Introduction:-  Any business achieves their goal by performing multiple activities.  Business is complete itself when it performs all kind of operations properly. The economy of the nation depends on its business’s structure and its growth. Two thousand years ago, India and the East Asian countries had almost 60 per cent share of the world economy. If lookup on business history we can find at that time also all business’s process used to do. Today we can find that business depends on multiple processes like inventory and order management, accounting, human resources, customer relationship management (CRM), etc. Due to globalization business’s growth is increasing day by day. To maintain the business health without investing on human capital technology provides us the best solution that is known as ERP. With the help Of ERP any organization either small scale or large scale can achieve their goals on time.ERP software integrates these various functions into one complete system to streamline processes and information across the entire organization.

 

 

 

History of  ERP

The term ERP was coined in 1990 by Gartner1, but its roots date to the 1960s. Back then, the concept applied to inventory management and control in the manufacturing sector. Software engineers created programs to monitor inventory, reconcile balances, and report on status. By the 1970s, this had evolved into Material Requirements Planning (MRP) systems for scheduling production processes.

In the 1980s, MRP grew to encompass more manufacturing processes, prompting many to call it MRP-II or Manufacturing Resource Planning. By 1990, these systems had expanded beyond inventory control and other operational processes to other back-office functions like accounting and human resources, setting the stage for ERP as we’ve come to know it.

Today, ERP has expanded to encompass business intelligence (BI) while also handling “front-office” functions such as sales force automation (SFA), marketing automation and e-commerce. With these product advancements and the success stories coming out of these systems, companies in a broad range of industries—from wholesale distribution to ecommerce—use ERP solutions.

Moreover, even though the “e” in ERP stands for “Enterprise,” high-growth and mid-size companies are now rapidly adopting ERP systems. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions—also referred to as “cloud computing”—have helped fuel this growth. Cloud-based solutions not only make ERP software more affordable, they also make these systems easier to implement and manage. Perhaps even more importantly, cloud ERP enables real-time reporting and BI, making them even valuable to executives and staff seeking visibility into the business.

As a result, companies of all sizes and a wide range of industries are transitioning to cloud ERP systems. In fact, Forrester predicts that SaaS-based ERP adoption will rise 21 percent annually through 2015.2 When you stop to consider the benefits of ERP, it’s easy to see why it’s become so popular and why its use will continue to grow so rapidly.

What is ERP?

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is a process by which a company (often a manufacturer) manages and integrates the important parts of its business. An ERP management information system integrates areas such as planning, purchasing, inventory, sales, marketing, finance and human resources. ERP is most frequently used in the context of software. As the methodology has become more popular, large software applications have been developed to help companies implement ERP.

ERP is an Enterprise Application

ERP software is considered to be a type of enterprise applications, that is software designed to be used by larger businesses and often requires dedicated teams to customize and analyze the data and to handle upgrades and deployment. In contrast, small business  ERP applications are lightweight business management software solutions, often customized for a specific business industry or vertical.

ERP delivers a single database that contains all data for the software modules, which would include:

  • Manufacturing  Engineering, Bills of Material, Scheduling, Capacity, Workflow Management, Quality Control, Cost Management, Manufacturing Process, Manufacturing Projects, Manufacturing Flow
  • Supply Chain Management  Order to cash, Inventory, Order Entry, Purchasing, Product Configurator, Supply Chain Planning, Supplier Scheduling, Inspection of goods, Claim Processing, Commission Calculation
  • Financials General Ledger, Cash Management, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Fixed Assets
  • Projects  Costing, Billing, Time and Expense, Activity Management
  • Human Resources Human Resources, Payroll, Training, Time & Attendance, Rostering, Benefits
  • Customer Relationship Management  Sales and Marketing, Commissions, Service, Customer Contact and Call Center support
  • Data Warehouse and various Self-Service interfaces for Customers, Suppliers, and Employees
  • Access control  user privilege as per authority levels for process execution Customization  to meet the extension, addition, change in process flow

Enterprise ERP Trends

The ERP field can be steady to change, but the last couple of years have unleashed forces which are fundamentally shifting the entire area. The following new and continuing trends affect enterprise ERP software:

1. Mobile ERP

Executives and employees want real-time access to information, regardless of where they are. It is expected that businesses will embrace mobile ERP for the reports, dashboards and to conduct key business processes.

2. Cloud ERP

The cloud has been advancing steadily into the enterprise for some time, but many ERP users have been reluctant to place data cloud. Those reservations have gradually been evaporating, however, as the advantages of the cloud become apparent.

3. Social ERP

There has been much hype around social media and how important or not  it is to add to ERP systems. Certainly, vendors have been quick to seize the initiative, adding social media packages to their ERP systems with much fanfare. But some wonder if there is really much gain to be had by integrating social media with ERP.

4. Two-tier ERP

Enterprises once attempted to build an all-encompassing ERP system to take care of every aspect of organizational systems. But some expensive failures have gradually brought about a change in strategy – adopting two tiers of ERP.

ERP Vendors

Depending on your organization’s size and needs there are a number of enterprise resource planning software vendors to choose from in the large enterprise, mid-market, and the small business ERP market. Gartner’s annual market share reports put SAP, Oracle, Sage, Microsoft and NetSuite among the top vendors, but Capterra’s data suggests that SAP and Oracle are easily the biggest two, with Epicor, Infor and Microsoft on their heels in a shifting line-up. The top small business ERP vendors include names like NetSuite, Exact Max, Epicor, Syspro.

Importance of ERP in business

At its core, ERP helps employees do their jobs more efficiently by breaking down barriers between business units. More specifically, an ERP solution:

  • Gives a global, real-time view of data that can enable companies to address concerns proactively and drive improvements
  • Improves financial compliance with regulatory standards and reduces risk
  • Automates core business operations such as lead-to-cash, order-to-fulfillment, and procure-to-pay processes
  • Enhances customer service by providing one source for billing and relationship tracking.

 

Summary 

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems are coherent and integrated software applications that can support a large variety of operational processes and business functions and a focal monitoring, control and coordination tool for all operations that take place in the headquarters and the distinct remote locations of modern enterprises. Via advanced database and communication technologies and sound coverage of diverse business functions, ERP systems achieve data centralization, integration of business software applications and business process redesign, all in the quest for process optimization, productivity enhancements and gaining of competitive advantage through innovative information technology. For the successful enterprises and organizations within the Information and Knowledge Society, ERP Systems are the backbone transactional information platforms that allow quick response to the challenges emanating from the continuously evolving business landscape

 

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