disadvantages

Introduction. Running a business effortlessly and effectively requires expertise, Knowledge, decision-making skills, managing business processes skillfully, and the advantages of enterprise resource planning.  Whether it is a small, medium, or larger business, there are several benefits that can be gained after shifting to an ERP solution. In this blog, the following topics are going to be discussed.  What is an ERP system/ ERP software. ERP system Overview: ERP which stands for Enterprise Resource Planning What does an ERP system mean? ERP systems aim to integrate business-related functions like Planning, Inventory Management, Engineering, Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, e-commerce, CRM, Risk Management, and many more. ERP platform provides an integrated and all-round view of enterprise resource planning which allows to view of the whole business, automates tasks and business processes.  The end goal of the ERP application/system is to optimize operations and free up the time of employees to divert available time on more difficult/ Important tasks within or outside the organization. Advantages of ERP. 1. Higher Performance By implementing ERP an organization is able to increase performance by integrating business process information from various departments such as Human resources, Production, Sales, Customer Management, and much more. Enterprise Resource Planning also helps in reducing the paperwork, data entry, and permission granting which is often the case with traditional organizations without an ERP technology. In comparison to traditional ERP systems, time wasted in converting physical ERP databases into digital form is also saved.  2. Enhanced Reporting With the help of open-source ERP software like Odoo, real-time information can be accessed. ERP system also offers an integrated, quick, and easy environment for getting all kinds of information. It may be related to inventory, finance, or customer behavior, ERP (enterprise resource planning) system covers it all. 3. Cost Saving Enterprise Resource Planning system helps in reducing administration and operations-related costs. For instance, with ERP there is no need to prepare and maintain long paperwork.  ERP also helps in forecasting unpredicted future orders, over/ under production, or over-ordering which reduces the cost of Inventory management. 4. Organized Workflows​ People usually follow a particular way of doing a task but, it might not be the most effective way of doing it. An ERP application can help in cutting down all the unnecessary steps and make the whole process faster and way easier compared to the traditional way.  ERP helps in setting a standard procedure for each and every person working within the same departments, it helps to eliminate delays and uneven allocation of resources. 5. Better Customer Services Customer satisfaction is the most important thing as various businesses are targeting the same set of customers and customers have various options to choose from and that’s the reason why customer service is most important. As ERP system pulls in data from every department and presents it in a centralized format, thereby solving the customer problem better, effectively, and more personalized. 6. Collaboration Employees no longer need permission to access information regarding what other employees in different departments are working on. When the whole team put’s their head into solving a particular issue then the probability of getting the most effective solution is greater.  Restricted communication and not being aware of what others are working on leads to problems but, top ERP systems put an end to all of these issues.  7. Flexibility​ The ERP system can be modified to adopt all shapes and sizes of organizations. Needs of each and every organization can be met For example granting permission or creating a separate workflow for a temporary project, all can be done without much effort. Small business ERP systems like Odoo have all these kinds of functionality. 8. Accurate forecasting​ Accurate forecasting is imperative to any business because through forecasting the business gets prepared for any unexpected situation or losses. Forecasting becomes more accurate once a business switches to an ERP system as all the data of the company gets integrated into a single system.  For example, if sales are going to climb by 20%, a business can purchase inventory or hire more skilled employees to increase production to meet the increasing demand. If there are any unexpected price rises in the near future, businesses can find ways to cut costs in order to maintain the asking prices.  9. Data Security Data is the most precious asset of any business and a properly developed ERP system can help to protect that asset. As all the data is stored in a single system the chances of data getting misplaced or lost get reduced, along with this it also reduces the frequent emails and document sharing needs. Usually, in an ERP system, the data gets distributed over numerous locations thereby increasing the data security and protecting it from getting corrupted. This particular feature is very important if your business is handling a lot of customers’ private data.  ERP can also help to limit data access to a certain group of employees making the data difficult to manipulate.  10. Increases productivity ERP Implementation helps to automate repetitive tasks freeing the employees from low-value tasks and thereby bringing more value to the organization. ERP also speeds up the process of a work by making the process uncomplicated and reducing the time spent on searching for the required information.  11. Visibility​ Managers can particularly benefit from this feature as they have access to all the information needed for making a particular decision.  Higher management is also able to know exactly how much and what work is being done by each and every person. It is really helpful during the time of productivity measurement and promotion decisions. For example, excessive stock ordering can be avoided if the purchasing team has clear visibility of how much stock has not yet reached the warehouse but it is already been ordered. 12. Mobility Due to the ever-increasing use of smartphones and tablets, people are more comfortable using them as their primary devices. One of the many reasons why today ERP’s are more mobile-friendly and cloud-based, this enables employees to access data anywhere and anytime.