New innovations in enterprise resource planning systems

ERP applications as they relate to business intelligence, has been around since the advent of ERP software systems in general. The first version of ERP solutions were targeted at Fortune 500 corporations. These companies were the first adopters of business intelligence technologies and they utilized their benefits to further increase their competitive advantage and economies of scale from smaller competitors within their industry as well as their immediate competitors. Companies that were of size, and interested in ERP application solutions to streamline their business were limited to the selection of ERP software solutions available on the market at that time which were developed by predominantly three ERP vendors; Oracle, SAP and IBM.

However, the landscape for ERP applications has changed quite dramatically since those days. With new innovations in enterprise resource planning, there are now hundreds of enterprise solutions and ERP applications catering to every industry and business size. Today, even the smallest of companies can afford and enjoy the benefits that the ERP systems of old delivered to the large Fortune 500 companies, particularly business intelligence features and functionality that is critical to compete in today’s business environment.

ERP applications with business intelligence features are now accessible and affordable to all businesses. Historically business intelligence data was only retrievable by someone in the IT department as well as deciphering the information and compiling it in a usable, understandable format. ERP reporting and data querying has also made dramatic strides towards being more user friendly as information, reports and analysis can be retrieved and utilized by any department within an organization. The robust feature and customization of the new business intelligence applications have also dramatically improved providing a dashboard of critical datasets in real time enabling businesses to react in a timely manner to troubleshoot problems at the seed level. Some key signs that your business may be in the market for new ERP applications with the latest business intelligence functionality are:

• Employees are coming to meetings with conflicting data and analysis
• Managers and employees find it difficult to get the data they need
• Getting simple, customized reports is difficult
• You are feeling exposed from an accounting tracking perspective
• You are working with disparate legacy systems that are not integrated seamlessly

When sourcing ERP applications with business intelligence functionality focus on solutions that will address your key business processes and information needs that are crucial for your business. You will be overwhelmed with the amount of information your business generates when you start this process, so keep things manageable by focusing on the areas of critical importance first, and the rest will follow. The primary goal is the find and ERP application that helps you resolve your key operational issues and provide the tools to find new ways to leverage new opportunities for growth and resource optimization.