5 SIGNS YOUR BUSINESS IS BEING HELD BACK

Determining when it’s time to implement an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution while meeting the demands of modern business can be a challenging task. It’s difficult to gain perspective and spot inefficiencies when numerous employees are working day in and day out within the same legacy software system.

Lucky for you, there are several clear signs that your business would benefit from implementing an ERP solution. If any of the following issues are all too familiar for your business, it means you’re ready for ERP.

Here is a list of 5 key signs that your current solution is holding your business back.

(1) There are different software systems for different business processes. A major defect of legacy software systems is that they’ve been put together one piece at a time, resulting in disjointed business processes. For example, your accounting team may use one system for handling receivables and payables while your sales team is using another system for entering and shipping orders.

Businesses who are in this situation might consider an ERP as a necessity. Front- and back-end users who don’t work collectively can create a nightmare for your business with information blockages, incorrect data, and process automation difficulties. An ERP solution will solve these problems by means of integrating all systems in a single database containing accurate, real-time data.

(2) Accounting is a time-consuming, difficult task. The accounting department is one of the first places to look when determining to implement an ERP solution. It’s not a good sign if your accounting team is handling hard-copy invoices and sales orders, and manually entering information into many different accounting systems. This is wasting valuable time and creating a potential human data error.

Rather than tracking and consolidating financial information across multiple system and spreadsheets, an ERP solution will merge all financial files into a single database. Boost the productivity of your accounting team by eliminating the need for cross-posting and manual reconciliation.

(3) Essential business information is not accessible at your fingertips. In today’s modern world of technology, it’s imperative to always have essential information and key performance indicators (KPIs) on hand and up to date. Employees, customers, suppliers, and partners don’t want to wait for a simple spreadsheet to be manually reconciled.

An ERP solution will provide everyone with access to essential business information exactly when they need it. Employees will get all-inclusive, real-time data at their fingertips.

(4) Incorrect inventory data is impacting your customer success. Again, in today’s modern world of technology, customers expect to be given accurate, real-time data about your products instantly. Customers want to know if a specific product is in stock or when they can expect a new shipment to arrive. Not providing your customers with this basic information will ruin your reputation. Ultimately these problems arise when sales, inventory, and customer data is maintained in different systems.

With an ERP solution, every department will be provided with identical, real-time data. This eliminates the interactions between departments and answers questions about stock, shipping timeline, payment status, and more.

(5) IT management is too intricate. Another defect of legacy software systems is IT management and maintenance. It’s a challenge for many businesses to keep up with the maintenance of multiple systems. If you have to call in an external IT expert every time you have a technical problem, it’s time to invent in an ERP solution. Updates within an ERP solution are handled with ease and new functions can be added as your company grows.

If any of the above issues are typical of your business, it’s time to consider an ERP implementation. Contact ACC Software Solutions to begin your ERP discovery today!