Enterprise Resource Planning: Needs And Methodology

Enterprise resource planning, or ERP, improves the performance of an enterprise by carefully analyzing the work flow of a company and then improving it at every step. Many companies are offering ERP consulting these days. The reason ERP is necessary is that often many companies with immense potential under perform due to their lack of knowledge of modern business tools. ERP consultants are exposed to efficient tools which can exactly locate the sources of inefficiency in the company working structure. ERP consultants introduce working methodologies specifically tuned to the company requirements, which helps to make their work process more efficient and in turn improves the performance of the company.

Usually the ERP implementation plan follows the following methodology:

1. Locate the bug: An ERP team looks into the entire work flow of the company, from the product development to the final sale. They meet and document everything and locate the current issues and potential solutions.

2. Design: The ERP team then works out various configurations for a new system to be implemented, defining roles and documenting standard procedures.

3. Implementation: This new system is then implemented in the company by making the necessary customizations and training the individuals according to the new plan.

4. Testing: It is almost never trivial to switch from an existing functional system to new system no one is familiar with. The ERP team tests the new system at every step to make sure that the company is comfortable with the new system and things are working in sync.

5. Deployment: The team analyzes the performance of the new system and then makes the final call if the new system is on or not. At this stage the old system is removed completely and all the workforce switches to the new system.

6. Support: Once live, the team gives real time support to the company about how to handle the entire process by themselves. Slowly the ERP team pulls out and the system evolves to become self dependent.

ERP is important for companies to exist in the current competitive market. ERP consultants are often exposed to technological tools that most traditional companies are unaware of. Using ERP consultants helps these companies to switch to a more efficient working methodology and fulfill the current market requirements.