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ERP Guide
Chapter 2
What is an ERP and why use it?
industry
Chapter 2: Why use an ERP and what is it?
Why does Spindl need an ERP?
Spindl is doing what every other large business does, managing accounts, payroll, customer relations, taxes, inventory, quality assurance, invoices, payments, and much more. But there is one critical difference; unlike large businesses, they're also struggling to manage and organize their processes. They are using an inevitably overwhelming mix of apps and spreadsheets to keep everything going.
On one hand, Saf & Mel considered operational issues as a sign of growth. But the reality is that they seriously needed something to help manage these never ending processes. Simple accounting tools and spreadsheets were no longer doing the job.
If they keep this up, Saf & Mel will be stuck spending their time ensuring their business is functional rather than growing it. Knowing that they have to do better, they start researching solutions. What is something that will help manage their business and buy back time so they can focus on profitability and growth? While there isn't a genie in a bottle to solve this, their research gives them a starting point; an ERP system.
Small businesses and large businesses share a lot of complexities and can be handled with similar systems. The fundamental problem is that the processes small businesses utilize early on aren’t built to scale. As the business grows, it becomes harder to maintain consistency and efficiency. An ERP software eliminates this problem. It is designed to grow with the company.
For Spindl, it seems like setting up an ERP system is the answer, but it requires time, a resource they are short of already.
Is it worth investing time in then? And why?
What is an ERP?
Small businesses are using QuickBooks for accounting, Slack for internal discussions, Post-Its for reminders & Pigeons for mailing. Each of these is a business-critical process, yet completely disjointed. It’s like using tape to hold shards of glass together. Functional, but not efficient.
Instead, an ERP!
It consolidates all your business operations in a single, central monolithic application.
This allows you to view, analyze, and manage all your business operations from one place. No jumping from app to spreadsheet to another app to make sure one job gets done. All data that you enter into an ERP speaks to the other; if you’ve just made a sale, you can use that information directly within the system to update your inventory as well. With an ERP, you can:
Manage sales, purchases, inventory, billing, quotes, leads, customers, payroll, and much more.
Have your data safely stored in one place. No running around like a headless chicken looking for stuff from spreadsheets or emails or different apps.
Eliminate redundancy and repetitiveness. Because everything is integrated, you’re not entering the same data in multiple places.
Have everyone on the same page. The data updates for every single user in the system, so there are no discrepancies.
Maintain track of things and remain transparent. *A full history of all processes, available at all times.
You can now set the pigeons free! That said, an ERP is a tool for a business to utilize. It’s only as efficient as its users make it.
An ERP cannot
Support for customers
Managing the website
ERP is the backbone of your business
When all your processes are in one place, the ERP becomes the backbone of your business. Everything is accounted for, all data is in the same place, and everyone is on the same page. No matter how much your business grows, the workflow remains consistent. Because of how much control an ERP system offers, you can:
Cue: an ERP!
It consolidates all your business operations in a single, central monolithic application.
This allows you to view, analyze, and manage all your business operations from one place. No jumping from app to spreadsheet to another app to make sure one job gets done. All data that you enter into an ERP speaks to the other—if you’ve just made a sale, you can use that information directly within the system to update your inventory as well. With an ERP, you can:
Focus on innovation and profitability.
Drastically improve employee productivity.
Avoid the slog of redundant work.
Have everyone on the same page. The data updates for every single user in the system, so there are no discrepancies.
*Maintain track of things and remain transparent. *A full history of all processes, available at all times.
You can now set the pigeons free! That said, an ERP is a tool for_ _a business to utilize. It’s only as efficient as its users make it.
An ERP can
1.1. Manage all your business processes in one system
1.2. Visualize your business’ data and records
1.3. Manage all your business processes in one system
1.4. What an ERP will help you accomplish
An ERP cannot
2.1. Automagically enter accurate information for you
Give you insights in plain language (that’s for you to figure out)
2.2. Send them chocolates on their birthday (but it can remind you to)
An ERP cannot
Support for customers
Managing the website
ERP is an investment in growth
“The key is in not spending time, but in investing it.” Stephen R. Covey (Educator, Author, and Businessman).
With an ERP assisting your business management, you start spending a significantly less amount of time slogging away. You’re eliminating factors like manual maintenance, data duplication, communication difficulties, and a lot more when using it. When you’re not spending time updating every single spreadsheet, you can invest it in growing your company.
Cue: an ERP!
It consolidates all your business operations in a single, central monolithic application.
This allows you to view, analyze, and manage all your business operations from one place. No jumping from app to spreadsheet to another app to make sure one job gets done. All data that you enter into an ERP speaks to the other—if you’ve just made a sale, you can use that information directly within the system to update your inventory as well. With an ERP, you can:
Focus on innovation and profitability.
Drastically improve employee productivity.
Avoid the slog of redundant work.
Have everyone on the same page. The data updates for every single user in the system, so there are no discrepancies.
*Maintain track of things and remain transparent. *A full history of all processes, available at all times.
You can now set the pigeons free! That said, an ERP is a tool for_ _a business to utilize. It’s only as efficient as its users make it.
An ERP can
1.1. Manage all your business processes in one system
1.2. Visualize your business’ data and records
1.3. Manage all your business processes in one system
1.4. What an ERP will help you accomplish
An ERP cannot
2.1. Automagically enter accurate information for you
Give you insights in plain language (that’s for you to figure out)
2.2. Send them chocolates on their birthday (but it can remind you to)
An ERP cannot
Support for customers
Managing the website
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