Our blog keeps making the point that digital transformation is not something about to happen: it already has. To take advantage of it we need to focus on refining our processes, leaning on technology, in order to improve decision-making.
The cost of technology is an important subject to address. Using the cloud produces significant savings in staff, infrastructure and software for delivering the technology services associated with digital transformation.
With that in mind, having an ERP becomes indispensable for companies. Below we go into more detail.
What is an ERP?
ERP stands for Enterprise Resource Planning.
These systems manage production, logistics, distribution, inventory, invoicing and accounting processes in a modular way. An ERP also tends to interact with other corporate processes such as quality management and human resources administration.
What sets an ERP apart from other common business software is that it is modular, configurable and specialised.
ERPs are able to integrate with BI (Business Intelligence) solutions that make it possible to build dashboards and reports on the state of the company for management decision-making.
Traditional ERP
This management software is installed on the IT infrastructure of the company using it.
It takes a great deal of time and resources to implement, on top of the maintenance costs of infrastructure and trained staff who have to be on the payroll or hired freelance. Added to that are the extra costs of version upgrades and updates.
Cloud ERP
With a cloud ERP the software is hosted on an external server and supported by a service provider, accessed over the internet from anywhere in the world. Managing the servers and IT services is the provider's responsibility.
Implementation is very fast, and it is the provider who takes care of installation, maintenance and repair. That makes it very efficient for any company.
Another benefit is that the customer gets improvement updates automatically, because it is an online service.
Without a doubt, being able to reach a cloud ERP from anywhere over the internet using any kind of device — desktop, phone or tablet — is the most significant advantage over traditional ERPs.
There are providers today offering cloud ERP solutions with integrated BI, delivering efficiency at accessible costs.
