitates the exchange of information throughout a company, helping to speed up business processes, cut costs, increase sales, improve quality, create positive customer experiences and measure successes and failures.

Purchase partners
ERP software comes in modules that perform a specific function – examples include accounts payable, accounts receivable, general ledger, payroll, purchase orders etc. ERP suites require customization to be a good fit for a specific business.
To select their software, companies may choose to work directly with a software vendor. However, due to the wide range of options and customization needs of each business, it is recommended to work with a partner who can weigh the pros and cons of many different software suites and help each business decide which solution is right for them, especially when it comes time to customize and implement. This would be either a value-added software reseller, or an ERP consultant.

Value-Added Resellers (VARs)
VARs are recruited and trained by the software vendors to sell products on their behalf. VARs invest in their own technical staff, training facilities, workspace and software purchases and they usually share a percentage of sales with the software vendor.
ERP purchasers should remember that that while VARs also perform consulting functions, their advice may be impacted by their relationships with certain suppliers.

Consultants
Consultants with financial, accounting and software expertise often provide a different perspective and approach than a VAR. Consultants are typically selected based on comprehensive experience in specific industries, intensive knowledge about particular ERP software modules, or both. Selecting an industry expert that is able to compare the situations of similar companies they have worked with before can be valuable in helping them choose which suite will work best for a specific business.

Working with an ERP consultant provides a business with invaluable experience and expertise. Reach out to ERP Advisers today to discuss how we can help find the right solution for your business at this critical time.

Home | The Role of ERP in Higher Education

While it’s wonderful that colleges and universities are deeply rooted in tradition (think ivy-covered walls and centuries-old teachings), an attachment to the past simply isn’t efficient when it comes to running a business. And, according to a collaborative report from Education Dive and Unit4, nearly 50% of academic institutions are using out-dated systems to execute their administrative operations.

Current state of the industry

The Education Dive report surveyed back-office staff (in the IT, HR, and Student Services departments) from higher education centres to determine which systems are now in use. Around half of these employees noted that their institutions:

• Use multiple systems, rather than one time-saving model;
• Are unable to fix inefficiencies or streamline their operations with their current programs;
• And have systems that do not provide the necessary strategic data for decision-making processes.

Why is this a problem?

In today’s fast-paced, ever-changing climate, it’s essential for businesses to use technology that is highly adaptive and flexible. By using out-of-date, ineffective systems, not only are institutions preventing themselves from meeting new industry demands—they’re slowing themselves down. With low informational transfer, reduced data collection, and the creation of bottlenecks, these antiquated solutions create silos between departments, setting the stage for unsatisfactory organizational visibility as a whole.

In turn, this can frustrate staff, create obstacles for student success, reduce staff retention, prevent innovation, and lead to poor student experiences. Together, these issues can spell total disaster for any higher education establishment.

What’s the solution?

Luckily, these problems can be prevented using modern Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. By automating certain business processes, aligning ERP systems with their true needs, and focusing on efficient data management, institutions will bring their operations out of the past—and into the present.

By implementing the proper platform for their unique requirements, higher education providers can:

• Improve decision-making processes;
• Enhance departmental productivity;
• Increase employee efficiency and reduce attrition;
• Provide better student support services;
• And meet future student needs with greater flexibility.

If your institution’s operations are struggling to stay ahead of—or even with—the curve, a customized, intuitive ERP system is absolutely the way to go. ERP Advisers is here to help: to learn more about our services or to get started, visit our ERP Project Management page.

Home | Is an antiquated ERP bogging down your business?

As it turns out, the oldies aren’t always golden—especially when it comes to antiquated enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Whether your business is still using a legacy ERP or is simply behind on updates, out-dated operating systems could be holding you back from success.

How do I know if my ERP system is out-dated?

If your ERP system has gone years without an upgrade, you’re likely well behind the times. However, you’re not alone: a study from Forrester revealed that about half of ERP customers are using software that is two to three releases (or about four years) behind the latest version. Unfortunately, this lack of enhancement is putting you squarely behind 50% of your competition—an immense disadvantage.

Alternatively, your business could be running on a highly-customized, obsolete legacy ERP. Created in the eighties and nineties, these systems were generally built on older technologies (including Progress Software, Sage MAS, Microsoft Dynamics GP, DOS, and IBM AS/400), and were tailored to a business’s specific needs. While they were once highly effective, their need for the continued writing of application code made them non-transferrable to modern technologies, leading to their eventual retirement.

Why should I upgrade my old ERP software?

Today’s business landscape is incredibly fluid. Because of this, relying on an old, unadaptable ERP system could be a fatal mistake for your company.

Here’s why you should ditch your old-school ERP software:

1. They are resistant to change

Older ERP solutions (especially those which have been customized) can be inflexible, creating “version locking.” With this, making any updates to the system becomes very difficult. Whether your internal operations have changed or industry regulations are amended, your antiquated ERP will remain unable to adapt to your needs, leaving you in the dust.

2. They could impede your overall growth

What’s more, an out-dated ERP can obstruct your expansion at the global level. This is especially true for businesses with on-site software: these systems can be difficult—and incredibly expensive—to replicate and mobilize across different countries.

3. They could cause major internal discord

Finally, customized legacy ERPs could cause unwanted siloes across your corporation. Certain departments (which may not have existed at the time of the software’s creation) could be overlooked by your legacy system, causing them to turn to stand-alone, disconnected applications. This can cause breaks in the inter-organizational flow of data, leading to a serious decrease in efficiency.

So, what’s the solution?

As the old adage goes, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. If your ERP system has lost its bite, it’s time for you to upgrade to a modern, easily adaptable alternative. While this may sound like a frightening, costly endeavor, ERP Advisers is here to help: with our decades of industry experience, we’re well-equipped to provide you with the best fit for your business.

Home | 5 Dimensions of Authentic Leadership

Five Dimensions of Authentic Leadership

1.Pursuing purpose with a passion. Without a real sense of purpose, you are at the mercy of your ego and narcissistic vulnerabilities.

2.Practicing solid values. Leaders are defined by their values, and values are personal; they cannot be externally imposed.

3.Leading with heart. Authentic leaders lead with their hearts as well as with their heads.

4. Establishing enduring relationships. The ability to develop enduring relationships is one of the hallmarks of authentic leaders.

5. Demonstrating self discipline. Success takes a consistently high level of self discipline.

If you’d like to read more or discover the services provided by ERP Advisers, give us a call today or complete the website contact form.

Home | What is Blockchain Technology?

Blockchain technology is an open-source, peer-to-peer, distributed software ledger based on cryptographic principles. Like an accounting ledger which records financial transactions, blockchain software is a digital ledger which records asset transactions whereby the ledger is simultaneously spread across multiple computers. Successive ledger entries are cryptographically linked to previous ledger entries in verified blocks, hence the name blockchain.

What to learn more? Give ERP Advisers a call at 905.332.5469 or send us an email at inquiries@erpadvisers.com