Enterprise Resource Planning software aka ERP, is defined as the software used for integrated management of main business processes, often in real time. [Wikipedia] An ERP software is a complete software application designed to meet different operational and functional needs of the business. ERP software application advantage businesses via business process automation, organizing schedules and conveniently compiling important information for the management. Throughout an organization a delicate flow of information will help growing businesses to collaborate better and produce more results.
When coming to ERP implementation, lots of businesses gets stuck on whether they should purchase Off-the-shelf ERP software like Microsoft Dynamic or SAP, or develope a customized ERP software for their business. Well, here is the thing: No two businesses are the same – which means that no two ERP solutions should be either. Every business work in their own unique way, depending upon various factors like business vertical, employee size and the workload they carry. This make customized ERP software which is created by considering the business process and size the best solution toyour business should adopt.
Let us look at some reasons why your growing business should adopt to customized cloud ERP software:
Every business have a unique workflow – the way each department organize their work and the way departments collaborate with each other. Most of the time implementing a new off the shelf ERP system means that employees will have to change their workflow to the work flow of software that is going to be used. Going for a custom ERP solution can save you from such consequences. Custom ERP software is tailored according to the specifics of your business, so it can automate manual operations without changing the habitual way of doing things.
A good ERP system should consider your organization growth as a business also. With years, your business can grow to add more employees, departments and activities. One of the main advantage of customized ERP systems over the ready-made ERP is its scalability. Customized ERP can be tweaked and upgraded in future to add more users, departments, activities, modules and what not.
Off-the-shelf ERP solutions usually implement functionality that match the requirements of an average organization and provide small to no amount of customization on these features. This can cost your business in multiple ways. Software development requires time and efforts which is reflected in the final cost. Even if there are some features that your business does not require, you’ll have to pay for it also. At the same time, the absence of particular features that are required by your business will cause additional losses also.
One of the main advantages of custom-made ERP solutions is that software companies create such apps from the ground up in full accordance with your requirements. Software developers make sufficient efforts to understand each unique aspect of your business, such as the industry in which you work, the nature of data that you use, and specificity of local lawmaking. This will mae sure your ERP software does not contain any functionality you don’t require and include all your required functionalities.
A properly designed user interface is the key to the successful implementation of any ERP system. A user must have the possibility to easily understand what data is displayed on the screen and what’s the purpose of all the controls. Since customized ERP solutions are designed to meet the requirements of a particular business, business analysts and developers of the software will take the necessary efforts to implement the best user experience suitable for that business.
Cloud based ERP systems makes collaboration between teams of a business easier – no matter where they are. This gets better with customized cloud based ERP system. You can choose to make available what you want your users to see, and choose to hide any feature/data a particular user need not see. A customized ERP system will also make sure your business departments collaborate better in the best workflow possible.
It is a myth that customized ERP software development is expensive as compared to implementing ready-made ERP software. This might not be the case in real. It can be very cost effective to implement customized ERP software, mainly Open source ERP software, where many modules are available with the developer and small tweak is required to make it work for your business. Also in terms of Budget and Cost factor, a customized ERP will be more cost-effective than off-the-sheld ERP system since they are developed on business need basis and with a fixed budget.
Bottom Line: Choosing the right ERP solution for your business can be quite a challenging issue. By preferring an off-the-shelf solution over custom-made software, you risk spending money on a solution that doesn’t fully reflect the requirements of your business. Comfort IT Solutions has a team of software experts who can spend time to know your business better and provide you best software solutions for your business troubles.
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No two businesses are the same – which means that no two ERP solutions should be either. Every business work in their own unique way,
