How to get the most out of your Support Desk

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

A recent stroll down memory lane reminded me of my first job on a support desk, and it struck me just how much more sophisticated systems have become. I found myself pondering how difficult it must be working on a support desk nowadays and also just how important a good support desk is to someone trying to implement and run a system.

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Four ways to achieve ROI with ERP

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Return on investment (ROI) is often cited in relationship to ERP but not so often achieved.  It doesn’t matter whether you are selecting a new ERP system, are part way through an ERP implementation or living with ERP – reviewing ROI is the best way to ensure ERP adds value to your business. 

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The ERP ROI ‘Promise Game’ – Part 1

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We have all heard it before, ‘Sustainable Competitive Advantage’, ‘Return on Investment’, ‘Increase sales by x%’. Terms often bandied about by ERP vendors in a generalist manner citing studies and research in these areas. However, if we unpack these terms and how organizations view them vs. how ERP vendors use them, there is often little congruence between the two and mistrust and skepticism is often created.

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Where to Customize your ERP – Core vs. Context

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Should an ERP system be customized? That is a question asked by many companies. Although some people say it should never be done, in almost every ERP project one of the first user requests is for customization.

If you accept that customization is a fact of ERP life, then what criteria should the project owner use to select and prioritize customizations? One objective framework for deciding on customization has been provided by consultant and author Geoffrey Moore. In his book ‘Dealing with Darwin’ Moore proposed the concept of ‘core’ and ‘context’ as a way to prioritize growth strategies, but the concept can also be extended to ERP customization.

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Mapping the Supply Chain

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When sitting down to a meal, do you ever take a moment to think about where the food came from? Sadly, I think most people would say the local supermarket.

On a larger scale, a study by KPMG found that nearly half of global manufacturers don’t have any visibility past their direct suppliers. Meaning they cannot see beyond them, to their suppliers’ suppliers. This can have huge implications, especially in industries where traceability is required (such as food and pharmaceutical).

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Managing your Supply Chain with ERP – Part 2

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In Part 1 of this blog I discussed how ERP software helps you better manage the “demand” side of the supply chain.  Now let’s look at the “supply” side.

One of your most important “supply” functions is purchasing, and using an ERP system helps purchasing become more systematic and efficient:

You can track all of the details against purchase orders, such as pricing, quantities ordered and received, and expected vs. actual delivery dates.  This data also lets you monitor supplier performance.

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Flexible ERP Delivering Value

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Recently, a colleague’s daughter travelling between South Africa, England and the US bought, a return train ticket for £48 but missed the departing train due to a flight delay. The result: she was charged the full price of a new ticket (£65), even though she was still going to be catching the return train – and even though the train was almost empty.

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