Is it time to graduate to an ERP?

Spreadsheets are the life blood of a small business. Excel’s user-friendly interface combined with basic accounting software are ideal for the first days of a business. However, as a business grows, there reaches a point where richer visibility and more advanced reporting is needed. Eventually, the data becomes too complex and wider global integrations along with optimum visibility are imperative.

If you have reached this point, it is time to implement an ERP system. An Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system integrates all aspects of your business and streamlines processes including finance, operations, supply chain, and manufacturing. With more powerful reporting and integration, an ERP sets your company up for growth.

Thinking it might be time to upgrade to an ERP system? Here are some aspects of the business that an ERP can improve:

Are you struggling to have visibility into all areas of your business? Are you forced to make decisions without all of the data you need? Data sorting and tracking can be extremely limited with basic accounting software. QuickBooks, for example, cannot sort data using multiple metrics. This pitfall forces the user to move to Excel to drill down as far as necessary, which can put the data at risk of being unreliable.

ERP goes beyond financial metrics; it tracks statistical and operational data to enable a comprehensive view of the business. It allows you to see your data in real-time and share a single version of the truth based on data throughout the organization. This kind of visibility enables you to see the big picture and helps steer your decision-making.

Are your employees doing time-consuming manual processes? Are they spending unnecessary amounts of time just looking for the data they need to do their jobs? As companies grow, these manual processes begin to add up, leading to significant cost and error rates. They can also become an issue if only one or two people know how to complete these processes end-to-end. There is a valuable use for spreadsheets, but they should not be the go-to solution for your accounting processes.

An ERP solution streamlines processes for ultimate efficiency and security. It makes collaboration across departments seamless. Its standardization cuts down on operational costs and reduces time-to-market without compromising on quality. So instead of your employees focusing on repetitive tasks, they can get to the more pressing items on their plates.

Are you continually switching from one application to another to complete a task? Do you have to perform a lot of manual exports to get your data to talk to each other? Working across several different applications or tools can create information silos that can be detrimental to your company’s operation processes. Working within these silos can create less reliable data, decreased efficiency, and weak security.

An ERP, at its core, is a suite of business applications that are compatible with one another. This allows for integration not just within your department, but across your entire organization. This will make for a more cohesive team that will be able to get more done in less time.

An ERP implementation can seem daunting, but it will have an exponential payoff in the long run. You will be able to run your business more efficiently and capitalize on all the opportunities that come your way. Thankfully, you don’t have to do it alone. Rand Group partners with small to mid-size companies to help them achieve business success. Contact us today.