ERP

With ERP, the definition of 'Going Green' includes improved efficiency, reduced operating costs, improved productivity, reduced environmental stress and improved customer service. In addition, if businesses have the right ERP system, it can help businesses to play a role in becoming more environmentally responsible. This post contains several features of ERP that can be used to contribute to the green initiative.

ERP to turn your organization green.

As more and more businesses are looking for ways to go green, most of them do not realize that having the right ERP system can help them play a role in becoming more environmentally responsible. With ERP, the definition of ‘Going Green’ also includes improved efficiency, reduced operating costs, improved productivity, reduced environmental stress and improved customer service. This article contains several features of ERP that can be used to contribute to the green initiative.

A major change towards going green is reducing the usage of paper and the need for physical filing while boosting the productivity and improving customer service. Oracle Receivables can send invoices via email to customers. With this, invoice copies are no longer required as the pdf copy of the same can be viewed and resent to the customers, as and when required. This will save paper, envelopes, postage and handling charge. Also, it leads to instantaneous delivery to the customers, resulting in faster payments.

The same can be applied to dunning letters (reminders) and customer statements. The Oracle Receivables module can automatically generate periodic statements and dunning letters for customers and send them to the email ids setup for the customer contact. Oracle Receivables can also change the content of their dunning letter automatically based on the number of days past due. This expedites the payment process by reducing the number of telephone calls made to the customer. Also the time, effort, energy and costs involved in collections is reduced.

Using Oracle XML Gateway, Oracle Shipping Execution can send shipment notifications to customers. Oracle Shipping execution uses XML transactions in shipping processes like Departure Ship Notice Outbound (DSNO) and CMS (Carrier Manifesting Systems). DSNO is a departure notice containing information such as ship to address, customer purchase order, requested ship date etc. that can be sent via email to a specified recipient. CMS takes delivery specific data from Shipping Execution and calculates the total weight, freight costs and produces required shipping labels and documents for shipment.

Earlier, purchase orders were sent to the suppliers by taking a printout and then posting to the supplier’s address. This not only led to delay in getting acknowledgement from the supplier but also added to the costs and effort involved in doing so. ERP provides users with the option to send a soft copy of the Purchase Orders to the supplier’s email id. The supplier can get the details of the PO as soon as the PO document is generated in ERP system.

Once the supplier sends the goods along with the invoice, users needed to enter the invoice details in their system. With ERP, users can scan the supplier invoice document which is in a pre-specified format which then automatically generates an invoice in the system accordingly.

In a manufacturing organization, where the item details are generally captured along with a pictorial representation in a document, ERP can help in reducing the paperwork and loss of critical item related data. ERP provides users with fields where they can capture item or order specific details and if required, upload a soft copy of the pictorial representation of the item. This information can be generated on demand in the form of predesigned item specification documents.

ERP can send notifications for approvals to the concerned employees via mail or via mobile applications. Hence any approval is just a click away and will always follow a pre-specified approval hierarchy leading to better control and transparency.

Raising an expense report has never been faster, simpler and more efficient when the functionality was offered by ERP. In ERP, users can fill their expense reports online, scan the receipts and other documents, and send it for approval to the concerned approvers automatically. Nowadays, even service providers and e-commerce websites have started giving soft copies of the receipts. With ERP, all you need to do is attach the soft copy in your expense report and send for approval. Approvers can refer to the soft copies and approve, reject or ask for more information from the employee. The employee will get a notification on the status of the expense report and can take action as and when required without any manual intervention.

In the past, attendance of employees was tracked using the time card and the punching machine. A lot has changed since then. With ERP, employees can enter their timesheets and send to managers for approval. In these time sheets, employees can provide information about the number of hours worked, concerned project or department, type of work etc. Managers can get notifications for the time sheets submitted by employees and can take action accordingly. Providing the right number of hours, project name and project phase can help the organization to allocate the employee costs to a project. This helps in generating better MIS.

BI tools provide a better visibility of the supply chain. With this, the business will be able to track down the bottlenecks and the error causing steps in the supply chain. BI for ERP also provides complete visibility across the value chain to better manage the supply and demand fluctuations. This in turn leads to reduction in losses in terms of material, scrap, time, effort and eventually, costs.

Using telecommuting and remote access enable users to work on the ERP system from home. Users can access the system, approve the requests and perform transactions from home or any remote location. Also, ERP mobile applications enable users to approve transactions, view BI reports etc. on their mobile phones. This saves on the transportation costs, fuel electricity etc.

Having ERP system helps in reducing the use of spreadsheets. Midsize companies work with thousands of spreadsheets to consolidate transactions, balances across entities resulting in a process flow that is time consuming, prone to error and requires more resources. Instead an ERP system can help in making standard periodic reports available as part of the system for use on demand. Researches indicate that a comprehensive integrated ERP system can reduce spreadsheet count by more than 75%.

During the month end, ERP systems help in generating predesigned reports required for month end reconciliation and reporting on demand. Analytics and BI needs of the organizations are also met comprehensively with ERP system without the need to print physical reports or try to juggle multiple reports.

Technology has always played a crucial role in improving productivity, minimizing operation costs, revamping customer service, and a substantial competitive advantage. Businesses which desire to grow need to grasp and take full advantage that technology can offer and simultaneously conserve the environment and its natural resources.

Author Bio:
Jibin, an assiduous Functional Consultant at Sonata Software, works for its Oracle Apps delivery team. He has been working with Sonata for the past 4 years. His hardworking and problem solving skills have made him travel to client locations and provide ERP solutions to clients spread across the world. His on-site exposure to the businesses spread across the world has helped him in excelling in the end user management skill. His qualifications entail a bachelor's degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering and a Master's degree in Business Administration.

Whether it is finance, operations, HR or planning, implementing an ERP software helps streamline the processes by enhancing communication and information sharing across various functions. This post substantiates how ERP systems are looked at as not just auxiliary tools for the business processes, but also as control systems which harmonize the processes.

Are you equipped to drive the change?

It is not uncommon for companies to consider investing in ERP software that complements the business processes. Be it finance, operations, HR or planning, ERP helps streamline the processes by enhancing communication and information sharing across various functions. ERP systems are looked at as not just auxiliary tools for the business processes, but also as control systems which harmonize the processes. A successfully implemented ERP project has a very tangible effect on the processes. Research indicates that the satisfaction with the implementation and the ERP system varies severely. More often than not, the success is measured subjectively. Planning in advance, setting measurable indicators and instituting the probable bearing of the new systems helps smoothen the implementation process.

Choose your ERP

Determining the right ERP package suitable to the business needs is a challenge in itself. The decision is to be arrived at, taking multiple factors into consideration like the following among others.

• Functional fit available as a standard package
• Reporting features available
• Flexibility to customize
• Scalability and modularity
• Availability of support
• Engaging Implementation Partner

The choice of the vendor for the implementation also plays an important role in the success of the project. Statistics show that cost plays a major role in today's competitive market, with many vendors trying to lure customers. Whether to succumb to the cost factor or choose an alternative which is worth investing in, decides whether the implementation ride will be smooth or bumpy.

Be Objective

Any implementation should start with the top management aiming to synchronize the project objective with the corporate mission and vision. Even for a project impacting a very specific process, the objective should be such that, when integrated with the other processes, it should help in realizing the organization's mission. Effective communication of the project mission and objective to all the stakeholders is fundamental. An effective method of ensuring this alignment is to measure the project performance by setting key performance indicators, which actually help in identifying if we are on the path to reaching the target or not.

Strong Core Team

Building a strong team of business process owners to drive the implementation is one of the key initiatives that has to be taken up. These BPOs should serve as a very effective two way communication channel, a bridge between the implementation partner and internal stakeholders. The availability of resources during the course of implementation is obligatory. There is always a conflict in these projects where time has to be allocated to the current business to ensure nothing stops as well as the future process. It is in scenarios like these that the mettle of the management is tested. Involving key personnel and spending enough time for knowledge transfer to the implementation partners is much required. A well-defined project scope mirrors the clarity of purpose and ensures that the direction ahead is pretty clear. The BPOs have to manage the expectations of the internal stakeholders as to what is within the scope and what is not. Backup plans have to be formulated for the expectations which are out of scope of the ongoing implementation.

Realistic Scope

It is only human to want everything under the sun for ourselves, but it is virtuous to take only what is absolutely required. Though philosophical, this conveys an important underlying message that there has to be a sensible communication of the business requirements. What is expected to be done in the ERP system has to come out with absolute clarity. Mapping of the requirements to the functionalities available in the system is equally important as this determines the future processes that are to be performed. Achieving a complete sync between the as-is and to-be process may seem rare, but most of the ERP packages are built to address the standard business processes which are acceptable across the globe. Having established that, we cannot rule out the possibility of any gaps between the requirements provided and the functionalities available in the system to meet those.

Mind the Gap

The biggest dilemma that most businesses face is whether to adopt changes to the current business process or stick to the current process and opt for customizations. It is advisable to address the gaps with workarounds within the standard package. Customization may look like an obvious proposition to address the gaps, but what needs to be understood is that though it is worthwhile, it comes with extra effort and cost, not only for implementing, but also for the support, because these are not part of the standard package and are like add-ons tailored to the needs of the business. The idea is not to discourage customization, but to be judicious with them. There is a demarcation between the 'nice-to-have' and 'must have' features and this has to be clearly understood and thoughtfully applied. More often it so happens that the workarounds increase the workload of the employees. The decision being taken in situations like these has a very significant impact on the way success of the implementation is perceived.

The Methodology

With the route and destination for the journey set, deciding on the means of transport is another key aspect. An implementation methodology which is suited to the organization's needs and is acceptable to the stakeholders has to be arrived at. An effective tracking system has to be put in place to monitor the progress of the various phases of the project. Understanding how to make use of the various phases of the project is absolutelyessential. The user acceptance testing for instance, has to be fully utilized by the end users to test the new system for every possible business scenario that they have come across and expect to encounter in future. But to do that, the earlier phases of the projects like the conference room pilot have to be taken seriously to understand the system. Time has to be invested to get trained on the new system sufficiently to be equipped for the testing. It is during these phases, that more gaps in the process fit, grievances or inconveniences related to the systems are identified. Enough time has to be budgeted well in advance to address these kind of situations. Issue tracking mechanism becomes vital in such cases.

The Baggage

Another important aspect which makes the journey cumbersome or convenient is the supplies that are carried. Data and implementation process like system configurations, upgrades etc. are the important supplies which have to be used cautiously during the course of the project. Many clients prefer simulating the live processes before-hand to avoid surprises. While this sounds justifiable, using them in abundance can lead to spill-overs in the time lines. For example trying to use excess data for the user acceptance testing to simulate three to four month end processes is strenuous and is a superfluous activity.

The Transition

Migrating the data from the legacy systems during live is also a challenge. Business has to ensure well in advance that the data that is being migrated to the new system is clean. Complete validation of the data is to be done to avoid duplication and junk. The most daunting task for the vendors as well as the business is to finalize the transition activities. Cutover activities and planning for the go-live date becomes vital as these should not have an adverse effect on the business and at the same time should not be hurried into. Utmost care has to be taken to ensure the pre-live activities are not impacted. This is a sensitive situation where business as well as the implementation partner have to understand the pressure on each other and work hand-in-hand. In case of migrating from legacy systems, downtime becomes all the more critical. Effective communication has to be made to the customers regarding the migration and the downtime.
The Destination

Though the above mentioned factors do not provide an exhaustive list of the factors impacting the project success, it is safe to summarize that the critical factors for a successful ERP implementation are largely driven by management initiatives like effective communication of the project objectives, scope and setting the right expectation with all the stakeholders regarding those.Understanding the business requirements and as-is process and formulating an acceptable to-be process is essential as the final process has to meet the requirements even with acceptable workarounds.

Adapting to new technologies can be challenging, but with the right attitude towards change, the transition can be made smoothly. More often, we would see the end users drawing comparisons between the legacy system and the new ERP system. These comparisons start becoming pain points if there is no understanding of the current system, its advantages and limitations. This is where the management has to be pro-active and set the expectations on the processes.

The ERP implementation should not be looked up on as a project for implementing new technologies, but as a project for driving sustainable change to achieve the ultimate goal through effective change management.

Author Bio

Santosh, a Functional Consultant at Sonata Software, has been working for its Oracle practice for the past 5 years. He has worked extensively on implementation and rollout projects in the areas of supply chain and finance. An avid writer, Santosh combines his unending passion for ERP and the tacit knowledge gained through his experience of working on a number of challenging projects to provide a lucid insight into the real world of ERP. His qualifications entail a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and Master’s degree in Business Administration.

Do you need financial management for your Company or are struggling with integrating procurement, supply chain and human resource? Here’s your chance to be the window and provide that single pane of glass view.

As there is a need for business processes to become purposeful, especially those that are handled manually, it is mandated that they be interlaced with an ERP solution while they charge forward with an agenda to achieve an elevation in them.

SMBs grow and evolve with benefits from built-in analytics, which exist within ERP systems with the help of analytical applications, which allow users to share and analyze the data that the ERP applications collect round the enterprise. As a result, there is a firm calling out for an ERP investment which provides a rapid, but steady deployment, with solutioned practices for various business processes. These are simplified and standardized across departments, BUs and different geographic locations. Integrated financials, operations, procurement, HR, and supply chain management into one system, further the swell in people or talent pool, and sweeten management dealings. These become clear outcomes for implementing an ERP solution which is preferably Cloud-based, and which has a strong digital core for the implementation of new technologies at its heart.

Some of the key benefits of a Cloud-based ERP for SMBs are as follows:

• Easy to master, quick to use
• Faster Go-Lives
• Creating a digital core for the implementation of new technologies
• No maintenance expenses
• No upgrade costs
• Affordable subscription pricing offered
• System availability and performance are righteous as compared with a uniform software environment
• Scalable capacity with optimal cost saving as you increase software and network usage

ERP in the Cloud is one of the surest ways to wedge together remote facilities for mobile employees, enhancing organization-wide collaboration and access. A Cloud-based ERP implementation paves the way for greater penetration in mobility and provides remote access than traditional on-prem systems.

A Cloud ERP with built-in ML capabilities become increasingly efficient, by removing labour from high labour intensive tasks, while they continuously run in the background. While at the same time, “what if” questions are answered by feeding in rapid-fire responses. Questions are posed via chatbots, context rich dashboards, as well as various other tools at one’s fingertips.

While choosing an appropriate ERP, it is imperative to get a software which covers every business function and which provides industry-wide solutioned or solution-oriented best practices by looking for the best partners. These partners must be committed to provide an ecosystem to assist SMBs in identifying, buying, building, implementing, providing service, and supporting an organization’s unique needs.

All of this, provides the management with the ability to deploy the platform, with real-time analytics and business intelligence to complete the visibility aim. Hearing your partner/prospective organization out will surely give them a ear that is waiting for an ERP solution.