Signs Your Business Needs ERP Software | ComTec Solutions

Managers and CEOs see their businesses growing, but may notice some friction when it comes to operational efficiencies. They start to notice seemingly minor inefficiencies here or there, such as incorrect inventory levels or difficulty in accessing data, but quickly realize those problems only get worse as the organization gets bigger.

Then they come across ERP software and ask the same questions…

“Will ERP software really improve my business?”

“Is it worth the risk to put my company and employees in a state of chaos to implement a new procedure that may help?”

“I’ve been using the same process for years – why change now?”

The answers will vary depending on your growth strategy, your business plan, and your pain points, but if you’re experiencing more than one of the problems detailed below, it’s a good indication that ERP software will significantly help your business.

You Use Lots Of Different Software For Different Processes

Really think about how your employees enter, store, and retrieve data. Does your accounting department use one type of software for accounts receivable and another for sales orders? Is the process of translating an order to a sale long and arduous? Is the software used to track inventory not the same used to track shipments?

Using various systems and processes wreak havoc on the efficiency of an organization. What should be an entirely digital process has to be taken offline and manually entered into another platform, only to be transferred back to digital. ERP software consolidates the numerous software programs you are using, reducing the possibility of error and streamlining order and efficiency across your departments.

You Don’t Have Ample Insight Into Your Inventory

As companies grow, inventory management becomes an issue. How much product do you have to sell? How many company dollars are sitting in inventory? How much does a business need to keep in inventory to run lean but still produce?

Inventory levels are constantly changing and near impossible to keep track of manually. Spreadsheets aren’t scalable. They may have worked when the organization was in its infancy, and they may seem to be working now, but they leave too much room for error and inefficiency.

You Don’t Have Easy Access To Important Information

As a business leader, there are certain KPIs you need to know – margins, orders per day, time it takes to fill orders, inventory levels, etc. And when you need this information, you don’t have the time to comb through spreadsheets and documents for bits and pieces.

As business grows and the pace increases, employees across your organization need access to key pieces of information in order to make data-backed decisions. ERP software gives executives an overall view of business operations with easy to access data from anywhere. Employees also have access to information they need to do their jobs effectively, or even better. For example, a sales rep could view the full history of a customer’s transactions, improving their renewal rates and giving them better opportunities to suggest relevant products or services.

Accounting Takes Too Long

Usually, the first noticeable sign that you need an ERP system will come from your accounting department. Paper-based invoices and sales orders take hours to be manually entered into the multiple accounting and sales systems you’re using, leaving room for error and taking up valuable time of your staff.

The same goes for financial reporting – if your team is taking ages to consolidate or reconcile financial information across varying systems and multiple spreadsheets, they’re wasting their time. ERP software brings all the financials together to a single database, so your accounting department won’t have to spend time cross-checking information or manually reconciling data.

Customer Experience Is Down

Ever have a customer call to order a part, only to realize you didn’t actually have the part in stock after the fact? That follow up phone call, where you have to tell the customer you misspoke and you can’t service them, isn’t a fun one. But even worse than that, it’s a poor experience for your customer. You overpromised and under delivered, and they were the ones who had to shoulder the burden.

Ready to Implement ERP Software?

ComTec Solutions works with business owners to increase profitability, quotability, and productivity through Epicor Kinetic ERP. Contact ComTec Solutions today to discover if we’re the right fit for your business.