ERP, the complete organisation of your company in one package
May 2024 - ERP or Enterprise Resource Planning is an umbrella term for software that centralises all kinds of business processes (logistics, administrative, financial, ?) in a single management and information platform. ERP software enables far-reaching automation, allowing companies, including yours, to work more efficiently. Even on the road.
The name suggests that ERP software only applies to large companies ('enterprises'), but that is incorrect. SMEs also benefit from a software package that centralises and streamlines all operational business processes and associated data.
Benefits of ERP software for your SME
· All business processes are unified
By using a central management system, all operational business processes are integrated. From purchasing to stock management, from customer acquisition to sales, from project management to accounting. Moreover, your ERP package can also be linked to other tools, such as Microsoft Teams, for managing your internal processes.
· You work more efficiently and error-free
When all processes are software-connected, you can automate a lot of repetitive and error-prone tasks. For example, you no longer have to manually count stock or monitor outgoing and incoming invoices. You save time and eliminate human error.
· You gain insight into your business processes
Thanks to ERP software, you always and everywhere have access to real-time data, which is also delivered in a uniform manner. In other words, you remain firmly in control, even if your employees are not physically present.
Some useful features for SMEs
· CRM
Manage your relationships and bring order and structure to your customer and supplier data. Get an overview of important data per customer or supplier in just a few clicks.
· Purchase and sales management
Organise your administration from quotation to invoicing. Manage purchase administration, such as price requests, orders, supplier conditions and contract management, from a single tool.
· Stock management
Calculate the optimal minimum and maximum stock. Manage articles and prices and use automatic order proposals, based on current stock information and preferences.
· Project and service management
Link specific costs, revenues and working hours to a project and optimise the administrative handling of your after-sales service. Schedule your employees smoothly and clearly.
· Calendar
Plan your work and that of your employees and maintain an overview.
· Webshop
Link your administration software to your web shop for a seamless process.
ERP and mobile apps, a winning combination
Of course, you are not always present in your office, nor are your employees. Yet sometimes it is desirable that you also have access to your data on the road, at customers' premises, or at your home. For those cases, ERP software developers provide specific cloud-based apps.
Apps ensure that mobile employees, think of technicians, maintenance workers or sales representatives, can still exchange data smoothly with home base. The communication works both ways, by the way: your employee can send a work order to your office's ERP system via an app, and vice versa, you can adjust that same employee's schedule from the office if necessary. Data is updated in real time on any device.
