Companies looking for new ERP systems are predominantly only interested in cloud applications. However, some are still looking for on-premise applications. It is not as massive of a shift to cloud applications as we are led to believe. Many companies are still ok with having a server onsite because they have internal IT expertise or have a leading provider, such as Rackspace, hosting the application on a private cloud.
I have been in the ERP business since 1997. While I’ve been in a sales role since 2002, my first five years in the industry were spent as an ERP consultant. This hands-on experience has given me a unique perspective on what makes for good versus bad consulting. At Visual South, we believe consultants are as important as the ERP software you choose. If you are actively evaluating ERP solutions and are interested in learning why evaluating consultants is as important as evaluating software, you can read all about it in this blog. If you are interested in getting foundational knowledge on the basics of ERP consulting, then read on.
Visual South has sold and implemented Infor ERP for over 25 years. The Infor CloudSuite Industrial/Syteline solution is the most technologically advanced and functionally rich application that we have worked with. Prospects note that it is far superior in regard to manufacturing-centric functional depth and user experience (the Infor OS).
Listing all the benefits of VISUAL ERP would be a book, not a blog post. But you didn’t come here to read a book, so I’ve chosen what I think are the most significant benefits that manufacturing companies will get out of using VISUAL ERP.
Infor is somewhat different than other ERP providers in that it tries to provide as complete a solution as possible with Infor supported, developed, and enhanced applications. Other ERP systems often rely on third-party applications using point interfaces or APIs. An API, short for application programming interface, basically allows for different software applications to work together by virtue of pushing and receiving data between each other. The ability to leverage APIs is important because it provides the ability to use other, third-party systems to exchange data and communicate with the host ERP system in order to build out business functionality.
When manufacturers look for areas to grow their revenue and find high-margin opportunities, many focus on the service component of their operation. Our team at Visual South has talked to many companies with ongoing initiatives to improve both after-market sales for replacement parts and service agreements with customers. This is especially prevalent in the engineer-to-order space and capital equipment.
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Hi, I'm Jack Shannon. If you're looking for ERP software, you're probably wondering how are you going to get the data that you need out of that ERP software.
Infor understands this. So, this is what Infor has to offer:
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Hi, I'm Jack Shannon. If you're looking for ERP, you might be wondering how you're going to integrate your other programs into that ERP.
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Hi, I'm Jack Shannon. If you're looking for ERP, there's a lot to choose from, but is it affordable?
Affordability is a subjective topic without any defined boundaries; but it's an important topic. You don't want to waste your time looking for software you can't afford, but how do you know that you can't afford it if you haven't figured out what you can afford?
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Hi, I'm Jack Shannon. If you're looking for ERP software, you want a complete solution, not a partial solution.
A partial solution by definition is not going to handle all of your business needs. You'll have gaps and you'll need to fill those gaps with something. Chances are, you'd be filling those gaps with spreadsheets. That's probably the environment you have today. It's probably the environment you're trying to get away from now.
