7 Crucial Reasons to Replace Your Outgrown ERP System
Replacing an existing ERP system may seem very complex, to some extent, which is true, but an outgrown ERP system may restrict your organizations hindered performance and restrain financial growth. Most of the ERP solution is linked with the core fields of any business to enhance each field’s productivity. If your ERP system is pulling back your productivity and fail to cope up with the latest technologies, then it’s time to replace your existing one with a more comprehensive ERP system.
Outgrown ERP System Replacement Reasons
Here are the reasons which are telling you why you need to replace out your outgrown ERP system.
1. When Your Current ERP Architecture Lacks Adaptability and Agility
The uttermost important feature of any enterprise resource management system is adaptability following agility. When your ERP system running out of these two, you must give a second thought to replace your outgrown ERP system for the sake of your business continue to grow and succeed. If your ERP system doesn’t include the functionalities that are powerful enough to work in other segments as well as other applications of your business or allow you to scale up or down per your need, it’s time to replace it with a more adjustable and more integratable ERP system. When your system lacks adaptability you should look out for a few warning signs, such as- lack of ability to meet regulations, diversify your business, or expand into new territories- which should convince you to prepare yourself to replace your outgrown ERP system.
2. When You Have No Access to Real-Time Information or Mobile Features
Nowadays organizations are jumping into ERP integrations for having the real-time data on hand, anytime, anywhere. Basically, it’s one of the main purposes of having an ERP system. In real-time, you should be able to determine which business processes are working, and which ones aren’t making the cut. So if you are still digging through your data for up-to-date information where you already have an ERP integrated, bad news- it’s outgrown. This can also lead to other problems like slow down critical decision-making capacity, tough environment for Business Intelligence to work as it will be critical to add the value of interpretation and curation to any required data, etc.
Having mobility features in order to access the real-time data is important too. With BYOD (Bring-Your-Own-Device) culture increasing and making its way right into the workforce environment — it’s a good time to take advantage of this. Allowing your employees to have access to real-time information from anywhere, at any time at the touch of their fingertips will help the organization grow even more. If your current ERP system doesn’t have mobility features, it’s high time to switch to one that does.
3. When You’re Unable to Embrace and Capitalize on Industry and Technological Changes
With rapidly changing technology, industries are already struggling to cope up with the speed. But with the right ERP integration, you can avail the advantages of the newest technologies. On the contrary, If your ERP system doesn’t support or co-operate with the latest technology, you’ll find the situation more disruptive than helpful. Latest ERP systems not only let you integrate 3rd party applications without any trouble but also in many cases, they decrease the need of those apps. Where your outgrown ERP system may fail to meet both. If you find that your business is struggling to remain competitive, you may need to invest in a new ERP system.
4. When Your Current ERP Integration is Holding Back Productivity
One of the most significant issues you may face, your growing businesses using several legacy systems or a collection of third-party systems that don’t talk to each other. With time, it seems like the most logical progression as each department needs its specialized technology. However, as you grow to expand dozens of systems that don’t talk to each other resulting in holding back your growth and productivity.
Choosing a user-friendly all in one integrated ERP system hosts your everyday apps in one single location. This saves your time and increases collaboration resulting in efficiency gains. Having separate programs to manage all your business functions decreases output, efficiency, and performance.
The result of a fully integrated ERP solution means that all departments of your business work are running through the one solution. The outcome is not only increasing productivity but lower end costs, easier to manage billing, enhanced administration oversight, accountability, and increased visibility into your whole business processes.
5. When Your Ease of ERP use is Causing Staffing Problems
As your business grows, the natural way forward is to hire an additional workforce to accommodate your workload. Therefore, it’s inevitable that you will face the speed-bump of highly trained personnel leaving you resulting in a barrier in your spontaneous business growth.
If you are using an outdgrown ERP system that lacks relevant training documents and new employees are having issues resulting in mistakes and a long time to learn the solution, perhaps it is time to re-evaluation your ERP system.
A user-friendly interface will allow you to navigate freely and complete your day-to-day tasks with ease. Older ERP systems are more likely to be harder to use and will require more on the job training. Also, non-tech savvy employees might have issues executing their daily tasks due to the functionality of your ERP, which can cause a lot of staff turnover. This can be a key sign that your business needs have changed and you require a more comprehensive ERP system for your business running smoothly.
6. When Your Current ERP System is not Accessible From Out of Office
In this era of internet and cloud, nothing is impossible to get from anywhere with the internet is connected. So does your ERP system should. If your ERP applications are not accessible from out of your zone, then you must rethink of changing your current ERP integration. The age of downloading and installing software is quickly becoming obsolete as progressive Web Applications (PWA) are becoming the norm and are projected to become the standard for all business technology.
Accessibility opens a whole new avenue to possibilities regarding remote-workplace flexibility. It also means that there is no troublesome installation process on workplace computers which reduces wasted set-up and configuration time. Another benefit of browser-based software is that you don’t need to continuously update your software as nothing is stored locally.
7. When Your ERP Costs are Through the Roof!
When your outgrown ERP system fails to match steps with the modern technical needs you ended up investing enormously in modifications to keep them running. Constituting modifications/plug-ins for holes in the system is like placing a band-aid where stitches are needed. Band-aid may seem a cheaper option but surgery is better than keeping gangrene that will end-up damaging your whole system.
Old school legacy systems were not developed to handle the digital and online nature that your business has progressed to today. Therefore, it’s costly to get modifications to keep them running to ensure you are not missing opportunities. So it’s better to get an ERP system that meets all your needs without snatching your money for 3rd party apps or further modifications. It’s important to understand when you need to advance your ERP system. If you are not aware whether it’s time to change or not, you can always seek a consultant to discuss your problems.
We (Brain Station 23) are providing sophisticated, innovative and tailored ERP and integrated business solutions while ensuring a professional and supportive customer experience with consultancy support by experts.
Verdict
So, now you can match the signs we mentioned above and find out if you have outgrown ERP system or not. If you realize your current ERP system is not supporting your business to grow than its time to move on!!
If you have any questions regarding ERP solutions, feel free to knock us anytime.
Originally published at Brain Station 23 on April 18, 2019
