Enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions can be a major game-changer to your business. Cloud-based ERP software offers the appropriate tools necessary to streamline day-to-day operations and create a digital system of checks and balances where every order of business is accounted for. It handles everything from production scheduling to planning to inventory management. This not only leaves you more opportunity to focus on generating revenue but saves you money on man hours for manual labor.
There are many ERP software options on the marketplace, and navigating through each to find the one that’s best for you can prove difficult. Each option, while similar in their own right, handles operational efficiency differently. Researching the best solutions and comparing them to your list of needs is critical.
Here, we’ve condensed the primary features of Sage X3, one of the major solutions on the marketplace. This will help you better navigate towards the right platform for your business. Keep in mind that not every solution will work for you. As you’ll learn throughout this platform breakdown, some features aren’t as applicable to you and don’t exactly cover your goals. Before you begin your search, write down a list of wants and needs: this will help you navigate different reviews and articles across offerings.
The User Experience
Business owners who operate on-the-go need a solution that caters to them. Companies with multiple locations and frequent off-site meetings should highly consider cloud-based ERP. This allows them access data anywhere in the world, both on their mobile device and on the Web.
Through Sage X3, interfaces can also be personalized to specific user roles and preferences. This mobility keeps users engaged as often and as flexible as they want to be. Regardless of location and device, it provides end-to-end vision across sales, finance, purchasing, inventory, customer service and manufacturing operations.
Managing Multiple Companies
Those businesses with offices in different countries need a powerful way to manage those locations without toggling between the various software. Sage X3 is able to manage several companies within the same database, as well as manage different currencies and languages. Users can set different rules and processes for different contributes, and the system will follow them locally.
Comprehensive Data
A Gigaom data report found that the world is using under 1 percent of the data it consumes. Such a large volume of data is wasted, which is why it’s so important for businesses to have the tools in place to turn that data into meaningful information. Sage X3 compiles real time data and provides tools such as business analysis tools and reports, user-defined dashboards and automated workflows and alerts. While all ERP solutions have their own process for communicating data, each has their own way of executing their functions. Sage X3’s reporting and analytics module allow users to choose from over 400 standard reports, each with graphics and charts for data visualization. Users can choose different sorting options, filtering, and custom queries to define and export their own reports.
Caters to Certain Sizes and Markets
Sage offers a variety of solutions; however, Sage X3 is specifically ideal for midsize and larger businesses. The platform is built to cater to bigger companies and is not suited for smaller businesses and markets. The technology is designed for certain modules, functionality, and compliance support that make it best if used in industries like Manufacturing, Distribution, Services, Food and Beverage, Chemical, and Life Sciences.
Although it does lean more towards certain industries, it aims to be an all-in-one solution for those areas. While some other solutions require add-on software integrations, Sage X3 is an out-the-box package for those applicable industries. Smaller markets and businesses can check out different ERP solutions that cater to their size.
Social Suite
Because Sage X3 puts its emphasis on the operational back-end processes, there are no social media tools integrated into the software. Many businesses today are combining social media and social communication with their enterprise resource planning processes. For companies that seek a more direct relationship between these two areas, another solution might work better. Otherwise, many businesses choose to separate their ERP from their social media management tools. There are a variety of robust options for keeping all social efforts organized in one place, and other ERP solutions do offer social integrations.
Leverage Based on Needs
Investing in ERP is a big step. It takes time to implement across the company, and the larger the company, the greater the risk — and reward. Because of this, you’ll need a system that supports both your current and future needs. The ability to leverage your platform and scale up as you grow is necessary to support your long-term plans. Sage X3 provides users features you currently need, and the ability then scales up, “turn on” new features, and leverage the open architecture. This easily reconfigures process flows as your needs change.
