SAP is continuously releasing new versions and updates for SAP Business One. A recent functional enactment to the sales opportunities in SAP Business One has seen the team at SAP add procurement / purchasing opportunity functionality. Many people have used the SAP Business One opportunity management – as part of the CRM solution in SAP Business One. The great news is that the same opportunity management functionality, with a few enhancements can now be used for purchase / procurement management.
SAP Business One Procurement Management:Procurement management will typically be used to manage supplier negotiations, activities and correspondence. This is particularly relevant if you are negotiating complex supplier agreements or bidding for specific items.
SAP Business One procurement management will allow the user to manage the various stages of the procurement cycle. Stages can be defined by the user. Let’s look at a typical example. If you are negotiating a complex procurement cycle your stages might be:
Send out request for proposal for suppliers to complete;
Accept completed proposals;
Evaluate proposals;
Choose shortlist of potential suppliers;
Demonstration of supplier capability;
Get supplier agreements;
Finalise agreements;
Pay supplier deposit invoice.
Manage the stages of your purchasing cycle using SAP Business One:Using SAP Business One procurement management each stage in the procurement cycle can be managed by your purchasing department. You can also attach contracts and supplier documentation in the opportunity attachments tab – this will ensure that all relevant documentation is safely stored for quick easy retrieval. Notes and activities can be added to ensure that any team members working on the procurement / supplier agreement are kept up to date with the latest developments and negotiations.
Keep track of complex supplier negotiations:This is another great example of the team at SAP adding simple but useful functionality to SAP Business One.
SAP Business One purchase opportunity management demo:
SAP Business One HANA provides multiple reporting options – KPI’s, dashboards, pervasive analytics and Excel pivot tables. There are also multiple built-in HANA reporting tools – cash flow forecast, Available to Promise and Delivery Schedule Management are currently available. I call these HANA reporting tools because they are much more than pure ERP reporting…….these are dynamic reports that allow the user to configure the reporting criteria and to provide the relevant information immediately to make the right decisions. These reports pull data from multiple data sources – some of which have very substantial data volumes. Imagine the amount of data that a comprehensive and most importantly dynamic cash flow forecast is sorting through to deliver the information that you want – in real-time. As you change the timeframes or certainty levels for cash collection you want an instant view of your cash flow forecast. If the CEO is sitting with a CFO and asking about cash flow both parties will want to not only review the cash flow but also the impact of different timelines and different certainty levels on cash flow. Instant answers to a number of questions – what if a particular order is not paid on time? What if our certainty of delivering all sales orders on time slips or there are delays in collection against a particular debtor? In today’s world of HANA reporting for SAP Business One, the CEO can ask these questions and get instant answers. More information about the SAP Business One HANA Cash Flow Forecast is available in our previous blog. How is this possible? SAP Business One HANA is in-memory technology – giving you the ability to sort through massive data volumes with ease. This leads to multiple possibilities – you can start to analyse your business in ways you never previously thought possible. After all, an ERP system should be used to transform the way your business operates by giving you instant access to information in real-time.
Another HANA reporting tool is the Delivery Management Schedule – very useful for distribution companies looking to dynamically manage their delivery to customers. Using the delivery schedule management your customer service team can prioritise and expedite urgent orders for customers. The SAP Business One HANA Delivery schedule management toolset provides a graphical view of all orders. Let’s look at this HANA report in more detail.
SAP Business One HANA – Delivery Schedule Management:Assume our customer service team is on the phone talking to our customer Earthshaker about a sales order for item A00001 – the Officeprint 1420. We have several orders in the system for this item and we want to be able to place the order for our customer, then we want to be able to consider delivery dates and where possible we want to expedite the order for Earthshaker. Assume the order is already in the system but we are worried about our ability to deliver on time given current orders and the available stock. We start by activating the Delivery Schedule Management screen in SAP Business one HANA. We enter the item for which we are planning our delivery schedule management – in this case, the A00001 – Officeprint 1420. SAP Business One HANA now displays the open sales orders for this item. Note that as with other SAP reports there are multiple options available to the user:
Sort the orders differently or customize the sort sequence. This is used to sort the orders by a specific sort sequence as requested by the customer service team.
Sort the orders by different criteria – delivery date, business partner priority or document amount. This allows the customer service team to quickly sort the most important orders first.
Warehouse – allows the team to sort the delivery schedule by different warehouses in a multi-warehouse scenario.
Inventory status – activates the SAP Business One HANA inventory status / available to promise report. This report gives the user a quick snapshot of the inventory status including purchase and sales documents (sales orders, purchase orders etc.), order dates, delivery dates, quantity committed, available to promise quantities, confirmed quantities and available quantity.
Alternative items – from the inventory status / available to promise screen users can check alternative items. This is useful if you have no stock available of an item but want to provide your customer with a closely matched alternative item.
SAP Business One HANA – inventory status reporting:As you can see from the available information SAP Business One HANA delivery schedule management is all about helping your customer service team provide better customer service to your customers. This is done by providing quick easy access to the relevant order and delivery information.
Now, using the power of SAP Business One HANA the customer service team can re-schedule orders based on priority.
SAP Business One HANA – changing the status of orders for delivery:What we can see in the above screen is that your customer service team has the choice of changing the delivery schedule in SAP Business One HANA. In this instance, a change in schedule is being made to order 405 but simply placing that order into the “target document” window and then sliding the orange bar to the left or right to increase or decrease the stock that we are committing to this order. If there are insufficient items in stock for this order then the stock will have to be reduced/taken from another order. This allows the user to re-schedule orders based on priority or any other user-defined criteria.
Another practical use of HANA the delivery schedule management report in SAP Business One gives users instant access to information to help your business provide better customer services.
SAP Business One HANA Delivery Schedule Management:
Successful ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) or business management software implementations are not about software or technology. At the end of the day the software is only an enabler. The real measure of success is business improvement. I often speak to companies who are proud of implementing the latest version of ERP software but forget to do a real analysis of the intended (and actual business improvement) outcomes.
ERP software and any other related technology is an enabler – a vehicle for change. What we want at the end of the day is improved business outcomes. Let’s consider a few key measurement criteria when implementing ERP solutions:
Improved customer service – if you are able to ship goods to your customers faster, avoid stock-outs and can provide accurate delivery schedules to your customers you will achieve better customer service. So when it comes to ERP solutions don’t just use the software to print out delivery notes and invoices. Use your ERP solution for complete management of the customer service lifecycle. Look at every customer touch point and see how you can improve your customer engagement. Let’s consider a few examples – taking a call from your customer to provide a quote. Let’s make sure that we use our ERP solution to provide information to our customer services teams to improve every interaction with our customers. When a customer calls our customer service team for a quote let’s improve customer service by being able to provide information about:
current outstanding orders for the customer (and expected delivery times);
current stock availability of items we are quoting;
available discounts for volume purchases;
technical information and data sheets on the relevant items we are quoting;
alternative items (if we are out of stock of a particular item);
expected delivery dates for new orders.
These are simple examples of the sort of information that a good ERP solution should provide to help improve customer service. The importance for a customer service team is that they not only have access to the relevant information but that the information is easily available at the click of a button while talking to our customer on the phone – instant access to relevant information. Access to relevant information can be further complicated when shipments from our suppliers are delayed or we have issues shipping on time and in full for our customers. Again, access to information and a level of automation from our ERP solution can greatly assist. Think of a simple, automated alert when an order is late to be shipped. This alert can notify our customer service team (and customer) that the order will be shipped late.Provide improved customer service by calling your customer to notify them that the goods have shipped late and the reasons why. An even better use of your ERP solution – investigate the reasons for late delivery and take action to avoid further late delivery. Perhaps an OTIF (On Time in Full) delivery report to your suppliers will help manage their future deliveries and your expectations – enabling you to better service your customers.
Improved cash flow. The lifeblood of any business. Poor cash flow can be a real inhibitor to further growth for many businesses. The ERP solution – a range of tools and reports provided by a good ERP solution to help manage cash flow. The difficulty in managing cash flow is that there are multiple moving parts. Putting all of the elements which make up cash flow together with assumptions and what if scenarios into Excel is not only time consuming but usually provides outdated data. So here is a few ways and ERP solution can help to improve your cash flow:- dynamic cash flow reporting. Improving cash flow starts with understanding your current cash flow position. A good cash flow report should enable the user to run different criteria, what if analysis and cash flow models. If our three largest customers pay us 30 days late what will the impact be on cash flow? If we only include items with a high level of certainty in our cash flow what will our net cash position look like this week and in the next two months? When will we run into cash flow problems given our current cash flow and expected sales?- promoting a fast quote to cash process. ERP providers often talk about proving quick quote to cash. This means that your ERP solution should be used to expedite all aspects of quote to cash. Send out more quotes, more efficiently, invoice quickly, provide tools for quicker cash collection and get the money into your bank account sooner.
Staff retention. Most successful businesses have great people. Staff retention is not often associated with ERP solutions but a good ERP solution can help keep staff happy. Providing a good ERP solution for team members helps them do their job better. When team members do their jobs better and in less time with less tress you have a happier team.
We have looked at three simple examples of ERP solutions providing the tools for business improvement. Whichever ERP solution you are implementing or have already implemented make sure you consider the real business benefits. New technology should be implemented as an enabler to positive change.
Sage ERP X3 is an ERP solution designed for medium to larger sized companies. Larger organisations often have several companies registered in the group – sometimes across different geographies, time zones and legislations. With this in mind the Sage X3 system is designed to manage and operate multiple companies and sites with ease. Within a single database users can get a central view of all companies in the group.
A company in Sage X3 is a legal entity mapped to operate various transactions from multiple departments and consolidated in the general ledger.
The inter-company functionality in Sage X3 is designed to manage automatic transactions generated within companies, eliminate duplicate data entry, give proper traceability, and updating of the relative accounts in each company.
Inter-company functionality includes:
Ease of use – the ability for uses to transact in multiple companies without the need to log into and out of separate databases. All company data, whilst separately maintained and reported, can be viewed within a single database folder. This makes it easy for users to view information in a single company or across multiple entities.
Automation of Inter-company processing – if one company in the group transacts with other group companies then Sage X3 can be configured to handle these intercompany “arm’s length” transactions. A purchase order raised by one company in the group on another group company will automatically create a sales order in the “selling company”. This greatly reduces processing time and errors. Both the purchase order and sales order will have corresponding references for traceability. When the goods are receipted the receiving company can create a supplier receipt against the selling company. A sales invoice is created in the “selling” company which automatically creates the AP / purchase invoice in the “purchasing / receiving” company.
Automatic calculation and reporting foreign exchange variances – companies based in different countries will operate in their respective local currencies with a separate (usually head office) reporting currency. This brings into play the potential for foreign currency variances. For inter-company business the specific rate type can be set at a customer and supplier level. Variances based on spot vs period and actual rates and the rates used for consolidation can be catered for and reported with ease.
Manage your foreign currency / multi-company requirements in Sage X3:Save time with automatic allocation of intercompany journals. Sage X3 inter-company will allow the allocation of expenses from one company to another. For example you might want to split the salary expense for a group accountant across multiple companies. The salary expense can be apportioned in one single inter-company journal which will automatically create journals in the respective companies.
Sage X3 – intercompany journals:
Consolidation reporting made easy. If you run multiple entities you will understand the importance and potential complications with regards to multi-company consolidation reporting. Sage X3 offers more than P&L and Balance sheet consolidation. Users can also get a consolidated view of transactions across multiple companies. In this instance the native inter-company functionality in Sage X3 allows for the viewing of consolidated balances within companies and company groups – for example Australia / New Zealand or Asia Pacific. Let’s not forget that consolidation reporting can be complicated when you consider foreign currency and specific polices with regards to average rate or closing rate reporting in the profit and loss and balance sheet. Sage X3 allows reporting based on spot or average rates – in line with your company consolidation policy for foreign exchange.
Sage X3 – making consolidation reporting simple:Eliminating entries – take the hard work out of consolidation of multi-company environments.
To avoid double counting inter-company sales is not usually considered actual revenue for a company’s results. This can create complications when trying to exclude inter-company sales from group sales reporting. Using standard Sage X3 functionality reports can be set to have parameters to exclude inter-company transactions.
Sage X3 intercompany eliminating entries:In summary – Sage X3 does an exceptional job in automating and reporting inter-company, consolidation and multi-company requirements.
Modern ERP solutions cost less than they did 10 years ago. Total cost of ownership has been reduced and ERP users can become self-sufficient fairly quickly after go live. New analytical tools allow users who are not IT trained to write their own reports. This means that an ERP solution for a small to medium sized business can be implemented in four months or less and post go live investment can be relatively low.
Let’s remember that ERP system implementation and maintenance is not about software. It is about business improvement. ERP software is an enabler to improving your business bottom line, interaction with your customers, cash flow and supplier management.
After go live some companies make the mistake of discontinuing their investment in their ERP solution. This is a big mistake.
Let me explain my thinking with 8 points:
ERP systems evolve– good ERP vendors add new functionality and technology to their solutions on a regular basis. Think cloud, mobility, web based access – multiple technological changes that are available in a modern ERP solution. Keep your ERP annual maintenance up to date so that you can take advantage of the latest technical and functional release of ERP from your chosen provider.
Your business will change over time – as your business, customers and suppliers change their interaction with your business so too will your ERP requirements change. As an example you might decide to move part of your business onto an e-commerce, web based platform for your customers to purchase online. This e-commerce integration will have implications for your ERP solution. Make sure that your system is up to date with the latest ERP technology and that your ERP provider is ready to help you as your business requirements change.
Reporting – reporting requirements evolve as your business grows, enters new markets and new geographies. Invest in additional reporting and analytical reporting tools to make sure that you get real time access to your ERP data. Given the fact that you have implemented an ERP solution if you do not use modern reporting tools you will be missing out on an opportunity to improve your decision making timelines and data access.
New markets – as your business grows and enters new markets your business needs will change – this might necessitate a change in configuration of parts of your ERP solution. Additional modules might be beneficial.
Make sure your ERP solution is supportable. If you don’t upgrade your ERP solution to a recent version your ERP will become unsupportable – this could put your business as risk. Don’t risk it – taking advantage of the latest version of ERP from your existing provider not only ensures that your ERP solution is supportable – it also gives you access to the latest technology and features. Having invested in a good ERP solution set aside some additional funds each year for an upgrade and training on the latest version.
New users will require training. When implementing new ERP solutions customers often ask the question “how much training will we get”. This is because companies realise the importance of user training. What is often overlooked is the fact that when new employees start with the business (after the implementation of an ERP solution) those new employees will also require training. All users should also be trained on new functions and features to ensure that you maximize your investment in ERP and your people. The bottom line when it comes to ERP training – set aside some budget every year for on-going user training – this will require a small investment but will yield great results. This is particularly relevant in markets like Australia which have a high cost of employment. Maximize your investment in people by providing regular system and user training.
Give new users access to your ERP solution. As your business grows you will almost undoubtedly add additional employees. Give these employees access to the ERP system, mobility, reporting and other tools to increase productivity. You have made an investment in the core ERP solution, now spread that investment by giving all employees access to the system.
Invest in business consulting. A good ERP provider is so much more than a software company. Business improvement specialists is what a good ERP provider should be. Once you have completed the implementation of your ERP solution your business consultants should be invited back into your business to help with constant improvement. The team at Leverage Technologies recently added some additional technology to our invoicing process that has reduced accounts receivable invoicing times from several hours a week to 20 minutes. Now that’s technology at work.
I have listed only 8 reasons for continuous investment in your ERP solution. I am sure I could draft a much longer list. The bottom line is this – even if your ERP solution has a low cost of ownership you should still be investing in change and constant improvement and very often change can be driven by your ERP solution. Of course I have based this blog on the premise that you already have in place a modern, well supported ERP solution that you want to continue investing in.
SAP Business One HANA offers multiple reporting options for users. Sorting through big data volumes is easy with SAP Business One and the HANA framework. The HANA environment offers in-memory technology – allowing users to slice and dice massive data volumes in record time. Additional HANA features include:
Enterprise search – search through the entire SAP Business One HANA database to quickly locate the data that you need.
HANA specific reporting – cash flow forecast, available to promise and delivery schedule management.
Pervasive Analytics – dashboards, KPIs and advanced dashboards. Some of these KPI’s and dashboards have been pre-built by SAP. But there’s more……. Users can build their own KPI’s and dashboards without any previous IT or report building experience.
Standard out the box (SAP Business One 9.1) KPI’s include the following:
KPI’s :
Receivables overdue
Payables overdue
Total sales amount
Sales return amount
Total receivables amount
Total purchase amount
Goods return amount
Total payable amount
GRPO not invoiced
Inbound stock value
Outbound stock value
Stock turnover (year)
Stock value
Monthly sales
Standard SAP Business On HANA Dashboards include the following:
Technology is a game changer. In today’s world we expect instant access to information – whether we are in the office, sitting in front of a customer or travelling. The reason we all want better, quicker ERP reporting is that we want the ability to make the right decisions – on time. This requires quick access to lots of data and the ability to quickly represent ERP data in a meaningful way. The very nature of ERP reporting is changing – gone are the days of static, semi-manual, one dimensional reporting. In today’s world of mobile technology we want the ability to be able to slice and dice big volumes of ERP data quickly – analytics is important.
ERP Reporting is changing for the better and is opening up opportunities to change the way we run our businesses. Previously business intelligence tools like KPI dashboards and analytics was only within the grasp of larger organisations with substantial reporting budgets and high end ERP. Smaller businesses where left to run “static / one dimensional” reports distributed via email or worse still hard copy. The problem with this older style reporting is that the user only gets one view of the data. As an example if a sales report indicates that the July sales number is on par with expectations from a revenue perspective but the gross profit is below budget or forecast the sales manager will want to quickly drill down to a detailed level so that they can identify the reasons for the lower than expected gross profit. Hard copy or one dimensional reporting does not allow this type of analysis and is therefore of limited use.
So how does a new age of technology and reporting change your reporting options? Analytics is the answer. A good analytical report can offer hundreds of reports in one interface. How is this possible you might ask? Let’s look at our sales report example again – the sales manager is trying to identify the reasons for lower than expected gross profit on the July numbers. Using analytics the sales manager can drill down on the monthly sales number, can sort the July invoices by margin and define and choose the orders which are below budgeted margin. Now the sales manager can drill down and review these invoices and the associated line items and notes. Now the sales manager can drag these “below margin” sales orders out of the month’s numbers and can see what the net effect on margin is. All this in under 30 seconds.
Now add in the advantages of taking your analytical reporting mobile.
In summary – when choosing reporting for your ERP implementation consider a good analytical reporting option that allows users to drill down to source data and slice and dice or sort data by multiple criteria. Make sure your ERP reporting tool can help your business change the way you do business.
Procurement management will typically be used to manage supplier negotiations, activities and correspondence. This is particularly relevant if you are negotiating complex supplier agreements or bidding for specific items.
Using SAP Business One procurement management each stage in the procurement cycle can be managed by your purchasing department. You can also attach contracts and supplier documentation in the opportunity attachments tab – this will ensure that all relevant documentation is safely stored for quick easy retrieval. Notes and activities can be added to ensure that any team members working on the procurement / supplier agreement are kept up to date with the latest developments and negotiations.
This is another great example of the team at SAP adding simple but useful functionality to SAP Business One.
SAP Business One HANA offers multiple reporting options for users. Sorting through big data volumes is easy with SAP Business One and the HANA framework. The HANA environment offers in-memory technology – allowing users to slice and dice massive data volumes in record time. Additional HANA features include:
