Looking for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions for your small or medium-sized business? SAP Business One might sound familiar, especially if you have been looking for one of the best ERP systems available. SAP Business One is an excellent choice for SMBs and also larger enterprises. This definitive guide to SAP Business One is going to tell you everything essential about the system, so you can understand it before buying the ERP that suits your business best.
Let’s get started.
What is SAP Business One?
SAP Business One is an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system that was designed with small and mid-sized businesses and enterprises in mind. What does that mean for you? Basically, an ERP is an all-encompassing solution that has numerous functionalities for managing your business. Since the data gathered by SAP Business One remains within the database, every single module in the system uses the same information.
This is great for businesses because you don’t have to worry about manually entering data into a variety of programs to calculate finances, generate invoices, and manage your inventory or warehouse. SAP Business One does that all for you.
Additionally, SAP Business One automates data collection then delivers real-time reports. You can accurately budget for your business and plan ahead for purchases, manufacturing, and more.
Who Uses SAP Business One?
Running a business means encountering numerous issues. Naturally, you want to remove some of the obstacles in your path, so you can keep your customers satisfied.
If you have experienced any of the following, then SAP Business One is for you:
- Your current accounting software lacks many of the functions needed for accurate reporting and calculations
- Your employees struggle with time management
- Your business operations are impossible to accurately track, analyze, and report
- You are still using multiple programs and spreadsheets for data
- Your sales order process flow is struggling to compete with other businesses
- You want more insight into all the processes within your business
What Modules Are Included in SAP Business One?
SAP Business One offers a 360-degree view of your business with a range of modules that can be customized to suit your needs. Regardless of your industry, there is a module or several that you can use to enhance productivity and efficiency.
Modules include:
- Administration
- Finance
- Banking
- Business Partners
- Inventory Management
- Sales
- Purchasing
- Resources
- Material Requirements Planning (MRP)
- Production Management
- Service Management
- Project Management
- Human Resources
- Reports
Pros and Cons of SAP Business One
For most SMBs and enterprises, SAP Business One is an extremely useful and flexible ERP solution. However, it is always important to do your research before settling on an ERP system for your business. That’s why you should consider the following advantages and disadvantages of SAP Business One:
SAP Business One Pros
- Quick and easy implementation. Unlike other ERP systems, SAP Business One takes a few weeks to set up and deploy throughout your business. With an experienced partner, such as Wisys, you can get SAP Business One up and running without interrupting your business processes. Plus, you can get educational tools and resources for your employees.
- Operations get streamlined. SAP Business One centralizes your information and provides a dashboard of essential stats for you to view. You can also access information from inventory, human resources, accounting, and more all from one system.
- Automatic alerts. No one wants to miss vital information. SAP Business One gives you automatic reports and alerts. Out-of-stock scenarios, budgeting, supply chain, and human resources alerts are sent to you within seconds, so you can stay a step ahead of challenges.
- Integration options with third-party software and applications. You can integrate a number of applications to increase the functionality of SAP Business One. Do you run an e-commerce store? SAP Business One can synchronize data with whatever platform you use, increasing productivity.
- Transparent business operations. Keep tabs on stock in different warehouses, check out data from your e-commerce site, and update information about items and customers across the board all from one place with SAP Business One.
SAP Business One Cons
- Complex. The scale of SAP Business One can be intimidating at first. Mastering the modules and all the functions can be challenging. That is why you need a partner like Wisys to guide you and troubleshoot issues.
- No payroll options. While SAP Business One has several modules that deal with income and losses, there is nothing to help you with payroll. While you can add payroll functionality through an integration, you will need to discuss options with an SAP Business One consultant.
How Do You Implement SAP Business One?
Once you have done your research on SAP Business One and decided that it is the right solution, it is time to choose a partner and begin the implementation. From there, the steps include:
- Installation. This step allows you to evaluate your current practices and procedures. Take a moment to figure out which processes you would like to automate or keep manual. Your SAP Business One partner will be responsible for creating the infrastructure, such as data collection and networking, for your version of SAP Business One.
- Migration. The next step is data migration, where all the records you have are transferred into SAP Business One.
- Testing. A quality assurance engineer will check the system—the interfaces, reports, and functionality—to make sure SAP Business One is ready for use.
- Training. Because SAP Business One can be overwhelming, user training prior to launch is important. Since SAP Business One changes the way employees work, they will have to be comfortable with the changes first.
- Deployment. There are many approaches to deployment. Choose a method that is best for your business and employees, a way that limits disruptions. Once SAP Business One launches, there will be more testing and auditing.
- Ongoing Support. Assistance doesn’t end once SAP Business One is launched. Your software provider should be with you every step of the way to fix errors and troubleshoot issues that arise.
Overall, this process takes a couple of months to complete. Make sure you are choosing an SAP Business One provider who is committed to making the transition as seamless as possible.
Bottom Line
SAP Business One is an ideal solution for small and medium-sized businesses looking to evolve and grow. With SAP Business One, you can streamline data collection and entry, manage your inventory and finances, and increase customer satisfaction. Now that you know more about SAP Business One, consider finding a reputable partner, like Wisys.
Whether you are looking to deploy SAP Business One or need assistance with the program, Wisys has a solution. Give us a call today at 770-955-3530 for more information about what we do.