According to My GP Cloud, it is no secret that IT departments around the world over have put up a lot of resistance to cloud technologies such as ERP hosting. The nature of online ERP software on-demand and ERP hosting make for a decreased need of IT staff, so resistance is an understandable reaction.
“Most businesses have multiple systems they use to run their business,” states a My GP Cloud expert. This becomes problematic when disparate systems cause these types of problems:
1. Duplicative data entry
2. Different versions of the "truth”
3. Missing data in one system or the other
4. General chaos
So what can you do? Suggest online ERP software experts:
People have generally chosen specific systems because the systems matched how they work and what they wanted to accomplish. This had led to a “best of breed” solution set. Generally, the best of breeds do not naturally “talk” to each other very well.
Therefore, there are two solutions suggested by the experts of online ERP software:
1. Switch to an all-encompassing suite that covers everything you want in one system where the different components of the system are naturally integrated by design.
2. Develop integrations between your existing systems. This requires custom software development.
The first option sounds better because, voila, it is already all there. All you need to do is set it up and start using it. Some problems here:
1. You have to transfer your existing data to the new system
2. You need to license, implement, and train on, a new system
3. Some components of the suite may not be as good as the systems you were using
The second option sounds less appealing because as soon as someone says, “custom software development” your eyes roll back into your head and all you can hear is “Cha-ching.”
This is why custom integrations may be the better way to go:
1. The software developer can often use existing integration components that speed up the development of the project and have already been tested a lot
2. You can design the integration the way you want; to do the things you want it to do
3. You can use the systems you already know and like
4. If your needs change, you can modify the integration
5. It will probably cost less and take less time to implement than a new software suite
It may be unappealing to undertake a custom software development project, but it’s worth considering if you like your current systems and you just want them to play together better.
If you approach it from a different angle, ERP hosting increases the business influence of the IT department.
A recent article online discusses how mobile enterprise applications present IT with the opportunity to take a leading role in the development of new business processes.
As the BYOD movement increases in popularity, IT leaders should see this as an opportunity to take initiative by developing a clear mobile strategy, which will in turn solidify the value of their role suggests My GP Cloud professionals. This way they can show the entire organization that they are true leaders of the business and get buy-in from other leaders in the organization.
Creating a realistic roadmap and business case for the organization’s cloud strategy will prove that strong IT departments are not only still important to organizations of all sizes, but their value is actually increasing as the work force becomes more and more dependent on their electronic devices, online ERP software and mobile computing.
Article Source - http://blog.mygpcloud.com/2013/04/erp-systems-integration
