An Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system is important in running a successful growing business. While many companies are now moving to cloud-based ERP solutions, others might not be quite ready to move from an on-premise deployment.
In an attempt to bring you the best content within leading enterprise know-how categories, Solutions Review editors search the web high and low on a daily basis for insights that can have real impact and help you to move the needle. That’s why we’ve spoken with Kerrie Jordan, senior manager of product marketing, Epicor Software, about what you need to know to guide your ERP exploitation decisions, both now and in the future.
This is notable and extremely significant especially to C-level executives who are increasingly part of the ERP selection process. Cloud ERP is quickly leveling the in performance field, enabling even smaller businesses to rapidly leapfrog older, more established companies, and that is very compelling.
In the past, businesses considering cloud ERP were attracted by the cost benefits. The ability to consume ERP on a monthly subscription basis offered businesses the ability to leverage OPEX as opposed to CAPEX and eliminating the responsibility for businesses to run and manage software applications and invest in servers and infrastructure.
But aside from bringing about improvements in responsiveness, agility, and costs, the cloud is helping businesses digitally transform and get fit for growth. As businesses shift missing from traditional on-premises systems to cloud-based ERP they are taking advantage of new capabilities to improve their business and optimize processes. What’s more, it’s enabling teams to access real-time information from across the business and use that data to make better business decisions.
Understandably, security will likely always be a concern no matter how far technology progresses, but companies need an insight-driven strategy to outpace ever-evolving threats. The reality is all software is prone to viruses and vulnerabilities, whether it is stored on premises or in the cloud.
Having your ERP in the cloud offers several security benefits that could outweigh on-premises options for your business. Your ERP is automatically upgraded by your ERP vendor more often so that you are constantly and again and again safeguarded with the latest security patches. World-class global cloud infrastructure now uses the latest in artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect and remediate vulnerabilities at scale even before they are exploited. Physical datacenter safekeeping for world-leading cloud platform providers is so strict and technology-driven, it would be extremely costly for a single business to try to replicate that on their own premises.
We encourage businesses to be educated on cloud ERP and security, and not just to subscribe to the myths that if you’re running your ERP in the cloud your data is more susceptible. It’s absolutely not true. The cloud is likely added secure than what many can realistically provide in-house.
One of the biggest benefits of running ERP in the cloud is that it can help prepare your business for future changes via its inherent scalability and flexibility, mostly from an integration perspective. This is essential as companies look ahead and consider future needs. For example, might an acquisition or merger come into play? Will growth plans include a global or national extension strategy? Will new machinery, robotics or Internet of Things (IoT) initiatives be initiated? In all these scenarios, the cloud provides ease of integration, to help connect people, processes, data, and things.
As well, the new requirements of today’s digital age go beyond driving transactions. They require organizations be able to make sense of large volumes of data quickly to understand the greatest business opportunities and threats that must be addressed to support growth and profitability. While ERP has always been associated with efficiency, today and going forward it’s more about delivering intelligence, insights, and predictability to sustain competitive advantage well into the digital age.
This enables organizations to continue to fine-tune their go-to-market strategies, customer management (identify the most profitable and not so profitable customers), inventory management (change the assortments and weed out items that are not selling), and financial health (better AP/AR management). What’s more, the use of data and analytics is a powerful force in helping organizations anticipate and navigate disruption. Companies that can turn data into action will enjoy a significant advantage over slower-moving rivals.
We see more businesses adopting either a cloud or hybrid approach to ERP as they start to understand the need for an infrastructure that enables them to deploy new technologies. This includes mobility, as well as collecting, aggregating, and analyzing data. The momentum of the cloud is unstoppable, but like any investment cloud, ERP requires proper due diligence. How and when you dig up there should be personalized to address the needs of your business for the greatest return on investment (ROI).