Since there are 122 possible meanings and translations for ERP, I won’t dwell on all of them here, as I did with ORM and CRM. Instead, you can consult Acronym Finder for yourself.

I would like here to get to the heart of the matter and define Enterprise Resource Planning software in concrete terms, namely: it is a business management software that integrates the essential departments of a given entity, such as planning, purchasing, sales, marketing, finance, human resources, order management, or even more.

It’s like a glue that binds different computer systems within a company. That’s why I use “entire” in the title, since it doesn’t matter what organization’s departement names, missions, colors, or size are. ERP software are intended to enable them to communicate and share information more easily by gathering the information and making it widely available.

There is a system security specialist working at System Control Center. Room is Full of Screens Displaying Various Information, illustrating the usage of an enterprise resources planning (ERP)

On the other hand, if an entity does not implement its ERP system correctly, it could end up incurring cost overruns. According to Investopedia, the key to avoiding this would be to prevent ERP projects from being broken up into many smaller ones.

Integrating and automating business processes eliminates redundancies, improves accuracy, and improves productivity. Departments with interconnected processes can now synchronize work to achieve faster and better outcomes.
Investopedia

In addition to streamlining communication across departments, ERPs can provide a single source of information and help companies report data accurately and in real-time. Using it can increase their self-awareness by connecting their data. Integrating the different technologies used by various parts of a business through ERP software can eliminate duplicate and incompatible technologies.

There is a young elegant businesswoman sitting in front of computer monitor, typing and searching for new creative ideas, illustrating the usage of an enterprise resources planning (ERP)

According to Wikipedia, ERPs have a long history with characteristics and functional areas; however, the following elements must be added to complete the definition:

  • On-premises, cloud-hosted, web-based applications, or SaaS are the main ERP software deployment options
  • Increasingly, companies are moving away from on-site ERP systems and adopting the more agile, cloud-based ones, which are managed and maintained by the host or vendor
  • ERP does not necessarily eliminate all inefficiencies in a business. Unless it rethinks its organization, it will end up with incompatible technology
  • ERP should match the needs and goals of the business

Because of a reluctance to abandon old working processes incompatible with the ERP, companies seldom achieve the objectives that influenced their installation. Also, some companies are hesitant to throw out old software that worked in the past. These are the downsides of ERP software.


PC Magazine 10 best ERP software rankings of 2019

Despite the fact that it was published in January 2019 and needs a little refreshment, I will put here the PC Magazine‘s 10 best ERP software rankings so you can get an idea of the ERP solution providers:


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