Adding Value to ERP

During the 1990s, the vast majority of Global 2000 companies deployed client/server systems for enterprise resource planning (ERP) to replace their mainframe-based accounting packages. Some did it as part of the business process re-engineering (BPR) boom, others as Y2K upgrades at the end of the decade and others simply to replace aging financial systems. A recurring theme throughout the ’90s was that implementing ERP was difficult, expensive and frustrating. Study after study showed substandard returns for ERP investments. Perhaps because of this experience, many organizations have been very cautious about making changes to their ERP environments. However, doing nothing may be a costly mistake because most companies can use their ERP software more effectively than they are doing today.
Intelligent Enterprise Magazine: Adding Value to ERP

3 Reasons Why CRM Strategies Fail

by Matt Hogansworth

Customer relationship management (CRM) is one of the most effective tools for improving customer relationships and therefore increasing revenue, customer satisfaction, and customer retention. Unfortunately, some CRM strategies fail. This leaves CRM vendors and their customers baffled, but there a few common reasons why a CRM strategy will fail.

1. Too much focus on the CRM vendor and technology. Some companies get too caught up in having the best possible CRM strategy out there. Some companies want entire call-centers, On-Demand CRM, Web-based, and Blackberry devices which allow their IT people to enter customer information wirelessly. While these technologies are extremely helpful, too much emphasis on them can lead any company astray. It is naturally very important to select the best CRM vendor for your company, but best does not always mean flashiest.

2. Not enough focus on the customer. Companies can focus too much on technology and strategy, and not enough on what is at the core of CRM: the customer. The first letter in CRM stands for “Customer” and so the customer should be first when thinking about any CRM strategy. A call-center can be wonderful if it is customer friendly. However, some call centers are too complicated and alienate the customer from the company. Alienation is the exact opposite of what companies want to achieve when implementing CRM. The real ROI of CRM is found in customer retention and the acquisition of new customers. In order to have success with CRM, a company must work towards building a strong relationship with its customers. CRM is the path through which the customer and the company can understand each other. Focusing on technologies and ignoring the basics of customer service will cause even the most technologically advanced CRM strategy to go wrong.

3. Rushing into CRM adaptation. Sometimes, company presidents get the idea of CRM into their head and decide that their entire company must be CRM-ready as fast as possible. Rushing into CRM is a recipe for disaster. IT workers need to understand the concept of CRM. Someone who understands the importance of CRM will be better suited to deal with customers and reach the companys goals concerning CRM. Rushing into CRM does not allow ample time for all IT people to be briefed on the basics of CRM and how it will be implemented within the business. Some companies implementing CRM have to create entire departments that never existed before. The greatest care must always be taken when creating an entire new section of a company. CRM should generally be implemented across the entire company. If this is rushed, it can lead to all sorts of compatibility issues, customer confusion, and even employee confusion. Data collected must be viewed across many applications, and ample time must be given for networks to be set up. Companies using CRM technology such as Blackberry devices, or Call-centers must be even more careful when implementing CRM for the first time. Technology is not perfect, and problems can occur at any time. Any company that sends their sales force out into the market with unchecked technology is asking for disaster.

Some say that it is impossible to determine whether CRM is a success or a failure. The true ROI of CRM lies with the customer. A company that avoids the pitfalls of CRM implementation will notice a dramatic increase in customer satisfaction, retention, and acquisition. CRM can help any company significantly if it is used correctly, carefully, but still efficiently. CRM technology can also help companies if it is used thoughtfully and timely. The entire company must be prepared for CRM when it is implemented. A company cannot expect exact numbers immediately after putting CRM into effect. CRM is a long-term strategy that will help achieve long-term goals of a company. Customer focus is essential and will help any CRM strategy to become a success.

Matt Hogansworth writes about CRM and other business topics.

Changing Consumer Attitudes Drive CRM

Changing consumer attitudes are driving Customer Relationship Management. Fuelled by Internet induced expectations and an even increasing mood of self reliance among customers, companies have to compete in an environment where communication, buying processes, data management, delivery and service are all-important in the battle for longterm, profitable relationships.

Customers now require: …
Changing Consumer Attitudes Drive CRM

Line56.com: Supply and Demand Synchronization

Two years ago, Kawasaki Motors Corp., USA (KMC, USA) took a closer look at both its supply chain and its relationship with dealers, and found some weak spots. “We didn’t have forecasting that was sophisticated and we didn’t have a reporting engine,” says Barry Beehler, VP of Planning and Marketing for KMC, USA. “The different pieces weren’t talking to each other.”

By March of next year, the pieces are set to integrate. There’s now a supply chain management (SCM) and supply chain execution (SCE) execution from Mitrix that will tap into KMC, USA’s forecasting engine, imports system, shipper information, legacy vehicle system, and manufacturing systems as well. Read more…

Handle your resources optimally, ERP is here – Newindpress.com

As many companies are part of the global or domestic supply chain, they have their own reservations, which include cost challenge, quality as well as less rejection of the product apart from the tight deadline to cater to the need of the customers.

The panacea for the above problems is a right platform to utilise resources like man, material, machine and money intelligently and here comes the role of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system.

ERP helps how to effectively utilise all these resources to get the optimum result.

Once implemented, all departments can more easily share information and the workflow that takes place between departments can become much more automated, thus serving the customers much better way.

Handle your resources optimally, ERP is here – Newindpress.com

Small Manufacturers Achieve Lean Efficiency With Low End MRP System

(PRWEB) March 26, 2005 — “Lean Manufacturing is all about eliminating waste. Since 1985 we have dedicated ourselves to the efficiency of small manufacturers. Tracking inventory requirements is one of the most important keys to eliminating waste in the manufacturing process, and one of the great strengths of E-Z-MRP.”

Smolin is the founder of Beach Access Software and maker of the E-Z-MRP system. E-Z-MRP customers are able to leverage their investments in the E-Z-MRP system quickly, sometimes within one month.

The lean manufacturing process covers the strategic, tactical and operational areas of the business with particular focus on Demand Forecasting, Order Processing, Supply Planning, Manufacturing Execution, Warehouse and Shipping Management.

These small manufacturing firms are required by the principles of Lean Manufacturing to demonstrate consistent processes and performance against a checklist of best practices, which include on-time delivery, inventory accuracy, and production schedule performance. Many small manufacturers have achieved excellence in all of these areas through the implementation of E-Z-MRP.

E-Z-MRP History:
E-Z-MRP was first released under the DOS operating system in 1985, and achieved great success and widespread use with hundreds of customers around the world. The system has been successfully implemented in a wide variety of small manufacturing companies in such fields as medical instrumentation, appliances, automotive, pharmaceutical, woodworking and furniture construction, spraying systems, orthodontics, and firearms, as well as finding use as an instructional aid in universities. E-Z-MRP works just as well in job shop and build-to-order environments as in build-to-stock or build-to-forecast operations. The new E-Z-MRP system has now been completely rewritten using Microsoft’s Access Database Management System – a component of the popular Microsoft Office Suite – making it compatible with a wide variety of third-party products.

E-Z-MRP Product Features and Low-Cost High-Value Pricing:
The E-Z-MRP package includes a full-featured Bill of Materials processor, plus a material planning and tracking module which tracks all sales orders, forecasts, work orders (planned, firm, and released), purchase orders, shortages, raw materials, and finished goods inventories. It also records a complete audit trail on all inventory transactions. Also included: a physical inventory function, a purchase order module for printing purchase orders, and a recently added capacity planning module.

http://www.e-z-mrp.com

ERP Overview

This ERP Overview covers What is ERP, Brief history of ERP, Why is it necessary, Market Leaders and the future of ERP. What is ERP? Enterprise Resource Planning or ERP is an industry term for integrated, multi-module application software packages that are designed to serve and support multiple business functions. An ERP system can include software for manufacturing, order entry, accounts receivable and payable, general ledger, purchasing, warehousing, transportation and human resources. Evolving out of the manufacturing industry, ERP implies the use of packaged software rather than proprietary software written by or for one customer. ERP modules may be able to interface with an organizations own software with varying degrees of effort, and, depending on the software, ERP modules may be alterable via the vendors proprietary tools as well as proprietary or standard programming languages.

Brief History of ERP The focus of manufacturing systems in the 1960s was on Inventory control. Most of the software packages then (usually customized) were designed to handle inventory based on traditional inventory concepts. In the 1970s the focus shifted to MRP (Material Requirement Planning) systems that translated the Master Schedule built for the end items into time-phased net requirements for the sub-assemblies, components and raw materials planning and procurement.

In the 1980s the concept of MRP-II (Manufacturing Resources Planning) evolved which was an extension of MRP to shop floor and Distribution management activities. In the early 1990s, MRP-II was further extended to cover areas like Engineering, Finance, Human Resources, Projects Management etc i.e. the complete gamut of activities within any business enterprise. Hence, the term ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) was coined.

Why is it Necessary? By becoming the integrated information solution across the entire organization, ERP systems allow companies to better understand their business. With ERP software, companies can standardize business processes and more easily enact best practices. By creating more efficient processes, companies can concentrate their efforts on serving their customers and maximizing profit.

Market Leaders The top five ERP vendors, SAP, Oracle Corporation, Peoplesoft, Inc. (now Oracle Corp.), JD Edwards & Company, and Baan International, account for 64 percent of total ERP market revenue. These vendors continue to play a major role in shaping the landscape of new target markets, with expanded product functionality, and higher penetration rates. SAP dominates the $6.7 billion ERP applications market in Europe with 39% market share. Oracle and PeopleSoft come second and third respectively, followed by SAGE Group and Microsoft Business Solutions.

The Future of ERP Industry analysts expect that every major manufacturing company will buy the software, which ranges in cost — with maintenance and training — from hundreds of thousands of dollars for a small company to millions for a large company. AMR Research of Boston says consolidation among the major players will continue and intensify. ERP vendors are expected to put more effort into e-commerce, CRM and SCM initiatives, with leaders redirecting between 50% and 75% of their R&D budget to these projects.

According to Gartner research group, the rapid evolution of ERP has already lead to a new corporate must-have, ERP II, which is supposed to help businesses gain more competitive edge in the future. The major difference is that ERP II involves collaborative commerce, which enables business partners from multiple companies to exchange information posted on eCommerce exchanges.

In the next tutorial we will talk about popular ERP Products and the Modules and Application related to them.

For more visualization of this article along with the screen shots and more visit with step by step instructions, http://www.exforsys.com/content/category/17/260/342/

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The Return of Sales and Operations Planning

In many manufacturing organizations, a lack of nimbleness and automation in existing sales and operations planning (S&OP) processes has stunted management’s ability to drive change. Companies looking to maximize the value of their supply chain and operational investments must automate cross-organizational performance planning processes to enable operational performance management.

Intelligent Enterprise Magazine: The Return of Sales and Operations Planning