ERP Software

A closer look at JD Edwards Enterprise One

JD Edwards was one of the true ERP pioneers, founded in 1977. It’s One World ERP system, designed specifically with mid-size manufacturers in mind, made JD Edwards a multi-billion company before it was acquired by PeopleSoft in 2003, which in turn was scooped up by Oracle in 2005.

The current product, with the mellifluous name Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 9.0 was released in late 2008. Since then, Oracle has delivered two application updates and four tools updates. In addition, the last three tools releases for EnterpriseOne have contained enhancements designed to improve end-user experience, streamline tasks, and improve overall efficiencies. The major improvements include enhanced support for government contract accounting, more options for expense management, and improvements in general ledger performance.

Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 9.0 supports simple-to-complex business processes, but is also easy to use and well structured. The Web-based interface is user friendly. The system has a good level of interaction with the user, which can be enhanced via tailored alerts, menus, and screens. From a functional standpoint, the system extensively supports most modules needed by companies in construction, real estate, engineering and professional services, and configure-to-order (CTO) manufacturing.

Ease of Use.
Interface: The interface uses an Internet browser and can be personalized by the user. The screens can have several tabs, and each tab has well delimited sections, built based on business logic. Additional fields and tabs can be added to the defaults by administrators. Warnings and error messages show up on screen, not in pop-up windows that may be blocked by browser settings.

Task performance: Each list of records contains filters for all columns, allowing multiple filters to be used at the same time. Mandatory fields are marked with an asterisk; users cannot navigate away from an empty mandatory field. Several windows can be used in parallel, among which navigation is straightforward. Within a single screen, users can navigate to the previous or next record, as well as to the first or the last entry in a list.

Workflow Design

Security: Security can be defined by user, role, and all users. Usually, only administrators can customize screens, grids, reports, etc., but limited rights can also be assigned to regular users. Administrations and monitoring tools can be used to not only define and manage user rights and securities, but also to monitor the components of the system. Default values can be overwritten only by users with specific profiles, based on predefined rules.

Reporting capabilities: Report designs can be changed using the Report Writer, where a wizard guides users through the process and suggests next steps. Besides options to customize the way the report shows the data, the Report Writer allows users to define calculations via formulas. In addition to the hundreds of reports provided out of the box, users can utilize add-on solutions for operational reports, customer-facing reports, and end-user reporting.

In summary, Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne is an integrated applications suite of comprehensive enterprise resource planning software that combines business value, standards-based technology, and deep industry experience into a business solution with a low total cost of ownership.

Written by :

pamelarichards