#5

5. Imagine that you are conducting a field based research project for your ERP class in a small local    business. Assume that the business is a custom furniture manufacturer. In the course of your project, you tell the owner that you are using SAP B1 in your ERP class. The owner asks if he should be using SAP or some other ERP system in his business. What would be your response? What questions would you ask or what information would you need to answer that question?

                First and foremost, with regards to question if the owner should really use any of the SAP or ERP systems. For me, it depends upon the situation but with this example assuming that the furniture business has a lot of branches and considered as high grossing company I should say they will really need a SAP or any ERP systems, because with that kind of company it needs to be automated and since it has a lot of branches the transaction of any information must be accurate and on time.

                Most probably, the questions needed to be ask on this kind of situation are the basic and common thing they’re doing on their processing. Like for example, the nature of the company, the vision and mission, the data from their products to the data of their employees and other important things particularly the supplier. But to capture a very good analization with your system to be created is to observe regularly the daily process of the company.

#4

4.  Choose a familiar Web Site, such as Dell, Amazon, and so on. Describe the order – to – cash process from the customer’s perspective as illustrated by that site.

               

The order-to-cash process

Ø  Build business value with order-to-cash solutions from Dell Services.

Ø  Manage costs of operations and administration

Ø  Cut length of cycle from order to application of cash

Ø  Gain insight into customers and increase satisfaction

Ø  Support internal controls and ensure compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley requirements

Ø  Choose the service level that’s right for your business

Minimizing costs and maximizing profits are fundamental to business success—yet relatively few enterprises consider their order-to-cash process a strategic priority when it comes to improving the bottom line. An ineffective order-to-cash process can rob an enterprise of available capital through:

Ø  High order-taking error rates

Ø  High order-fulfillment error rates

Ø  High DSO (days sales outstanding) rates

Ø  High cost of dispute resolutions

Ø  Inefficient / ineffective collection processes

Ø  Long-term losses due to customer defections

Dell Services Business Process Solutions can help  you achieve measurable results through:

Ø  F&A Process Assessments

Ø  F&A Process Outsourcing

Ø  Order-to-Cash Processing

Ø  Procure-to-Pay Processing

Ø  Imaging and Mailroom Operations

Ø  Global Transaction

Dell Services can rapidly transform your order-to-cash process to reduce transactional costs and shorten cycle times. Our expertise in business processes, our unique blend of onshore and offshore capabilities, and our commitment to proven technologies and best practices ensure the results you need through a relationship you can trust.

(http://www.dell.com/learn/us/en/19/business~solutions~brochures~en/documents~order-to-cash-processing-solutions-brochure.pdf)

#3

3.   Conduct research on an ERP package, such as Microsoft Dynamics GP or Microsoft Dynamics NAV, for small – to –         medium sized (SME) organizations (between $30m and $ 1b in revenue). Compare that package for available modules, functionality, and so on to the SAP system.

According to Guy Weismantel, director of ERP marketing at Microsoft Dynamics, the company focuses on a couple of areas. The first is the needs of its largest customers, which are mid-sized enterprises and subsidiaries of global organization in key verticals: retail, manufacturing, professional services, public sector and distribution. Next are those customers that desire an ERP solution for improved financials and operations, or who require ERP tailored to a specific market. Business software is often primarily a reactive tool, detecting problems instead of emerging trends, and complexity can slow the ability of companies to make critically needed business process changes, said Weismantel. "Business software should be a critical enabler, facilitating decisions and proactively driving change into practice," he said. "Microsoft Dynamics is committed to a vision of software that fulfills this promise, evolving for a changing world to enable the dynamic business." While, SAP ERP (SAP.com/ERP) is a suite comprising full financials, human resources (HR), operations, procurement, treasury and other business functions. It offers a single technology stack via NetWeaver that supports ERP, CRM, BI, analytics, performance management, governance, risk and compliance, and other elements. The basic idea is to simplify implementation and ongoing maintenance, and lower total cost of ownership (TCO)."SAP's ERP architecture is completely real-time, unlike other vendors who require batch postings to transfer information between interfaced ERP systems," said Himmelberger. "A new feature known as the Switch Framework enables users to implement upgraded business features as needed, without re-implementation or disruptive system maintenance." SAP doesn't focus on any specific verticals. It tends to play well in just about all of them and lists dozens of links to specialized ERP implementations on its site. "SAP's ERP customer base is the largest and broadest in the industry," said Himmelberger. "Recent growth continues to be double-digit, and even higher in emerging economies."

 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAP_ERP)

#2

2.Conduct research on an ERP package other than SAP that would be suitable for a large organization (>Php 1      

      billion in revenue) and compare the modules that it has to SAP modules.

As our ERP research has shown, both SAP and Oracle eBusiness Suite (EBS) have strengths, weaknesses, and tradeoffs. Different clients have different needs, ranging from functional requirements, technical maturity, tolerance for risk, budget, and a host of other factors. The vast differences between these two ERP solutions are underscored by the fact that we often recommend different solutions for different clients in the exact same industry.

So what are the differences between these two solutions? Although there are numerous variances in the detailed workflows and functionality of the solutions, there are five key high-level variables to consider when evaluating SAP and Oracle EBS:

Best of breed functionality vs. more tightly integrated modules. The software strategy of the two vendors could not be much different. While SAP has built a solution primarily from the ground up, Oracle has grown primarily through acquisition of best-of-breed point solutions. For example, Oracle has acquired Demantra for advanced sales and operations planning, Hyperion for financial reporting, and Siebel for CRM, while SAP has built much of this functionality into its core ECC and All In One ERP solutions.

Product roadmap. SAP continues to build upon and enhance its core product offering, while Oracle is moving toward Fusion. While some may suggest that Oracle is more innovative or visionary in its technology direction, it also means that there may be more uncertainty with Oracle’s product lines. This is especially true for clients considering Oracle’s JD Edwards and PeopleSoft solutions.

Flexibility. Although very powerful, SAP can be more difficult to change as a business evolves. This is both a strength and a weakness: it is tightly integrated and helps enforce standardized business processes across an enterprise, but it can be more difficult to modify the software to adjust to evolutions to core processes and requirements. Oracle’s best of breed approach, on the other hand, can allow for more flexibility to accommodate changing business needs, but this strength can become a weakness when it becomes harder to enforce standardized processes across a larger organization.

Implementation cost, duration, and risk. Although both solutions typically cost more and take longer to implement than most Tier II ERP software, there are distinct differences between the two. Oracle has a slight advantage in average implementation duration and an even larger advantage in average implementation cost, at 20% less than SAP. SAP, on the other hand, has the lowest business risk of the two, measured via the probability of a material operational disruption at the time of go-live.

Business benefits and satisfaction. This is perhaps SAP’s greatest strength. Although Oracle has the highest executive satisfaction level of all ERP vendors included in our 2008 ERP Study of 1,300 implementations across the globe, SAP leads the pack in actual business benefits realized. Assuming the #1 reason most companies implement ERP software is to achieve tangible business benefits, this can be enough to justify SAP as a solid solution for many companies.

The key takeaway here is that, as with any ERP solution, SAP and Oracle both have their strengths and weaknesses. One solution may be the best fit for one organization, while not a good fit for others, even within the same industry. The only way to make sense of the pros and cons in a way that is meaningful to your organization is to engage in a robust ERP software selection process that considers your requirements, priorities, and competitive advantages to find the right fit.

ARTICLES FROM ERIC KIMBERLING 

(http://www.enterpriseappstoday.com/erp/enterprise-erp-buyers-guide-sap-oracle-and-microsoft-1.html)