Paper Example on Enterprise Resource Planning

Introduction

ERP is an acronym used in the business industry for Enterprise Resource Planning. ERP is an enterprise process management software that drives a business into both the automation as well as the integration of its core business in a quest to improve success as well as effectiveness. In a single database as well as application integrates all business applications including manufacturing, product planning, sales, development as well as marketing. The use of the ERP also automates processes like the storage of financial data, keeping inventory records, as well as taking orders from customers (Themistocleous et al., 2001).

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ERP solutions are a significant drive in business since it improves the effectiveness of the business operations, therefore, adding up to the immense success of the enterprise. Several factors necessitated by the ERP are the driving wheel to effectiveness. Taking an example, the ERP may be used to process and translate the business data into information that may be used to for decision making in the business (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000). An ERP may also be used to provide the company with tools that offer higher customer levels. Through many vast implications of using ERP solutions, a business is projected to yield better outputs including higher levels of efficiency as well as higher levels of success.

Trends in ERP solutions may be slow to change. However, with increased technology advancement, ERP solutions undergo a shift to adapt and integrate new technological trends in their services (Themistocleous et al., 2001). It is a move that is projected to increase the efficiency as well as the output of the ERP solutions hence improved success and effectiveness of business operations for businesses.

In this essay, ERP solutions used in Amelectserv are described, having the cost of each solution discussed. The benefits and shortcomings of each ERP solution are also stated in a quest to come up with a suitable ERP solution for Amelectserv operations.

The BERP on Premise

The BERP is an acronym for the Barrel enterprise resource planning. It allows access and management of business data across some departments as well as locations in real time. Through the integration of all enterprise processes, it provides for the automation of critical business operations. Under sales and marketing, the BERP assists in demand planning as well as forecasting. It also brings about the marketing automation as well as real-time analysis (Themistocleous et al., 2001).

The BERP solution has a significant role in financials that is the accounting. It helps account for the cost of goods sold as well as the alternating proprietorship accounting. The BERP solution is vital in the effectiveness in demand planning, production scheduling, and management, quality control, multi-location production, as well as inventory management.

The BERP solution also has vital input in the key performance indicators for a business. It also provides real-time dashboards and scorecards for the enterprise (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000).

Benefits of the BERP

The BERP solution allows for the business management to have an all-round view of all business operations. It is all made possible by the potential of the BERP solution to integrate the business operations in a single unit application or software (Soh, C. et al, 2000). Through it, the management can quickly assess the efficiency of every production department with ease.

The BERP solution captures real-time insights about the key performance indicators in a business. Through this, a company can attribute its success to several elements as well as assess how to improve the reluctant sectors of production. It, therefore, leads to success and increased efficiency in the production (Soh, C. et al, 2000).

The BERP solution also assists in optimizing the inventory levels. It, therefore, leads to reduce the cost of production since much is saved on the optimization of the inventory levels of the business. The BERP solution also leads to cost tracking as well as maximizing yields of a company (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000). Through the factor stated, business is entitled to receiving better returns regarding profitability hence achieving a business' milestone.

Disadvantages of the BERP Solution

The BERP solution tends to offer limited services compared to the Microsoft ERP on-cloud. With the lack of access at any location, the BERP solution stands to provide limits within its solutions providence. Also, for businesses that operate under several branches, the BERP solution would favor not the sync of all branches data to obtain the required information for analysis. It, therefore, implies that less diligent decision would be made if there would exist a mishap in data transfer from one branch to another.

Cost of the BERP Solution

The value of the BERP solution tends to be higher compared to other ERP solutions. It comes with the high rates of maintenance cost imposed on both the ongoing hardware costs as well as the current software cost which are rated at 18%. Also, their enterprise incurs more revenues in the purchase of the original software and hardware required.

The Microsoft ERP on-Cloud

The Microsoft ERP on cloud brings about the use of cloud computing intelligence in business operations. Through it, the enterprise is subjected to speed as well as power in the business organizations (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000). It brings together business intelligence, infrastructure as well as the database to ensure the empowering of the specific business units.

Benefits of the Microsoft ERP on Cloud

There is the convenience in operating with cloud software. One of the convenience benefits include the automatic updates that occur during online sessions while using the ERP solution. It is a process that runs in the background with no need of a being running the update.

The Microsoft ERP brings in the use of smart intelligence which attributes to higher efficiency as well as more success of an enterprise. It is made possible owing to the accuracy in data insights through the integration of the Office 365 as well as the popular CRM (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000).

More productivity is achieved as a result of personalized workspaces. The customized workspaces are applications that allow the users to put emphasis and focus on the crucial aspects of the task required for the job. The single task windows provided by the Microsoft ERP enable easy access to what the user needs to view as well as act upon (Soh, C. et al., 2000).

The Disadvantage of Microsoft ERP on-cloud.The Microsoft ERP on-cloud solution poses a challenge to the fact that if cloud backup would be accessed maliciously or rather cracked. It would lead to the handling of the business information by wrong hands, a factor that would lead to data manipulation or malicious data insertion or deletion (Rosemann, M. et al., 1999).

Also, the Microsoft ERP on-cloud solution would require specialized personnel to handle data security matters for the security of data backed up on-cloud.

Cost of the Microsoft ERP on Cloud

The Microsoft ERP on cloud offers a lower price of operation compared to the BERP solution. It follows after a reduced charge of maintenance for the ongoing hardware and ongoing software cost.

The cost of maintenance for each is rated at 15% with fewer initial hardware costs as well as the initial software costs.

Microsoft ERP on Premise

The Microsoft ERP on-premise has its ERP solutions and model based on the integration, implementation as well as data migration. It includes the sale and collection of margins on software as well as enhancement via a loyal client base. Marketing of the business' products would comprise of sending of direct mails, as well as telemarketing. It also includes the face to face meeting of clients under the marketing (Rosemann, M. et al., 1999).

The Benefits of the Microsoft ERP on-premise.The Microsoft ERP on-premise solutions offer fewer benefits as compared with the rest of the ERP solutions. To start with, the Microsoft ERP on-premise solutions provide a push in the social aspect of a business. Since marketing may occur in a face to face meeting, it proves the fact that enterprises may bring a social push (Rosemann, M. et al., 1999).

For businesses that are small-scale, the Microsoft ERP on-premise would be suitable since it has less cost of both the initial and ongoing cost of hardware as well as that of the software.

The Disadvantage of Microsoft ERP on-premise.As stated earlier, technological advancement may affect the ERP solutions. In the current case, Microsoft ERP on-premise solution is an old solution as a result of technological progress, replaced by the Microsoft ERP on-cloud solution (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000).

On the other hand, Microsoft ERP on-premise solution poses a challenge due to the factor that it does not offer real-time analysis of data and responses from the marketing department. It may also be time-consuming following the fact that the sales and marketing personnel may need a one on one meeting to handle any matter at hand.

Cost of the Microsoft ERP on-premise.

The Microsoft ERP on-premise solution offers the lowest cost of operation among all the discussed ERP solutions. It is attributed to the fact that there are fewer initial hardware costs, ongoing hardware costs as well as the ongoing software costs. Despite an additional charge on the storage, there is the insignificant addition of charge.

Conclusion

Among the three ERP solutions discussed, the Microsoft ERP on cloud solution stands to be the most viable for Amelectserv. It follows the cost benefits as well as the benefits it offers to an enterprise. Since cloud solutions provide competitive advantages over other ERP solutions, the Microsoft ERP solution edges out the rest of the ERP solutions (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000).

In terms of up-to-date solutions for a business operation, the Microsoft ERP on-premise solution would be a poor choice for a solution since it is outdated. Following the need for a more efficient solution, the Microsoft ERP on-cloud solution would offer better services for Amelectserv, despite its high cost of initial and ongoing cost of hardware and cost of software. The additional cost would be compensated back by the more effectiveness as well as efficiency in the output and benefit to the enterprise which surpasses all other analyses solutions (Rosemann, M. et al., 1999).

Also, the Microsoft ERP solution stands to be unique for its user-friendliness as well as access from any location. For Amelectserv, it would be advisable to adopt the Microsoft ERP solution owing to its advantages over other ERP solutions which are unique as well as more efficient (Bernroider, E. et al., 2000).

References

Bernroider, E., & Koch, S. (2000). Differences in Characteristics of the ERP System Selection Process Between Small or Medium and Large Organizatons. AMCIS 2000 Proceedings, 81.

Rosemann, M., & Wiese, J. (1999, December). Measuring the performance of ERP software-a balanced scorecard approach. In Proceedings of the 10th Australasian Conference on Information Systems (Vol. 8, No. 4). Wellington.

Soh, C., Kien, S. S., & Tay-Yap, J. (2000). Enterprise resource planning: cultural fits and misfits: is ERP a universal solution?. Communications of the ACM, 43(4), 47-51.

Themistocleous, M., Irani, Z., & O'Keefe, R. M. (2001). ERP and application integration: exploratory survey. Business Process Management Journal, 7(3), 195-204.