In today’s highly competitive economy, manufacturers and distributors are continually searching for that elusive “competitive edge.” The latter may be an exclusive product, a functionally superior product, or a product that’s competitively priced.
But why not all three? You can gain exclusivity by producing a product that offers a high degree of functionality and is also affordably priced. How? The answer is by employing degrees of automation that enable the product to be produced and distributed at the highest efficiency and at minimal cost. It starts with the implementation of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution.
The Impact of an ERP Solution
An ERP software solution enables manufacturers to differentiate their product offerings and streamline processes and operations in many ways. In order to gain executive buy-in to purchase such a solution, you need to demonstrate those capabilities. Here are four ways an ERP will benefit your business. Use these to get your entire organization on board.
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Increased automation
An excellent way to gain executive buy-in for an ERP solution is by emphasizing the numerous manufacturing processes it can manage. One of the most beneficial aspects of automation is the elimination of manual data entry. This drastically decreases the chance of errors, duplication, and mistakes. Automation also gives employees the ability to let the ERP system take over mundane tasks and focus on more pertinent areas of the business.
Better, faster data
Because the data produced integrates in real-time with other ERP software modules, an ERP makes it possible for management to obtain up-to-the-minute “snapshots” of operations to facilitate new operational efficiencies as well as better decision making.
Cross-departmental usage
A major challenge in justifying the implementation of an ERP solution at a manufacturing or distribution facility is that it may not always be viewed as being beneficial at all levels of the organization. However, every function in the company, human resources, sales, distribution, accounting, supply chain, purchasing, manufacturing and shipping, and more, will benefit from the new ERP software. Therefore, a way to achieve total acceptance of a new solution is to continually reference the benefits each worker will gain.
Increased synergies and more efficient employees
New software must be viewed as an investment that produces efficiencies and effectiveness. One of the most important aspects is how the employees actually utilize the system to support day-to-day activities. With ERP, gone are the days of silos of information and disparate departments. ERP increases synergy within a company by integrating all aspects of the business. This gives employees the ability to work off of the same, real-time data. With ERP, employees have a single source of truth for company information, making every employee and the company more productive.
As we enter Q4 and the last remaining months of 2017, now is the time to reflect on the year and focus on how to refine your strategy to align with your 2018 business goals. An ERP solution is an excellent tool to help boost your company’s drive to succeed. Not sure where to start? Our free ERP Product Selection Tool is a great resource to help narrow down your options.
Joey Benadretti is the president and joint managing director of SYSPRO USA. He is a champion of U.S. manufacturing and is a strong advocator of the rebuilding of the U.S. manufacturing base.
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