What Customizations & Configurations does your business need?

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An enterprise resource planning system such as NetSuite is implemented to meet industry standard business operations and processes. NetSuite is not an “all size fits one” solution but rather an all-in-one customizable solution. Meaning you only customize and add the features needed for your business requirements and objectives. Customization and configurations are key for functionality that will align with the business’s unique tasks.

So now, the question of, what ERP requirements are needed to be met for the ideal combination of features, arises. We will go through the difference between customization and configurations is, as well as why management of these is needed.

ERP Customizations

When it comes to ERP customizations, there are many things to consider. First of all, they are different from configurations, subtle yet significant differences.

Customizations have a broader view and typically involve custom coding modifications. Much more labor is required and the margin for error is almost nonexistent. Types of customizations can include things like user interface, document & forms: layout, format, invoices, etc., integrations, and functionality modifications and extensions.

Customizations are best when they are used sparingly, because the more you create, the more complex your system will become therefore leading to harder critical software updates. With ERP Buddies’ extensive experience in complex customizations and support, we can ensure that customizations will be working to their highest standard for your business operations to be fully optimized.

Configurations

ERP configuration is a crucial step in your ERP implementation process. What makes NetSuite ERP systems effective is that they can be tailored to your business process. Every organization has different needs and functions that need the proper support to have a fully functional workflow. A company must be able to ensure that there is financial and reporting accuracy. Not only must you make sure everything is functional for your customers but also your employees. Configurations ultimately are the tweaks and adjustments that are made to the default settings of your ERP software. Things such as access control, custom fields, and preferred units of measurement. These changes are often chosen before implementation, from a preset list or menu of options. They require no alterations to the ERP”s foundational architecture.

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Determining the needs of your company

Before jumping into implementing everything and anything, one must first determine what the needs of the organization are, what level of customization will be needed. There are some things to consider and undertake before determining customizations and configurations. This consists of having a discovery process, where it should consist of defining the need, vision, and scope of the project at hand. This step is important to have a clear stance on what is needed for the business goals. Then it needs to be followed by the planning of how the ERP customization will be one of the many steps to success this means planning then monitoring how the application configuration is performing. Implementation efforts should involve taking measures to reevaluate the current processes then make adjustments accordingly. This can also be translated as the management of customizations and configurations.

Customization Management

When an organization has poorly managed customizations, it can cause strains on your systems and for your employees. It will halt you from making future upgrades resulting in incompatibility when it comes to vendor updates. Customizations management aids to ensure that there is long-term business value. As previously mentioned, once customization is implemented, there needs to be ongoing management to preserve the integrity of the ERP system.

Part of customization management will consist of decluttering. Decluttering customizations that are no longer needed and that the company has outgrown. Something that is always consistent in the business world is changing. A business’s goals are always changing. What was once needed may need to be phased out according to business performance. If the existing customizations are not increasing business value any longer, then there’s no point in continuing the use of it. If anything it only puts a burden on the system.

There is plenty to consider when making ERP customizations to your system, but it is needed to make the best of your solution. Identifying the desired functionality of the system is key. There are many options that can be overwhelming but with a Buddies consultant, we can help ease the process and allow you to choose the best customizations that will be tailored to your operations. A consultant has extensive knowledge that will offer the guidance needed when making a final decision for your business resulting in implementation success.