Visual South Insights

Early in my career, someone shared a piece of wisdom that resonates deeply: “There isn’t anything more expensive than cheap ERP.” Over time, I’ve seen the truth in this statement. The top companies view their ERP system as a strategic asset and invest accordingly. Like sophisticated equipment on the shop floor, an ERP system requires regular maintenance, training, and updates to perform at its best. Neglecting these aspects can lead to suboptimal performance and missed opportunities.

Integrations expand the possibilities in your Infor ERP system

Infor ERP is a comprehensive and technologically sound enterprise resource planning solution that’s tailored toward manufacturing. A large part of the reason Infor offers such a comprehensive system is due to its ability to seamlessly integrate with third-party platforms software using APIs (application programming interfaces).

Knowing when you might need Infor Consulting Services

If you have a Tier 1 Infor manufacturing ERP application, like Infor LN or Infor M3, using Infor Consulting Services (ICS) may make perfect sense. Infor has a large and experienced team that provides implementation and consulting services for what is often a global deployment of these applications.

What does it consist of?

An ERP implementation in the manufacturing industry typically consists of two companies—the company that provides implementation services and the company that procures them—working together to successfully bring the ERP implementation live.

ERP implementations need a project leader

For any project to be successful, it requires a leader, and an ERP implementation is no different.  Projects involve people who take on roles, responsibilities, tasks, and decisions. They are a true team, and everyone’s actions (or inactions) affect the team and project. The ERP Project Manager (or ERP Implementation Manager) is the leader of this team, and is ultimately responsible for the success or failure of the implementation.

Teamwork in ERP implementation

Implementing a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) system can be a humbling challenge for any company. Four critical factors will determine the success of your new ERP implementation:

On-premise vs. cloud ERP implementation

A cloud ERP implementation requires the same elements as an on-premise implementation from a methodology perspective, but not from a technical perspective. The difference lies in the level of responsibility.

Is everything in your budget?

When companies are looking for a new ERP or reimplementing a system, they start with a budget. That budget typically includes standard implementation costs and estimates on service hours from vendors. But those vendor quotes are almost never inclusive of everything. While not hidden, these unexpected costs can be high enough that the budget is at risk.

What is a data migration and why is it important?

ERP data migration is a big step in the implementation process that is critical to get right. The ERP system will not function at optimal levels otherwise. Smaller start-up companies typically have less data to convert than larger businesses that have been around for decades, but data migration takes place in all implementations. So, what is it? In simple terms, it is getting the information out of the old system and putting it in the new system.

There is a process

Implementations are not something a business does all the time, so most tend to look for a consulting group like Visual South to guide them. We have been implementing companies across the country since the early 90s to help them address multiple business needs. Over the decades, we have developed an implementation process that is methodical, thorough, and has consistently proven to be successful. Here are some of the ERP implementation services we offer and why we think they play a big role in the overarching plan.