Who should manage your ERP or accounting system? 

ERP systems tie together multiple business processes and enable the flow of data between them. ERP systems eliminate data duplication and provide data integrity with a single source of truth by collecting an organization’s shared transactional data from multiple sources.  There are generally three deployment options for ERP systems: Cloud-based, on-premises, and a hybrid of the two. A business can choose from hundreds of types such as finance, supply chain management, and human resource management.  So, who should manage your Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) or accounting system? Should it be the IT team, the finance team, or the operations team?  

IT MANAGMENT

Your ERP system is something you rely on every day to provide information and specific functionality, which is why having the management placed on your IT team makes sense. The functionality issues that are related to network or computer problems will ultimately require assessment by your IT department. However, your ERP system facilitates business processes productivity, and efficiency to grow and expand your business. The software requires computers and networks to function properly. However, computers and networking aren’t the parts of your ERP system that grows your business. As your business changes and expands, your IT department is probably not thinking about how the processes and functions of your ERP should also grow. The IT department is typically concerned with the system’s maintenance and up/downtime.

FINANCE

The heaviest user of the ERP system is most likely your finance team. The reports, transactions, and managing of what is going on and relying on it for all their reporting on business performance. Your finance team is usually not involved in the daily processes of taking orders, inventory, production management, dispatching, etc. Technical skills are required to keep the software performing at its best and ensure that data is not lost,
and your finance team most likely does not have that skill.

OPERATIONS

The operations staff rely on the ERP system for critical information as well. Products to make. Who to help? Where to send the shipments?  Warehouse storage and needs. The ERP system has daily, hourly, and minute-by-minute plans for business functions.
Without it, there is a significant drop in efficiency. Operational staff, however, are focused on the “immediate”.  Processes that need immediate attention to keep the production functioning properly. Future planning and/or historical data concerns are not typically being planned by the operations team.

COMBINATION

The IT department is essential to the proper operation of an ERP system.  However, it should not be overlooked that management, finance, and operational departments need to be involved when it comes to the management of the system. An ERP system needs to adapt with your business to maintain its effectiveness and functionality.  All individuals with a focus on business growth should be involved in ERP management.

When it comes to ERP implementation, your focus should be on working with knowledgeable and experienced professionals like Precision Technology, a subsidy of Precision Talent Group.  

For more information about implementing and properly managing an ERP system, reach out to the professionals at Precision Technology.