Systems Advisory Services (SAS) Acquires Operations Resource Group (ORG)

Press Release
September 1, 2023

 

Systems Advisory Services (SAS) is pleased to announce the acquisition of Operations Resource Group (ORG) effective August 31, 2023.

ORG is a 25+ year successful SYSPRO VAR providing technology solutions supporting small to mid-sized businesses, helping them streamline system operations, efficiencies and optimum growth. With a core focus on SYSPRO ERP, ORG has grown to be one of the premier SYSPRO partners in the US.

Both SAS and ORG are Elite Partners of SYSPRO, and by joining forces, become the go to Partner for SYSPRO on the West Coast.

Grahame Martin, Practice Manager of SAS, outlines: “Julia and her team at ORG are recognized leaders in the SYSPRO market, having built a brand and company well respected within the SYSPRO community and amongst their clients. By joining forces and combining expertise, we’re excited to extend our comprehensive set of services to clients, helping service their needs better, and drive their businesses forward.”

Julia Maynard, President of ORG, noted:

This acquisition is like coming “home” again.  SAS is where I started my career in 1996 and it is perfect timing to be back with the team I started with.  In some ways I never left. We have stayed close throughout the years, sharing insights and projects so our clients receive the very best of what is available – and possible. I am excited! This is a big positive for ORG and all of our clients.

About Systems Advisory Services:

As an ERP Systems Integrator that has served the middle market since 1990, we pride ourselves on leveraging technology to help manufacturers and distributors optimize their business performance. Our focus is on long-term partnerships whereby we can add value to our customers’ evolving needs.

Our team of dedicated professionals come from diverse backgrounds, are seasoned in application software, and understand how to apply technology to solve common business problems within your organization. By focusing on end users from the shop floor to the C-Suite, we’ve delivered many successful ERP implementations on time and on budget, ensuring stakeholder satisfaction.

How manufacturers can adopt a sustainable supply chain

(reposted from SYSPRO USA)

Due to increasing pressure from various stakeholders, many companies are turning their focus to ensuring that their supply chains are sustainable. Some people see the concept of a sustainable supply chain as being pushed on them, but there are good business reasons why companies should implement sustainable supply chains — it’s not just social or environmental consciousness.

What is a sustainable supply chain?

A sustainable chain involves implementing sustainable practices at each stage of the supply chain, from raw material sourcing and production to transportation, distribution, and end-of-life disposal. The aim is to minimize the negative impact on the environment and society while maximizing the economic benefits.

The World Economic Foundation [https://www.weforum.org/] have produced reports to show the economic benefits of adopting a sustainable approach, for example:

  • Beer packaging, processing, distribution: costs reduced by 20%
  • Mobile phones: remanufacturing costs reduced by 50%

Benefits of being sustainable

Sustainable supply chains may be part of a larger ESG (environmental, social, and governance) program. A recent report by the IDC noted some benefits of these programs.

  • Companies with successful ESG programs can improve their market position and brand strength
  • ESG initiatives can help improve overall financial performance
  • Customers are often attracted to companies that apply ESG considerations
  • Companies with ESG strategies can more easily adapt to changes in regulatory and legal requirements

As a business driver, companies that have incorporated sustainability initiatives have reduced waste, improved cost-effectiveness and efficiency in operations, created new revenue streams, and enabled product innovation.

Process changes to improve sustainability

What sort of process changes should manufacturers be looking at to improve sustainability?

  • Product design – use of appropriate materials; design the product for extended future use.
  • Use digital technology – monitor resource and equipment use; use online platforms to connect with supply chain partners.
  • Extend what is already made – repair and maintain products to maximize their lifetime; implement a return strategy when applicable.
  • Adopt regenerative processes – ensure renewable, reusable materials are used in an efficient way.
  • Re-use waste – recover waste for reuse and recycling into other products.
  • Collaborate with partners – work together with supply chain partners to identify areas for improvement and to create joint value.

How can your ERP help with a sustainability program

An ERP system has several tools that support sustainability.

Engineering Change Control

Engineering Change Control allows a manufacturer to plan and check the items that constitute a product during the development phase, and how best to incorporate pre-used parts and recycled materials. If a recycled component is found to be defective, a capability like a ‘where-used’ search can be used to identify all of the parts or products that might be affected and quickly mitigate any risk of further problems.

Bill of Materials

Manufacturers looking to incorporate recycled material in their production process, without compromising the final product, should be updating their Bill of Materials (BOM). The BOM ensures there is full control of the quantity, quality, and cost of the materials, and controls the hierarchy of the resources, items and parts that comprise a product. Information from the BOM can help companies trace and report on the percentage of recycled materials that make up the final product sold to customers.

Inventory Management

Excess stock is one waste companies can avoid, but if some stock has an expiry date, it is important to make sure the items are used in time. An inventory management system that logs and tracks these criteria, through accurate stock control and integration with sensors, provides the assurance that there is no excess stock and items are used before expiry.

Supply chain management

By using a web platform that enables online transactions with supply chain partners, manufacturers can improve collaboration with them. For example, ensuring that if a BOM is changed to include recycled material, the change of requirements is seamlessly passed on to suppliers. In the other direction, suppliers can provide input into the design of a BOM to include more sustainable parts and materials.

Managing by-products

Managing by-products opens the opportunity to reuse materials in the production process and reduces waste. Manufacturers can generate new revenue streams by selling by-products into the market or to other organizations that can use them.

Big data management

Manufacturers can now offer services to customers to provide on-site notification of potential problems and pre-emptive maintenance, and therefore extend the usefulness and life of a product. This requires an ERP system that can handle large volumes of data from sensors that monitor the status of components.

Returns management

Enabling returns is crucial for customer retention, and it is important to optimize the way returns are managed. Returns management allows manufacturers to oversee a product’s life cycle from its purchase to its return by a customer for disposal or resale. With returns management in their ERP system, manufacturers can identify if the returned item should be sent back to a supplier, can be refurbished, or should be disposed of.

The drive for sustainable supply chains

The Governance & Accountability Institute has reported that sustainability reporting is being adopted by a huge number of companies. Having a sustainable supply chain is therefore not just a minority view. By creating a sustainable chain, manufacturers can improve their reputation, reduce costs, and increase efficiency, apart from contributing to a better society and environment. Customers and stakeholders are increasingly demanding sustainable products, and a sustainable chain can help meet these demands while also creating long-term value.

Four ways Cloud is changing the ERP channel landscape

(reposted from SYSPRO USA)

The ERP channel landscape is transforming. While on-premises ERP deployments are still more common than one might think among mid-market manufacturers and distributors, Cloud ERP deployment has rapidly accelerated. According to Panorama Consulting’s ERP Report, in 2019 44% of companies deploying ERP chose the cloud but by 2022 this increased to 65% choosing a cloud model.

These rapid changes have enormous implications for the channel. ERP vendors and customers still need the expertise of Value-Added-Resellers (VARs) and other channel partners, but these partners will need to adapt to this uptake in cloud models.

Here’s how cloud is changing the ERP channel landscape:

New business strategies

The Cloud ERP model is fundamentally altering what manufacturers and distributors buy, as well as the role of the partners they buy from. These changes are bringing both challenges and opportunities for partners. The scope of what they do is much broader and more strategic: they’re becoming agents of change and driving the digital transformation of their clients. With cloud, forward-looking partners are going far beyond merely implementing a vendor’s software. They’re helping their clients decide how to implement a range of technologies – like AI, IoT, and automation to advance and transform their businesses.

A shift in skills

According to the Wall Street Journal, cloud computing jobs grew 94% from 2017 to 2020, compared to 20% growth for tech job postings in general. In addition to the traditional hardware, software and networking skills needed for on-premises ERP, there is now a need to add cloud infrastructure, cloud security and privacy management.

In a labor market that’s already tight, hiring cloud specialists will be especially hard. As a result, channel companies will need to upskill their current employees. Solid training programs are now table stakes to remain competitive. There is an opportunity for ERP vendors to incentivize partners to stay abreast of technology developments. Along with incentives, ERP vendors need to continuously update materials and training resources to empower channel partners.

Redefined revenue models

ERP channel companies have long built their businesses on up-front licenses complemented by ongoing support fees. In this newer world of cloud ERP, licenses are replaced by subscription models. This change should make revenue more predictable, ultimately providing a stabilizing effect. While revenue profiles of partners are changing, their costs are also reducing, as implementations are getting easier since they can now be done remotely.

A new definition to partner success

As the role of partners evolves with cloud to be strategic business partners, it will be crucial for ERP vendors to evolve too. Partnership structures need to be geared more around achievement of client success, satisfaction, and engagement. Partner competencies need to be fully certified, and tiering should reflect the partner’s investment in joint business development initiatives.

ERP is a long-term play because it’s a core platform on which manufacturers and distributors build their business operations. As ERP continues to move to the cloud, it will open up new opportunities for the channel. So long as they work together, vendors and their channel partners can forge a new model that works for everyone.

We are committed to helping our partners transform their businesses to succeed as the market changes. If you’re looking for industry specialists who know manufacturing and distribution and are committed to the success of the channel, get in touch. We’d love to talk with you about the opportunities ahead.

All The Best, Richard!

ORG would like congratulate Richard Linsdall on his retirement. We are certain, from knowing Richard for many years, that he will be extremely successful in his new chapters and endeavors – which we hope includes RnR.

We would also like to extend our gratitude and thanks for the years of support we’ve received from Richard. Richard’s experience with technology relating to business systems is unsurpassed. He always brings insights and ideas that support the mission of a business, and seemed to intuitively know what processes would support the individuals actually working with the systems developed.

He will be missed.

Harness the Power of SYSPRO with AP Automation

AP automation for SYSPRO means leveraging the power of your ERP to reduce costs, drive efficiency, and create visibility in a crucial back-end document process.

Investing in an ERP system like SYSPRO can seem like the pinnacle of digital transformation (DX) accomplishment. After all, you’ve centralized your entire organization with a planning and communications tool that makes the entire company more efficient and organized than years prior.

But as I’m sure you’ve discovered, your investment in SYSPRO was really just the beginning of your experience in DX. And as a leader in finance, you may have already heard a thing or two about AP automation, AR automation, or payments automation. Today we’re going to talk through how you can harness the power of SYSPRO and transform your accounts payable process into a highly efficient payables system.

AP automation for SYSPRO: an introduction

For your company, accounts payable might look something like this right now:

  • Lost or misplaced invoices
  • Stuffed email inboxes full of invoice coding and approvals
  • Constant data entry
  • Accounting staff turnover
  • Tedious, manual invoice, receipt, and PO matching
  • Late payments
  • Disjointed payment processes

In manufacturing and distribution, accounts payable can be especially costly and cumbersome thanks to the need for 3 way matching, the opportunity of early payment discounts, and the potential penalties from late payments.

So what does AP Automation bring to the table for your use of SYSPRO and your existing process? An exceptional AP automation solution for SYSPRO should be able to these capabilities beyond the standard data capture and invoice automation capabilities:

  • Automatically 2- and 3-way match your invoices against receipt and/or PO
  • Create an easily searchable and automatically organized database of past invoices
  • Identify exception invoices and automatically route exceptions to appropriate approvers
  • Provide advanced dashboards for an easy-to-use and dynamic dashboard view of the process
  • View, control, and manage spend from one interface

What is AP automation (and what is it not?)

AP Automation can mean a variety of things depending on which vendor you ask. So let’s start by defining some common terms that are often packaged as an accounts payable automation solution.

1. Purchase requisition automation

Purchase requisition (PR) automation refers to the process of digitizing the purchase requisition process, including automatic generation of the purchase request and purchase order. PR automation will also digitize the comment and approval process, and some PR automation solutions may automatically route requests to the proper approver.

2. Invoice capture (data entry) automation

Invoice data capture refers to the process of scraping the data of an invoice (vendor name, PO #, etc) and automatically organizing that invoice data into a digital format for viewing. Some automation solutions will also allow searching, filtering, and customization of the data captured, while others are more limited in this capability.

3. Invoice process automation

When many people refer to “AP Automation” this is generally what they mean: automatically capturing, entering, matching, identifying exceptions, approving, and posting invoices once the receipt of goods has been received. Invoice process automation is the full or partial automation of the entire invoice process, from data entry automation to ERP posting.

4. Payments automation

Over the past few years, more and more companies claim to offer “AP automation” when really they are offering payments automation. Payments automation refers to the automatic execution of payments for invoices that are approved and posted to the ERP (SYSPRO, in this case).

End-to-end automation v. partial automation

In correlation to the definitions above, the question rightfully becomes: which type of “AP automation solution” should I be investing in?

The simple answer is that businesses on SYSPRO that are processing more than 400 invoices per month, it makes sense long term to invest in a solution that can take care of every step in the process: a true end-to-end AP automation solution.

By this, we mean not just automating the payment process, and not just automating the data entry or invoice organization processes, but actually automating the entire process from end to end. This is why we recommend CloudX’s APSmart program, an adaptable, end-to-end solution that can integrate with SYSPRO to automate your payables process from purchase request all the way to payment execution.

CloudX’s APSmart: An end-to-snd SYSPRO AP automation solution

CloudX’s APSmart solution is an adaptable, end-to-end AP automation software that sets the bar for SYSPRO integrated AP automation product. At every step between the purchase request being created to the payment for that order being executed, APSmart creates automations and efficiencies that expand far beyond the role of the AP clerk. With capabilities in advanced approval automation, tailored invoice data capture, and customized management dashboards for the entire organization, APSmart truly represents the complete SYSPRO AP automation solution.

Request a demo today with CloudX and see how APSmart can drive efficiency and visibility in your accounts payable process, enhancing your department’s usage of SYSPRO significantly.

CPX v. APSmart

As mentioned above, it’s important to distinguish an end-to-end AP automation solution from a payment automation solution.

Comparing CPX and APSmart is a great example. CPX is an approved payment automation solution for SYSPRO which exclusively combines vendor payments into a single payment file, streamlining the payment process. This is a useful solution, since it simplifies the payments process while gaining your organization monthly cash rebates on eligible purchases.

On the other hand, APSmart contains the same capability as CPX when it comes to payment automation. However, APSmart is also capable of automating and affecting far more than just the payment process. CloudX has capabilities at every step of the accounts payable process, including data capture automation, purchase requisition automation, and invoice process automation — all in one place. Plus, APSmart allows you to customize your experience in the program to suit your current workflows and data categorization within SYSPRO.

DASH AP Robot v. APSmart

The DASH AP Robot is another SYSPRO integrated accounts payable solution that partially automates the process. For smaller operations that are processing less than 400 invoices per month, a combination between CPX and DASH AP Robot might be advisable.

However, for larger organizations, here’s where the difference lies. Via CloudX.

APSmart / CloudX

Put simply, the DASH AP Robot is going to leave some desire for enhanced functionality without a deeper investment in their document management system. With APSmart, the document management is built in, keeping your entire AP document history (saved for your desired number of years) accessible for you and your determined employees.

Read more about the DASH AP Robot v. APSmart comparison on the CloudX blog.

Integrated vs non-integrated solutions

There are a plethora of AP automation solutions out there – why not use a solution that is not integrated with SYSPRO?

The simple answer is, you’re still going to be left with manual labor at every step. Sure, with a non-integrated solution you could still automate the invoice data capture process, but what happens when the approved invoice needs to be posted to SYSPRO for payment?

This is just one of many instances where an integrated solution enhances the efficiency and experience of the automation solution.

What other types of accounting automation are available for SYSPRO?

Savvy DX accounting professionals understand that like your SYSPRO investment was the beginning of a series of digital transformation investments, as is your investment in an AP automation software.

Here are a few other areas in accounting digital transformation that can apply to your SYSPRO ERP:

  • Accounts receivable automation
  • Contract management automation
  • Non-financial metrics (eco-friendly initiatives, etc)
  • Month-end close
  • Customized RPA (robotic process automation) solutions

Want to learn more about bringing out the best in your SYSPRO ERP? That’s exactly what ORG is here to help with. Get in touch today and start your path to maximizing your use of SYSPRO.

Lessons the manufacturing CIO can learn from sales to drive digital transformation

It is not often that one would compare the daily tasks of a Chief Information Officer (CIO) with the life of a salesman, but recent experiences with the CIOs of our customers show that sales skills are crucial in driving digital transformation.

If you are currently a CIO, or in a similar role, chances are that you have been charged with some responsibility in driving digital transformation. While there is no denying that things like Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing and Business Insights are hot topics to solve business problems, your challenge does not lie in the technical ability of these solutions, but rather in selling the change it would bring, to your fellow managers and the rest of your company’s staff.

Recently I enjoyed reading a short and highly practical book by renowned speaker Richard Mulholland, who shares how to use powerful stories to change minds, drive sales, and solve problems.

Here Be Dragons: How to win deals and influence ideas by mastering the eloquent art of storytelling, is not just a how-to book, it is far more a why-to book, which I believe every person responsible for digital transformation must read to overcome the key challenges for digital transformation initiatives.

Mulholland explains that the salesperson has two jobs. The first is to help clients see their dragons (dragons referring to dangerous or unexplored territories of early explorers). The second job is to help clients or customers slay their dragons.

This is true for those responsible for driving digital transformation. Not only is it highly likely that the “dragon” of digital transformation has not been defined with any clarity, but slaying the dragon directly threatens existing business models and structures.

Selling versus change management

Recent SYSPRO research reveals that the true digital transformation champions within businesses are middle management (60%), while only 44% of C-level management supported digital transformation. However, top leadership support is imperative for businesses to digitally transform.

Some of you might say that this is not a new problem and that we all know that change management is crucial for all IT projects. By its very nature, digital transformation is different. Transformation implies that the business model must change. And the new model must first be “sold” before the change can be implemented.

Feedback from some customers is that there is a lot of appetite for introducing technology to improve the efficiency of the current business model, or when it is adjacent to the current model (like introducing an e-commerce channel), but when transformation threatens the current model, the business as a whole tends to dig in its heels, and being the digital transformation driver, becomes very frustrating. These initiatives die even before they even start.

The key to success?

Manufacturing CIOs have an opportunity to use strategic business and technology trends to drive significant initiatives like implementing ERP and driving digital transformation. CIOs can use the sales mentality within the organization to boost cross-departmental collaboration to increase efficiency and cut costs. As the organization digitally transforms the CIO needs to rise up to the challenge to provide leadership, decision-making, performance improvement and innovation.

The real challenge to all CIOs is to put on a sales hat and become a true salesman, even though this is probably as far away from your current career choice as you can get. To paraphrase Mulholland, the magic happens when we sell them a new story of their future. One in which we as IT only play a small part.

(posted originally on SYSPRO)

Executive Guide to ERP Part 4

(originally posted to SYSPRO.com) Johan Du Toit | August 12, 2021 | Reading Time: 8 minutes

thinking about erp manufacturing

Part of the process of selecting an ERP system is to appreciate how the software is going to be used. In Part 2, I discussed the ‘Dimensions of Change Model’, a method of how to think about the process, system and structural changes that an organization will go as a result of an ERP implementation. In Part 3, the process and steps for selecting an ERP were covered – the role players, and the issues of best practice and customization. The Dimensions of Change model also comes into the selection process – that is what will be addressed now. To recap, in the Dimensions of Change [Executive Guide Part 2] we use the term ‘degrees of freedom’ to define the dimensions in which a system can move. For an enterprise, those dimensions are the IT systems, the business processes, and the organizational structure. An ERP implementation will involve a system change at least (the ERP solution), and may also include one or both of the other dimensions.

ERP explained The following strategies each need to be considered when evaluating and selecting an ERP system, with variations depending on which level of change your ERP project will encompass.

  • Decision-making authority
  • User participation
  • Business process requirements
  • Policies and guidelines
  • Structured selection process

For a One Degree of Freedom ERP selection This type of project is about the ERP solution rather than business processes or organizational issues. The aim is to get benefits from a better system, not from better ways of working or organizing.

  • Decision-making authority: Since this is primarily a technical project, someone with IT knowledge should lead the selection process. This may be the IT manager but outside assistance may be needed if ERP expertise is required.
  • User participation: Just because this is an IT-oriented project does not mean it is also IT-only. To get a solution that delivers benefits to the whole enterprise, the selection team should include staff from various functions, not just technical people. The non-technical staff are there to ensure the ERP solution supports current business processes.
  • Business process requirements: In this type of project the aim is to minimize any changes to existing business processes.
  • Policies and guidelines: The key criteria for the selection team is for an ERP system that will fit current business processes. There may also be other criteria such as cost, availability of support, and amount of training needed.
  • Structured selection process: The main benefits in this project come from the new ERP system. Any major customizations, or requirement for external applications, will have a significant negative impact on the selection of a system.

A Two Degree of Freedom (Business Process) ERP selection The reason for this type of project is to change the way the organization works, i.e., the business processes. Achieving this requires a new system. It is recommended to first design the business processes at a high level, then select an ERP system that enables those new processes. Doing the selection process this way means the important parameters, the business processes, are defined first and thereafter the ERP application must fit in.

  • Decision-making authority: This is not a technical project but rather one of discontinuous change with the ERP system enabling that change. It is common practice for functional heads to sign off on the design of new high-level business processes. The executive decision-maker should play a major role. However, in most cases, this role requires more time (and probably expertise) than the executive can afford so a project manager is brought in to represent the executive.
  • User participation: Obviously with this type of project, functional representatives are involved in the selection as well as IT staff. In the business process design phase, the non-technical staff determine and lead the project, perhaps guided by an external consultant. When it comes to the ERP system, then IT people can take over, with the functional personnel ensuring that the new system can support the new processes.
  • Business process requirements: When redesigning business processes, both As-Is (existing) and To-Be (new) processes need to be mapped. The reason for this is to set a starting position (As-Is processes), with the To-Be processes as the goal.
  • Policies and guidelines: It should be stated that enabling the new businesses processes is key, and that they will not be modified to suit an ERP system. An ERP system must verify that it can support these processes, and very little change to organizational roles will be allowed.
  • Structured selection process: There are several stages to this.
  1. Scope the processes that will be changed.
  2. Identify functional process owners and give them training on processes and what is best practice.
  3. Evaluate whether the scoped business processes need re-design.
  4. Design new processes and then have the project team, and other parts of the organization, assess and decide whether to accept them or not.
  5. Using the short list of potential ERP providers, evaluate how the ERP solutions match the new business processes, and how much modification is needed for the software to support the processes. This stage requires in-depth and thoughtful work, and oversight by senior executives is advisable.

A Two Degree of Freedom (People-Organization) ERP selection Organizational re-structuring is the justification for this project. An ERP system is seen as the way to rationalize functions and automate tasks. Even though business process change is not intended in this project, some significant changes will be needed.

  • Decision-making authority: Because this project directly affects people, it is a sensitive undertaking. Whether work is done completely in-house, or with the help of external consultants, it needs to be driven by senior executives to ensure concerns are managed.
  • User participation: There is usually not much choice for the people involved in the change, but change is usually on a limited selection of an organization’s structures. Nevertheless, staff buy-in is important for this type of project to succeed.
  • Business process requirements: The process of changing organizational functions will inevitably mean some business process changes. Accompanying the structural changes, To-Be business processes will need to be defined.
  • Policies and guidelines: Because the project focus is on structural changes rather than process changes, policies to limit scope creep are important.
  • Structured selection process: As in the previous case, there are multiple steps.
  1. Identify the organizational aspects to change.
  2. Design the new organization structure, and associated processes,
  3. Get the changes reviewed and approved.
  4. The evaluation of the ERP vendor short list should be based factors such as on task automation, quality of user interface and experience, culture-fit and capability.

A Three Degrees of Freedom ERP selection This project is rare, and potentially high risk. But it can occur when new divisions are created, or after major acquisitions and mergers.

  • Decision-making authority: This project has to be led from the top and therefore should have a board-level executive full-time on the project.
  • User participation: No person, function or process is exempt from change in this type of project. Communication and involvement are imperative to reduce sensitivities and ensure buy-in from staff.
  • Business process requirements: The business processes developed form the blueprint for the organization, in the same way as an architect’s plan show how a house is to be built.
  • Policies and guidelines: In a project like this, there will be few policy constraints and the team usually has freedom to consider many options. The major constraint is time, as the organization has to go ‘on hold’ and cannot be like that for too long. The team also has to ensure their decisions do not go against the strategies that direct this project.
  • Structured selection process: In this case, the design elements (people, function, process) have to be established first. Then the selection process can begin. The evaluation of solutions can be more extensive as the issue of future-fit will be important, bearing in mind that there is also a risk because the new designs are unproven.

Moving to the next stage While each type of selection project follows five strategies, the way they are executed, the amount of work and who does it is completely different. That is why it is important to understand the ‘Degrees of Change’ model. However, if it properly applied, then at the end of the selection process the organization has an ERP system, business process blueprint and, possibly, new organizational design with which it can move forward. The next stage is how to make the change happen – the implementation project. Johan Du Toit Johan du Toit is the Strategic Sales Executive for SYSPRO Africa. He has more than 20 years’ experience in delivering complex technology and business transformation projects in Africa, Europe and the Far East. Renowned for finding practical solutions for complex problems, serving and contributing to the IT Steering Committees of a number of blue chip organizations on a continuous basis. Johan is dedicated to growing and maturing the SYSPRO Channel network.

CRM for SYSPRO Improved

SYSPRO just announced their latest release of their CRM enhancements.

What is CRM?

CRM for SYSPRO is a feature-rich, enterprise-class solution that allows customers to strengthen relationships across the entire supply chain. The solution provides access on the go through mobile responsive forms or from a standard browser. The 360° view of each relationship, including related ERP data from SYSPRO, is available in an easy-to-use format with customizable grids and views, empowering users to collect and analyze business data from multiple resources to enhance relationships, reporting and decision making.

As businesses find themselves coming out of the COVID pandemic, getting back to business is vitally important. At the end of 2019, CFOs were surveyed about the expected priorities for 2021. Maintaining margins and performance levels and managing cash flow was the lion’s share of answers. These priorities were closely followed by improvements is ERP utilization and performance visibility.

The relationship between CRM and ERP is super critical because it helps us connect with the consumer and helps us connect with product from our side.” – Benchmade Knife Co.

The new CRM release provides SYSPRO customers with continued growth capabilities.

  • Focused improvement in the set-up, configuration, and use of the Leads module—making it even easier to use and adopt into existing processes, and providing extended support for business process automation
  • Improved user experience through additional support for seamless integrations, allowing for further extension of CRM for SYSPRO use

Internationalization Improvements

Further support for global enterprises
The latest release of CRM for SYSPRO provides enhanced support for international companies that require their CRM to further support global regions and time zones. This includes enhancements in calendar and schedule views, updates to localization presentations in the UI with variable date/time, and SYSPRO integrations.

Enhanced Salesperson Integration

Say hello to increased flexibility and control of data and classifications
SYSPRO’s latest release now supports the updating of an Accounts Salesperson via SYSPRO CRM, with changes reflected immediately back in SYSPRO. This allows for further flexibility and control of data and classifications within SYSPRO’s CRM.

Account and Contact Duplicate Checking on Lead Qualification

SYSPRO has vastly improved its Leads module duplication checking capability in the latest CRM release. This enhancement reflects the same duplicate checking options available in the Account and Contact modules. This makes the Leads module easier to use with less administration and risk of data redundancy.

Lead Module: Process Automation

Work smarter with enhanced lead qualification automation
This release sees significant improvement to the workflow and process control automation of CRM for SYSPRO. Specifically, this enhancement allows for the Lead Qualification feature to trigger process automation in Account and Contact creation.

Lead Module: Lead Field Mapping to Accounts & Contacts

Preventing duplication and aid management of leads, contacts, and accounts.
SYSPRO created a new configuration utility that allows you to set up custom field mapping for better management of specific field information from a lead opportunity to a newly created Account or Contact module. This further streamlines the lead management process and prevents costly double-work.
Find out more
There are a lot of other benefits to this latest release to help businesses get quick traction and stabilizing in this new year. Contact us and find out if this latest CRM release is for you.

CAPTEK’s VP Supply Chain

Tom Griffin is CAPTEK® Softgel International’s VP Supply Chain and has worked with ORG/Julia for almost 20 years. I spoke with him about the advantages of using an ERP system – and what value Julia and the ORG Team bring to his business priorities.

CAPTEK™ Softgel International is a privately-owned, full-service contract manufacturer of custom and retail dietary supplement formulations. Griffin works in multiple departments – customer service, inventory, and logistics – his main passion is in manufacturing and continuous systems improvements.

Customization

Our conversation started by touching upon the complexities of cost accounting and forecasting in MRP; and keeping accurate reports with Work in Process. An ERP system like SYSPRO has become mandatory to keep up with today’s complexities and demands on business systems.

Griffin has worked with SYSPRO, in addition to other ERP systems for over 30 years. One of the main aspects he appreciates with SYSPRO’s platform is its cost-effective design; one only pays for modules that are used. Also, he stated the user-friendly dashboards along with the fully customizable nature are appealing.

Access Groups

Appropriate access accounts have been created for CAPTEK™’s CFO, hourly warehouse personnel, and appropriate levels in-between. Along with CAPTEK™’s IT ability to create appropriate access groups in multiple plant locations, SYSPRO is supporting “work from home” groups since last March when the COVID pandemic changed the work landscape. The same data/dashboards are accessed from multiple locations simultaneously – and seamlessly.

Instantaneous Reports

As demand for instantaneous, accurate reports has increased, SYSPRO continually improves their platform to keep up with these business demands. The platform is continually improved upon and SYSPRO works with other third-party platforms to keep customizations at the forefront of ERP. In fact, Griffin pointed out that SYSPRO’s ability to provide user-friendly reports on customized, complicated queries to be one of the most useful aspects of the platform. From R&D to invoicing, Griffin is accurately tracking and projecting CAPTEK™’s manufacturing lines with SYSPRO.

Working with ORG/Julia

As Griffin and I were ending the call, he wanted to make sure that I was aware of the value of Julia Maynard, head of Operations Resource Group, has brought to his business operation. In his words, “Julia is a business process expert. Her experience and expertise help the customization process develop in a manner that supports the mission of the business. It is obvious she not only knows what she is doing, she also loves what she is doing.”

The Future is… Communicating and working together

I dislike attempting to predict the future; it seems like misplaced energy to me. Concentrating positively on current realities is the best way to show responsibility for the future. Anyone who’s communicated adamantly about the future has usually eaten their words in my experience. So… why am I posting about the future?

Well, first off, that opening paragraph is saying; take this post with a grain of salt. That caveat out of the way…

The Holy Grail

Over the past few months of my reading other’s posts and articles about business system improvements, there is always a holy grail: all processes working together for instantaneous control and tracking – across all departments. Many business process management systems have implemented modules so that different departments are integrated into the ERP. It is common now to see a customer management system (CMS), and/or a warehouse management system (WMS) rolled out with an ERP upgrade.

It is the holy grail to know instantaneously every phase of materials to shelf; financial data, materials on hand, projected sales, traceability – all to be communicated clearly with live data; now.

One world

As the demand for instantaneous data/reporting is increasing it is natural that the various technical platforms need to communicate with each other. The time for multiple stand alone systems is past us. Sharing data and information is not a dream of the future; it is necessary now.

A Forbes article posted today is looking at the demands of instantaneous, accurate data in the realm of transportation. The author states, “The most difficult problem to solve seems to be streamlining data across multiple players in a single transaction.”

ORG excels at bridging different systems and processes, customizing to the unique needs of companies. However, our goal is always to standardize whenever possible. Communication is most effective when the same language is spoken.

I have seen the future

So, here I go out on a ledge… my prediction is a means of communication, standardized in such a manner, so that all ERP systems can communicate with each other. Systems will exchange information in datablocks as processes progress. We can expect a standardized code language that is borderless, on all platforms, and instantaneous in communication exchange. You’ll know where your wigit is, how much it cost, and how many are being purchased this quarter. And since it is cloud based, you’ll access the information from anywhere.

Are you ready for the Future?

Your competitors are certainly planning for it.