The business world is now full of competition. Who will be the changemaker of the market? Who will have a competitive advantage over others? Who will make the most profit? It’s all about these competitions. To stay strong in this intense fight, businesses must equip themselves with the latest and effective tools available. As for businesses, ERP systems are a game-changer. It is helping managers to make big decisions in an instant. That is a big advantage.
So how do you develop an ERP system for your business? We have discussed that in this step-by-step guide. So have a look.
What is an ERP system?
ERP is short for Enterprise Resource Planning. It is a software system that integrates all the important functions of a business, links them with each other, and presents them in one dashboard.
You can say that it is software that provides an overall snapshot of a company. The ERP systems usually work with the internet. Generally, they are cloud-based software. But there are some exceptions in which case the software works in one central database of a company to provide live results without the internet.
As everything is connected to one screen, managers can plan and assign resources in different departments in different quantities to deal in the market. It is very helpful as your business expands and traditional methods fall short for asset management.
Steps for building an ERP system
So now let’s summarize all the steps that you must go through to develop an ERP system for your business. We will be beginning from the very first step which is to identify the necessity of an ERP system in your company.
Define your goals/ expectations
The very first step is to identify the necessity of implementing an ERP system. We think all businesses, big or small, should implement this system.
Before developing the ERP system, you must first determine what you expect from the system. What features and functionality do you want this system to offer, etc.
Take as much time as you need. Also, bring some experts on this matter on board to help you identify any loose ends and prepare a better outline before starting the development process.
Draw a detailed outline for implementing the ERP system
After defining your goals/expectations, it is time to give them a detailed form. Outline how the system will be implemented in the organization.
A business/ organization has different departments. There is the finance and accounting department, the marketing and selling department, the production, and manufacturing department, and the human resource department. There could be more such as research and development (R&D) departments.
It doesn’t matter how many departments and branches your business has. But it is important to have a module for each department in the ERP system and also link all branches of the business in the system.
How will these modules look and how will they be linked with each other? That is what you need to do in this step.
Develop the system
When you have finished preparing a detailed and refined version of your ERP system outline, it is time to develop the actual system itself.
Of course, this step will involve reliable software developers and testers. So you will need to do some research on finding the best software development company.
An ERP system development involves hosting, database, UI & UX development, and compatibility.
Hosting can be done in many ways. But the common methods are on-premise and cloud hosting. On-premise hosting means installing all the servers and databases of the software in the company building/ premise. This can allow the system to work without the internet, but remote access can be an issue.
That issue can be solved with a cloud computing hosting system. We recommend you go for cloud-computing hosting. There are some third-party cloud hosting ERP services. That can save you from all the trouble that comes with ERP system development.
Whether you go for a third-party system (buy), or you build your own, you must make sure that the system is compatible with the current facilities in your business. Compatibility should be the first thing to be concerned about in any system development.
Test
Whether you build or buy an ERP system, you must test it out by yourself in your business to be sure of its capability. Otherwise, things can go the other way around and cost you a lot in the global competition.
But testing the whole thing by yourself manually can be a lengthy process. Also, a few errors may slip out of our observation. So this will not be a 100% effective testing method.
What to do then? Our suggestion is to hire a reliable software tester company if you have built the ERP system by yourself. If you have brought it from a third-party provider, then contact them. They can arrange a testing process to ensure the 100% effectiveness of their system.
Whatever the situation is, do not skip steps before taking the system online for your business. Remember, it is better to be late and right than to be first and wrong.
Conduct regular maintenance
Your work is not done after testing and bringing the system online. You will need to do frequent maintenance of the system. And with every new installment, you make in the system, you will have to test it out again to identify any error.
This will not be an issue if it is a third-party ERP system. Because the vendor takes responsibility for the maintenance and development of the system.
Conclusion
So that is how you can build an ERP system for your business. Whether you buy or build the system, you will have to put effort into setting your expectations and designing an outline.
Luckily, some third-party ERP system vendors can provide these services of proper inspection of your business model and provide you with an outline. But since it is your business, we recommend you implement your own take on how the ERP system will be implemented.