An integrated suite approach marries various applications. This increases efficiency and productivity, lowers operational costs and allows for faster and smarter decision making.
Just as there are many different types of property - houses, clothing, commodities and so on - there are also distinct types of intellectual property (IP).
Many mid-size companies today are mindful of the electronic complexity of doing business - having to deal with multiple data structures, applications, operating systems and technology standards. Some will have implemented different infocomm solutions at different times. As such, they have had to deal with different systems, developed on different platforms that capture and manage information independently. In addition, they have been burdened with integration, maintenance issues and costs.
Mid-sized businesses hoping to stay competitive amid rising customer expectations need to move away from separate applications that serve specific departments. These disparate applications often do not share data, which often results in errors. For example, the change of a customer address on a customer management system might need to be re-entered into the sales system and even the finance system. If the information has not been updated correctly, invoices would be sent to the wrong place.
To prevent this, businesses need to move to a collaborative infocomm and business model that provides timely access to information and enables dynamic changes 'on the fly' across their supply and value chains. They need to invest in highly scalable, standards-based solutions that can rapidly integrate with their existing applications and hardware investments.
Typically, businesses have structured departments - around finance, human resources, customers (sales), inventory and management decision-making. Taking an integrated suite approach helps ensure that information is shared among systems and that all departments work from the same underlying data. Mid-size companies can increase efficiency and productivity, lower the cost of their enterprise applications and make smarter decisions based on accurate up-to-date information. An integrated suite can consist of some or all of the following systems:
As a foundation, enterprise resource planning solutions automate the back-office functions 'within the four walls' of the organisation, such as human resources and financial applications. They help many companies achieve substantial reductions in internal costs. But beyond the implementation of enterprise resource planning for administrative improvements, companies need to consider strategic supply chain management solutions that enable information-driven value chains. This is especially important in today's globalised environment, in which businesses rely on an extended eco-system of partners and customers, and many business processes are outsourced.
Strategic supply chain management applications offer companies new capabilities to gain visibility and effectively harness the enormous amount of data across their entire supply chain networks. This is fundamental to their ability to make better decisions by identifying potential risks and opportunities in real time. Strategic supply chain management solutions also enable companies to drive more predictable results, adapt quickly to change and align planning and execution networks to business goals.
To achieve this, companies need to integrate and automate critical processes from supply chain planning to execution, manufacturing and collaboration with external parties. A strategic supply chain management solution should include a product life cycle management component, which enables companies to manage their assets and product life cycles and centralise product information management. This helps to reduce time to market - a key factor for companies looking to stay head of the curve.
On top of these applications, a business intelligence component is critical. Companies can gain up-tothe- minute insights into inventory, procurement, sourcing and supplier performance. They can better manage customer commitments while optimising inventory and supplier spending. Having a real-time view of the entire supply chain enables more informed business decisions across an entire organisation.
Add a customer relationship management application, and a company has a 360-degree view of its customers. It can improve the services it provides directly to customers and practise targeted marketing and sales. Customer information can also be consolidated across the entire organisation and transformed into actionable intelligence to gain a competitive edge.
The individual applications - enterprise resource planning, supply chain management, customer relationship management and business intelligence - are like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. The pieces, or applications, fit perfectly together when they are correctly implemented and well integrated. This allows companies to focus on their core business, rather than on managing technology.
Such companies can enjoy end-to-end visibility both 'within their four walls' and of the extended ecosystem. Information shared across all lines of business delivers intuitive, role-based intelligence to decision-makers - from front-line employees to senior management - boosting a company's overall competitive advantage.
The Technology Innovation Programme (TIP) supports SMEs in infocomm innovation projects and helps to defray up to 50 per cent of the qualifying costs. TIP can also defray up to 70 per cent of the qualifying costs for industrywide projects. Find out more about IDA's programmes for SMEs at www.ida.gov.sg/sme or e-mail: ida_sme@ida.gov.sg.
- This article is contributed by Oracle Singapore, a member of the Singapore Infocomm Technology Federation (SiTF).
- This article first appeared in The Business Times on 12 August 2008 and information is correct at the time of publication.
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