What an ERP system really needs

It's not quick and easy to decide in favour of a new ERP system. The first question to answer is whether you need software at all? And if the company already has one, does it really always have to be faster, better and newer? And these questions are justified. But even as ERP consultant this is not an easy question to answer.

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Organism Company

Companies are similar to us as individuals. A company is an organism and if you break it down into its individual parts, they are all equally important. Heart and brain. Accounting and sales. One needs the other. Otherwise the business will fall apart.

So if you want to preserve the life of the whole thing for as long as possible, you have to keep it in good shape. In the case of the company, this means optimising the processes and processes must flow. Deposits in the raceways can lead to errors and therefore to a loss of efficiency. In the worst case scenario, this not only paralyses your work, but also throws you off track.

But the word "organism" already contains the solution here. An organism is a system that consists of individual, interacting "organs". And what better way to "organise" this than through a ERP system? Right - that's why these systems exist. But that would be too easy.

What companies need

But now we are back to the question of when is it enough enterprise resource planning?
And this is just as difficult to answer as the question of healthy eating. And the answer is just as unsatisfactory. Because just as with food, this is better for one person and that for another (apart from a few basic rules). Your supply chain is very uncomplicated? Then you can feed orders uninhibitedly. An order passes through many different stations before it goes out? Then you should go for more specific products.

What companies want

Nevertheless, there are of course a lot of things that are not necessarily relevant to the life of the company, but can still be important. Here, too, it is similar to us. Do you need the car, the tailor-made suit, the holiday on the South Seas island? No, you don't. But it might still make you happy. At least temporarily. At companies, "happiness" is called "success". And this is measured by how it performs on the market. A successful company therefore always stands in relation to its competitors. If there is only one milk seller in the village, he has great freedom of action. If a second milk seller comes along, the competition begins. They have to distinguish themselves. While one sells milk in different quantities, the other always has particularly fresh milk. But the milk sellers have to guarantee this offer. And if another milk seller comes along and delivers his product - you know what that can lead to.

ERP systems therefore offer many opportunities to make your own company more successful. However, many functions are not "vital" implementations. Nevertheless, it can be motivating for you and your employees to have a little more than is necessary. And here again, the individual applies. For one person it is the new car, for another the customised suit.

At the end of the day, as in life, it is often a decision based on feelings as to whether a new ERP system is needed and, if so, what it should do. It is important to make the decisions in such a way that the priority is on the necessary part. The rest comes later.

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