As companies grow and departmentalize their operations, it is increasingly important to ensure that the separation of function does not inhibit efficiency by erecting communication barriers. Smaller companies may be able to find tools to prevent this problem from occurring. Others, especially larger companies that operate complicated supply chains with thousands of suppliers and customers find creating effective links between departments more difficult. One way companies are successfully bridging the information gap between departments is by utilizing Enterprise Resource Planning or ERP. When utilized in the right way, ERP ties each organization function together in such a way that all departments know what is happening at all times. Creating uniform knowledge, which is readily available throughout every company department, is very beneficial for an organization. The following paper will outline the primary theoretical advantages of utilizing Enterprise Resource Planning.
91 percent of organizations report that efficiency is one of the top ten benefits of implementing ERP. There are so many aspects of the ERP system that streamline operations that efficiency is a natural effect. Less manual entry as well as the prevention of duplicate entry improves speed and decreases errors. These improvements, in turn, allow employees to use their expertise and valuable time in other ways for the company. Improving information uniformity and availability also impacts efficiency in such a way that cycle time can be reduced . This is all made possible because software and processes among departments have been standardized to immediately respond to an order when this may have previously taken long periods of time. Consider the following scenario. An order is placed for a laptop with unique specifications. Without ERP, multiple departments and or suppliers must be individually contacted to obtain the parts to assemble the machine. An ERP System