Pay Less And Get More – Is This What Modern, Cloud ERP Is All About?

The new age CFO pays monthly for music, TV shows and movies. In a modern Cloud Connected world, why would we pay huge upfront fees for anything, including ERP software? Why implementing an ERP is not quite as easy as downloading the latest episode of your favourite shows from Netflix?

The modern thought process which says “I want to pay as I use software and I want a quicker time to value” is creating waves in the ERP industry. In this article, we are going to review how the new way of consuming technology is disrupting the ERP industry and what businesses can do to get the most from their ERP investments.

End Users Will Be The Winners

In the new age of Cloud based ERP software solutions, end users will ultimately be the winners. As always, let us consider what business advantages we get from Cloud ERP solutions. Expecting more from Cloud ERP than ever before means that we want to see real, tangible business benefits. These benefits run on both sides of the ledger.

Quantifying the Cloud Advantage

The advantages that we have been seeking from modern ERP solutions have not changed. What has changed is our expectations about time to value. We want to pay less and get more.

Shift in Executive Expectations

The modern, new age, Cloud ERP customer operates under a completely fresh set of performance indicators. The focus has turned away from technical maintenance and moved towards speed, agility and seamless staff access.

• Shorter project timeframes from project kick off to go live date

• Monthly opex based payments with pay as you use scalability

• Less upfront implementation cost and lowered total cost of ownership

• More tightly integrated solutions operating via web based infrastructure

• Universal access and mobility for all remote team members

The expectation has been created. Technology is improving at a rapid rate across cloud, mobility, AI, IoT and more. Now we want more from our ERP Solutions.

Strategic Evaluation and Selection Steps

How do we achieve the advantages that we are looking for and keep the investment requirements on track? Planning is important! It all starts with choosing the right ERP solution. Let us think our way through the ERP selection steps to ensure that you get more from your technology investment.

• Technology is changing at a more rapid pace than ever before. Take advantage of this by choosing a modern, cloud, ERP solution.

• Make sure the solution you choose covers your functional requirements across financial, operational, sales, CRM and reporting.

• Consider a templated solution for your implementation. This can greatly reduce the time and associated investment to implement.

• Deploy a Cloud Based solution to spend opex, not capex.

• Implement core Cloud Based ERP technology and then expand the solution as your business grows.

• Do not try and do everything at once but grow with the solution.

• Consider integrated point solutions or core functional solutions that can have a massive impact on time to value such as AP automation, sales order mobility and business intelligence.

• Keep the initial requirements simple by putting the foundation solution in place and then adding functionality as and when required.

• Technology is important so look for a solution that offers web based technology, easy development platforms and mobility.

• It is an integrated world so make sure that your ERP is an open solution with easy, pre templated integration points.

• Check for third party, pre defined integrated solutions. As an example, is Microsoft Power BI pre integrated? What mobility options are available?

• Consider templated reporting packs that can be quickly deployed at low cost.

• Ensure that annual upgrades are included in your cloud plan.

• Choose a reputable ERP provider that has implemented solutions for your industry.

• Talk to your ERP provider about a fixed price implementation.

Accelerated Path to Business Value

To successfully achieve these cost savings, businesses must adopt a phased deployment strategy rather than attempting a high risk monolithic launch.

Modern deployment success relies heavily on scope control. Businesses that focus on launching a solid foundational system before adding secondary integrations consistently achieve a faster return on investment.

Conclusion

Cloud Computing has disrupted the way businesses implement and pay for ERP software solutions. In the new world of modern, Cloud Based ERP software, the winner is the end user. You get more computing power and ERP functionality than ever before and at a fraction of the price.

This is only the beginning. As technology improves and we introduce AI and other emerging technologies the time to value will continue to improve.

Are you evaluating possible ERP options for your business? Call 1300 045 046 or email [email protected] to speak to one of our consultants.