Top Five Signs that the company need an ERP System

When it takes longer to reconcile financials at the end of the month, when Sales Forecast are based more on guesswork than solid figures, when there is no idea how much inventory is there in the warehouse, then it may be time to consider an ERP system.

#1: There is much Different Software for Different Processes

Spend a few minutes thinking about how employees at the company record, track and process information. When various front- and back-end systems run separately, it can wreak havoc on the processes that are meant to ensure the company is running smoothly. Without accurate data from sales, inventory management may suffer, while not having the latest information from accounting can trigger a ripple effect on everything from marketing budgets to payroll.

ERP software integrates these systems so that every business function relies on a single database. With one source of information that contains accurate, real-time data, an ERP solution helps staff make better decisions more quickly and frees up their time to help the business grow even faster.

#2: Don't Have Easy Access to Information about the Business

The pace of business is faster than ever before, which means employees across the company need immediate access to key data. With an ERP solution, executives can get a holistic view of business operations at any time, while other staff can get the information they need to do their jobs more effectively. For example, sales representatives should be able to view a customer's full transaction history and more proactively improve renewal rates while increasing upsell and cross-sell opportunities.

#3: Accounting Takes Longer and Is More Difficult

Often, the first noticeable signs that the company needs an ERP software will come from the accounting department. If employees rely on paper-based invoices and sales orders—and spend hours every week manually entering them into different accounting and sales systems, then the need to consider how much time is being wasted on tasks that ERP software can handle in an instant.

The same goes for financial reporting—if it takes ages to consolidate or reconcile financial information across systems and through countless spreadsheets, an ERP solution can make a significant impact. With all financials in a single database, accounting staff won't need to spend hours cross-posting information, rekeying numbers, or reconciling data manually.

#4: Sales and the Customer Experience Are Suffering

As companies grow, one of their biggest challenges is often inventory management. Ensuring that the right amount of products is in the right location at the right time is a vital part of business operations.

When sales, inventory and customer data are maintained separately, it can create serious problems across the company. If a product is run-out then sales will be off until the next shipment arrives. Meanwhile, if a customer calls to inquire about an order and employees can't track it to see if it's been shipped or if it's even in stock, then the company will start to develop a poor reputation for reliability and service.

With an ERP system, on the other hand, staff in every department will have access to the same, up-to-the-minute information. Customer-facing reps will be able to answer customer’s questions about order and shipping status, payment status, service issues, etc., without having to hang up the phone and check with another department. Meanwhile, the warehouse manager can see that stock is getting low and can reorder.

#5: IT Is Too Complex and Time-Consuming

One of the biggest downsides of having multiple systems across the business is that IT management can become a nightmare. Customizing these systems, integrating them and maintaining them with patches and upgrades can be complex, costly and takes more critical time and resources.

Rather than adding more individual software and complexity, ERP technology can give you the ability to respond to changing business needs rapidly. That's why selecting an ERP provider is critical.