Enterprise Resource Planning systems abbreviated as ERP are software modules that handle the core functions of a business enterprise, including sales, inventory, purchasing, and accounting. The modules are integrated so that data and transactions pass between departments, most commonly using one central database. Companies use ERP systems to maximize resources, improve customer and vendor relationships, and empower decision makers. Often, companies adopt better business processes with the implementation of an ERP system.
Above definition is stated by Constance Keasler.
I have read many articles from that I have some ideas about ERP.
Now a day's increased the demand for managing information, researchers have researched on integration process and data. ERP is enterprise resource planning software, which is used to integrate the all functions and department through the company as a single computer system that can manage all department's particular needs. If they have ERP system then it integrates them into single, that software system has only one database therefore different department can share their information more easily between them and easy to take management report to decision making .Its helpful for management for future planning. Once install this software perfectly then we can get full benefit from this software.
If the particular company doesn't has ERP system then each of those departments has to be use its own computer system optimize for particular way to achieve the goal.
ERP system contain different major applications such as
Sales and Distribution Module
Inventory
Financials
Human Resources
Purchasing
Product planning
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Manufacturing
Distribution
Warehouse Management System
Decision Support System
Sales and Distribution Module
Order placement, order scheduling, shipping and invoicing can be implemented by this application. This provides efficient flow of information for all departments. It is helpful for customer order management system to take order day by day. This is closely connected with the organization e-commerce sites. When new customers are entered in this system, those customers are immediately affected in finance and other modules because all modules are integrated with this module. When new sales orders are placed in this system, it is automatically checked whether particular items are available or not in the warehouse.
Inventory Module
Following functions are involved in inventory module such as setting targets, identifying inventory requirements, providing replenishment techniques and option, monitoring item usages, reconciling the inventory balances,
Main business process of inventory module is maintaining stock level in ware house.
Financials
Financials module is a one of the important module in the ERP system.
All departments' workflows are tightly integrated with financial application. It could be used to generate valuable financial report. For example, sales margin report, profit and loss account, trial balance, bank reconciliation and cost analysis report. All department and cost center could access financial functionality and analysis report using ERP system.
Human Resource Management
ERP Human Resource System divided into several sub modules. They are Payroll Management, Time Management, Personal Development and Organizational Management. These modules help HR operation by reducing time intensive and redundant administrative task and subordinate expenditure by using self-service application.
Purchasing
Inventory module and product planning module are tightly integrated with purchasing module as well as which is integrated with supply chain management. Following process are involved in this module such as price negotiation, identifying potential suppliers, awarding purchase order with supplier and billing.
Product planning
Following business functions are optimized in production planning module such as Sales forecasting, utilization of manufacturing capacity ,components, parts and material resources using historical production,.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
This is used to mange the relationship between clients and company.
Individual customer Up to date information such as sales activity, promotion, customer activity including targets, requirements as well as support and service level are provided by CRM module. Above information's are helpful for your sales team to get the current market information, resulting improve your customer service.
Manufacturing
Structure of the production from input to process to output is organized and controlled by manufacturing module. Energy waste and minimized inventory and maximized completion capacity are ensured by this module.Resourse allocation and job scheduling is managed by this module, resulting sales and support staff can faster response for customer queries providing accurate information related the job and performance resulting in better customer service.
Tea system For example when marketing department get the order for tea shipment from various customers in different countries, which order as mostly fax paper passes from one department to another department due to delays or lost orders ,and enter this details in different software systems gets data entry errors. Meanwhile no body's knows what status of this shipment order is so that accounts department doesn't know whether shipment is shipped or not so that they can't collect the payment from the customer within a short period.
ERP overcome the old computer system in marketing,shipping,accounts and sales and removes them with single software system which is diverted into single modules those are approximately equal to old system but all modules are integrated with them so somebody in accounts department can view shipment department details because all modules are integrate within single system and single database also.
Implementation
ERP implementation is methodology which consists implementation planning and techniques. Following techniques are used by this methodology for problem solving such as listing, diagramming and documenting all steps. This methodology helps to automate proper and standardised implementation and future maintains as an engineering standard rather than individual software developers.
Following basic step of structured methodologies are important to understand the implementation of ERP system such as
1. Project definition and requirement analysis:-
ERP implementation starts with project planning. Following tasks are involved in the project planning such as determine the business needs, deciding project goals, calculating the project cost, creating communication between key players in both side to maintain project progress status and indicate deadlines in the project plan.
Finally create the logical model and functional specification for the good solution.
2. External Design:- Creating diagrams for all programs, data flow and subroutine for detail selected solutions.
3. Internal Design:-customizing software, building, testing and tuning.
Testing is very important that all functions are tested by the implementation team with real data to prove that the systems are working correctly .Make sure
all important interfaces are created.
4. Pre Implementation:-In the pre implementation stage Evaluation and acceptance are two major processes, evaluation means check whether system achieved or not the objectives that set in the planning stage. If system achieved the goal, system should be accepted.
5. Implementation:-Once the system accepted Implementing systems in the implementation stage.
6. Trainning the employees
Implementation team will be given the training to make use of the system in the day to day and regular basis for the employees in the organization. This process is part of the system in the organization.
7. Post Implementation:- After the implementation post implementation review should be done that includes Evaluation of control and debugging. Once the system is implemented properly that mean when there is proper instruction flow and regular follow up through life time then will get full benefit from the ERP system. Therefore ERP implementation has to be implementing perfectly. Finally evaluate whether software tool to do add value to the business.
Following actions has to be done for successful implementation such as without any mistake and allowing any scope of limitations. If is not performed perfectly then very difficult to successfully complete the project. Very expensive costs and investment this primary factor discourage the ERP in the organation.Designing implementation plan is second primary factor to ensure the successful ERP implementation.
Based in the analysis done in part (a), explain the effect of using the Waterfall Methodology to develop ERP systems. (50% of the available marks)
During the software development many software development approaches are used which are already defined and designed, it's called as software development process model. Water fall model is a most popular version of software development life cycle model used in software engineering. Linear and sequential methods are used in water fall model where each phase of development has different target. first phase development achieved their set of goals then switch off the first phase and start the next phase , can't turn back to previous stage for any modification because if modification made on the previous stage, this effect reflected on the other stages also therefore this previous stage modification may be difficult to process in this model.
Whole processes of water fall model are divided into many phases such as Requirement analysis, Design, Implementation, Testing and Maintenance.
Requirement
Analysis
Design
Implementation
Testing
Maintenance
Fig 1.1 Water fall model of software development
Requirement analysis:-All possible system requirements are collected in this phase which has to be use to develop the system. Requirements are divided into two parts such as functionalities and constraints that requirements are collected from end user by interviewed after that these requirements are analysed whether these requirements are suitable for this system development, a Requirement specification document is created which will use for next phase development.
Design:-First studied the Requirement specification document which is created in first phase and prepared the system design which helps in specifying hardware and system requirements and also helps in creating system architecture after that starting the actual coding, this system design specifications help to start the next phase.
Implementaion & Testing:-Based on the system design specification project is divided into small modules which are developed and tested for its functionality its called unit testing after that all modules are integrated into complete system ,during the integration process system testing tested which check whether all modules are coordinate between each other. After successful system testing, system is delivered to customer.
Maintenance:-Indirectly water fall model is not complete. Generally system developed with some issues because difficult to find whole user requirements in the initial stage therefore after customer use only system issues are solved, not all issues come directly but those will come day to day and have to be solved ,this process is called as maintenance.
Advantages of water fall model:-Departmentalisation and managerial control can allow in the water fall model. Deadlines for each stage of development set as schedule and a product can proceed through the development process. Without any overlapping each phase development proceeds.
Disadvantages of water fall model:-water fall model is linear model so each phase has to be finished without any errors but practically it is difficult, in the requirement analysis phase all requirements gathering from end user are difficult .this affects the system development process. This lead to reduce the system success probability.
Phases are not properly completed during the development time due to this other phases also affected, this result in badly structured system as not all the problems are solved during the development phase.
