guide to choosing an online erp

Grow your business with online ERP See the bigger picture and make better business decisions

2 Grow your business with online ERP myob.com/enterprise

Contents

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Realise the full potential of your business 3

Making the right choice 3

A closer look at online ERP 4

The benefits of online ERP 4

Online security 5

Which online ERP will meet your needs? 6

Choosing the right online ERP provider 7

Avoid fake online ERP 8

A solution that grows with you 8

Start taking care of business with online ERP 9


Realise the full potential of your businessThe key to taking your business to the next level is having the right technology solutions in place. This is essential if you want to gain the ability to look into every aspect of your entire operation. When you can see the bigger picture, you’ll make better decisions. You can plan ahead and grow. And you’ll save time and money.

Many small and medium businesses enjoy the benefits of modern technology through an online enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution. With an online ERP they are able to realise the full potential of their business.

Making the right choice Choosing an online ERP can be confusing. There is a growing list of vendors offering a range of different ERP models with features that may or may not be beneficial to your business. So how do you determine which ERP solution will meet your individual business needs?

This guide will help you understand everything you need to know about working online with an ERP solution and how to evaluate which one will best suit your business goals, workloads, performance and security requirements.


A closer look at online ERP ERP software that is deployed, run and accessed in an online environment is classified as online ERP.

An online ERP is deployed and managed across multiple servers and database resources. This provides you with plenty of flexibility, allowing you to easily scale resources up or down as your needs change.

All data lives online rather than on individual physical devices, such as your desktop computer or tablet, so your data is easy to access and manage. It also means your data is highly protected with encryption, key management and strong access controls.

The benefits of online ERP Online ERP solutions provide the flexibility to build an entire business management solution that meets all of your individual needs. With online ERP your business benefits from:

> Access business information anytime, anywhere from any device with a browser

> Data updated in real time, so you’ll never use out of date information

> Pricing is subscription based to be more cost effective

> Resources can be easily scaled up or down as you pay per user

> Automatic upgrades to ensure you’re always using the latest version

> Quick implementation for an easy transition to a new system

> Hosted and managed by service provider, so you can focus on your business


Online securityA major concern for businesses thinking about choosing an online ERP solution is security. They want to know if their private information will be safe in the hands of third-party providers and if they can get their data back when a contract ends.

Some worried businesses implement private or on-premises ERP instead of moving online. They believe their company data will be safer. However, this isn’t always the case. Often, an online ERP solution provides you with stronger security and data protection than a private deployment. That’s because online ERP providers:

> Rely greatly on providing high levels of security because a breach would destroy their reputation and put them out of business

> Build redundancy, security and data protection into their online ERP

> Usually have stronger virtual and physical security measures in place and these are validated through regular audits

> Usually hire specialised IT staff with in-depth security knowledge


Which online ERP will meet your needs?Here are some questions to help assess your business. Once answered you’ll be able to decide whether or not a particular online ERP solution will meet all of your individual business needs.

What are your business goals?

Identify your priorities. Maybe you want to improve cost management, productivity or decision-making. Note down how you intend to measure success.

What kind of resources do you have or need?

Make sure you assess what kind of experts you have in your company and if you’ll need any external resources.

What kind of features must you have?

It’s highly likely you’ll need a solution capable of financial and customer management. Is integration with other applications a priority? Maybe your business also needs multi-currency support.

Do you have to meet any external requirements?

This includes any external regulatory requirements relevant to your industry and also customer, supplier or partner requirements.


Choosing the right online ERP provider There are many online ERP vendors trying to win your business. So how do you choose the right one? What you’re looking for is a vendor who will become a trusted partner. A vendor that will take the time to know your business before recommending a solution.

Before you do business with a vendor, ask yourself if they:

> Provide clear information about their solutions?

> Offer demos or trails?

> Provide transparent pricing?

> Offer strong presale customer support?

> Clearly state important details such as contract length, terms, data protection and security, plus who owns the business data and what happens to it if you decide to terminate the contract?

> Provide customer references?


Avoid fake online ERP Do not trust vendors who host their ERP solution in a remote environment and try to pass it off as an online solution. This is deceptive because these applications are not designed to be used online. They often lack all the features and benefits of a true online ERP.

The following points will help you spot a fake online ERP application:

> Vendors usually require you to pay for the software upfront rather than on a subscription basis

> Pricing model is based on the number of users or clients

> The ERP system is accessed via remote terminal applications that must be installed on each user’s device

> You have to install software on your mobile devices in order to use mobile apps

> You can’t easily scale up or down when your needs change

> You have to use propriety tools in order to integrate the ERP software with third party applications

> Lacks the latest security tools required to protect your data

A solution that grows with you It’s a good idea to implement an online ERP solution that allows you to add more features as your business grows and your needs change. You can start off with the main functions and then easily deploy additional modules as you see fit.

Take a look at a vendor’s third-party providers for any applications your business needs. These can be used to create an online ERP solution tailored to your business.


Start taking care of business with online ERP An online ERP solution can help take your business to new heights. It will provide greater insight into your business. You’ll also gain more control, along with the flexibility to grow. You’ll have the power to take control of the complexities of managing your business at every level, and support all aspects of management.

With a wide range of vendors and online ERP solutions to choose from, it’s important for you to assess all of your needs in detail. This will help you determine the best online ERP deployment for your business.

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