Today, businesses use enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems to organize and optimize their day-to-day activities and reach their full potential. Modern ERP solutions have grown beyond just management software and are more than software — they’re integral to building a strategy that allows your business to meet its long-term goals.
Modern ERP systems can centralize information from every one of your business departments. When done correctly, your ERP can give you the insight necessary to make great decisions, enhance company-wide communication and keep all your stakeholders engaged. Use these tips for getting the most out of your ERP software to maximize your investment.
Ongoing Education and Training
Revamping your current ERP system or investing in a new one presents the perfect time for sharpening your employee’s skill set with ongoing education and training. ERP revamping or integration tends to require lengthy time periods and large expenditures that call for organizational commitment. Through ERP training, you can help your business increase its return on investment and ensure your employees are actually using the ERP system you’ve invested in to its full potential.
You can maximize the value of your ERP if your employees are committed to learning how to take advantage of the system’s integration capabilities. Go with a top-down approach to ERP education and have organization leaders learn about your ERP system first. This method leads to higher rates of employee adoption and shows your business that you’re serious about your software’s potential. By taking a “superuser” approach where a couple of users in each department learn the ERP essentials, you can create more teachers to train your teams.
Future-Proof Your ERP System
When ERP systems first came on the market in the 1990s, few could have ever anticipated they would grow to encompass so many strategic assets. Many legacy systems that have worked well for years are starting to fall behind, and the companies that once used them recognize a need for greater flexibility in their ERP software. Today, ERP systems require more bandwidth, cloud storage and integration software to give you the insight you need in real-time.
Your ERP system capabilities should grow consistently alongside your company to maximize the value of your ERP investment. Outgrowing your current system is good news and shows your business has grown considerably. Thankfully, there are now cost-effective ways to future-proof your ERP system and prepare your business for strong future growth:
- Increase your bandwidth: Reliable bandwidth is essential for your business to take full advantage of your ERP system’s cloud capabilities
- Utilize data inventory estimation: Your ERP system probably already collects data about your current inventory. Get the most out of your ERP software by taking advantage of this information to make an accurate financial forecast and estimate the data inventory you’ll need in the following quarters.
- Use the cloud: Today, the cloud provides thousands of companies with real-time insights on their current developments and improves their productivity. By taking advantage of the cloud, you can future-proof your ERP and always be the first to get cutting-edge updates.
- Document workflow: By documenting your company’s workflow, you can better determine which departments need assistance and which are flourishing. Workflow documentation gives your business the chance to identify new opportunities for ERP integration and invest in tech to better solve potential bottlenecks in the system.
Take Advantage of Integration Capabilities
In our rapidly evolving tech market, out-of-the-box ERP systems aren’t good enough anymore. To get the best fit for your business, look for an industry-specific ERP that gives you the ability to take advantage of integration capabilities. Many new systems let you integrate the following into your ERP:
- Customer relationship management (CRM): By adding your CRM to your ERP, you can quickly see how your operations are affecting your customer service and success. Stay connected to your customers, improve your profitability and streamline your process with CRM integration.
- Warehouse management systems (WMS): Warehouse management systems give your business real-time data on your storage and inventory movement so you can optimize your shipping process. By integrating your WMS with your ERP, you can connect your warehouse data to your accounting and customer relationship management to provide a more holistic picture of your enterprise and minimize waste.
- Supply chain management (SCM): With supply chain management, your business gets impressive visibility into your supply chain’s speed and efficiency. Connecting your SCM to your ERP can increase your business’s efficiency and reduce the amount of waste in your supply chain.
- Manufacturing execution systems (MES): Your manufacturing execution system provides laser-focused insight into your business’s manufacturing process and factory floor. By integrating your ERP, you can instantly generate reports on your MES and identify areas to increase your manufacturing process’s efficiency and profitability.
Ongoing Evaluation for Continual Business Process Improvement
As competition grows more fierce and the world moves faster than ever, many businesses have started shifting away from quarterly goals and toward continuous improvement programs. Continuous improvement has the capability to unleash your business’s potential through the use of incremental change and immediate waste reduction. Modern ERP systems are powerful enough to provide you with the insight necessary to continually improve your business process and help you transform the way your business works.
ERP acts as a magnifying glass into your business to give you insight into your operation and key performance indicators. By integrating different parts of your business into your ERP software, you can create new benchmarks for continuous improvement in every department. ERP software gives you clear insight into how your administrative, shop floor, shipment and tracking all interact so you can identify inefficiencies in your supply and demand chain and build a business plan that’s always ready for the future.
Change Management and Identifying Organizational Change Issues
With many in business being so resistant to change, it’s essential that you identify areas for potential resistance before instating a change management program. ERP software gives you the insight needed to evaluate potential organizational change management issues and prevent them before they begin.
ERP integration helps increase the efficiency of your communications strategies and gives your business a clearer picture of what needs to be changed in your organization. The clear insight from your ERP system will minimize organizational doubt and help those in power get in your initiatives. Back up your organizational call-to-actions with well-documented data from your ERP solution.
Get the Most out of Your ERP Investment With Multiview Financial Software
Multiview Financial provides powerful, easy-to-use financial applications to enterprises of any size for accounting and financial planning. For over 30 years, Multiview Financial has driven successful client outcomes with a scalable ERP solution by partnering with clients to break down data silos, automate accounting processes, and provide more access to information through industry leading dynamic reporting solutions. Clients vary in size from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies and operate across more than 40 industries.
Initiate contact today for details on our cutting-edge security software and financial innovations. Listen to our CFO, Justin Winchiu, as he elaborates on our distinctive culture.
To learn more about how we can help your business grow with the power of Multiview Cloud ERP, reach out and request a demo today.
