Enterprise Resource Planning Software. With such a clunky title, you’d be forgiven for wanting to run for the hills.
What is meant to be a gee-whiz solution for businesses can often end up feeling like that modernization trip your local library went on… it took 10 years and is already outdated.
Many of us know the pain of an old-fashioned dashboard, with Times New Roman font and teal-coloured banner. It’s slow to load, hard to read and feels like it actually makes things harder. You associate it with generically-named corporations and software that’s more like slow-ware.
Thankfully, that isn’t always the case anymore.
ERP Software has taken a huge leap forward and full disclosure, we’re part of that.
Let’s break down what the benefits of ERP software are intended to be, the problems it can help you solve and some examples.
In a nutshell, ERP software is meant to centralize your business processes. It puts everything into one place, so you can conduct operations from one dashboard. It also uses this core system to leverage all of the data coming through your business. That means insights into health, engagement and better decision making.
Here’s what an ERP can do for you…
- Inventory Management
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
- Staff Management + HR
- Payroll
- Financial Insights + Analytics
- Accounts Receivable + Payable
- AI Assistance for Demand + Supply
- Compliance
- Scheduling + Bookings
- POS System
- Digital Marketing
- Loyalty Programs
- Project Management
Literally, everything you need to run your business. It’s pretty great.
As a consequence of streamlining everything into one platform, there are other knock-on effects. You save time and money – you’re not outsourcing, paying for separate programs or wasting minutes moving from one thing to the next. You have an objective overview of operations, which is nearly impossible to achieve independently. In correlating the on-the-ground insights from customer engagement and staff experiences with administrative and managerial input, you have a clearer picture of health than ever.
This means more intentional decision-making. The purity of your ‘why’, the passion or ambition that brought you here in the first place, before you got mired in statutory holidays and supply chain management.
With one interface, you also minimize your chance of a data breach, being able to focus any additional security efforts on the one software. You should be able to speak with your provider regarding how robust their in-built protections are.
Coordination across all personnel is transformed with this software. If your ERP is digital, employees can access their dashboard with curated permissions anywhere.
When it doesn’t help…
Computer Economics’ Technology Trends reports of 2018 and 2019 ranked ERP the lowest with regard to satisfaction for businesses. How is it that such an integral, supposedly transformative software, could be so poorly ranked?
Some industry leaders say that it’s a lack of focus on the software’s end users. IT companies fail to survey what people are looking for and pivot to increase satisfaction. Perhaps this is true. However, what it could boil down to are the two factors most important to consumers in the 21st century – speed and convenience.
If we think about the Apple effect, putting the customer experience first and making a product that is cool, fun and easy to use has worked. Many big IT corporations fall so short on this, even though their features may be more nuanced or have greater security. Ultimately, they’re not speaking to a larger group of people. Their design is outdated, their interfaces harder to navigate and painfully slow.
Plus, costs are anywhere between $1,000 – $5,000 per user, or $90 – $500 per user per month. For an interface that’s clunky to use, that’s ridiculous.
In the 21st century, this isn’t good enough anymore. With a disruptor like heymate!, the ERP market is poised to transform.
Here are some of the foremost players in the ERP space…
Oracle Netsuite – An industry leader, their solutions are widely used, despite their website is challenging to navigate. Their cloud-based solution is handy as it doesn’t require hardware. Features include data analytics and insights, supply chain management (SCM), financial management and order management. The nuance of what they offer may be shrouded by barriers to adoption and clear design.
Syspro – These guys have a stronger design with simpler navigation capabilities. They offer compliance, SCM, inventory forecasting, project management and more. They specialize in the manufacturing and distribution industries.
heymate!
While we’re still working on features like accounts receivable and project management, everything else on the list of features above is something we offer. We work for businesses in every industry. All you need is a tablet, computer or smartphone to get started on our digital platform. It’s fast, easy to use and did we mention — it’s free. We don’t make money unless you make money, with the most competitive transaction fees on the market. Learn more and get in touch today.
