From Accounting to Manufacturing: The Many Types of ERP Software
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software can touch literally every part of your company. However, there are many pieces to an ERP program, and added to that there are many different types of ERP software based on the size or kind of company you have.
Types of ERP Software: Specific Business Functions
Though different types of ERP software can touch every piece of your company, it does not mean that all ERP software must touch every piece of your company. Some types of ERP software are only concerned with the accounting functions of your company, while others handle the human resources aspect, while still others assist you in managing the manufacturing piece. All of these are different types of ERP software, though they do not manage your whole enterprise.
Types of ERP Software: Specific Industry
Another way to compare different types of ERP software is by industry. The needs of a manufacturer are very different than the needs of a distributor, which are different than the needs of a service provider or a retailer. There are very specific types of ERP software designed to make each of these companies work more efficiently. While the basic premise is the same, managing the way your company runs, the process is actually quite different. This allows you to use the best software for your company without extra parts that you do not need or missing parts that your specific industry requires
Types of ERP Software: Open vs. Closed Source
One other key difference between types of ERP software is open and closed source products. Closed source means that the software is completely proprietary and that you cannot make changes to the programming. Most providers do this to keep the integrity of their product pure. However, some open sourced (often free) types of ERP software programs do exist. This lets experienced software people help you make changes to the software to fit your individual needs. This flexibility is a big bonus to those that know how to use it properly.
Types of ERP Software: Free vs. Fee Based
A sometimes forgotten way to look at types of ERP software is how the companies that produce the products are compensated. Sometimes the software is free to users, but the website itself receives money for hits on the website or for advertisements that allow the company to offer the free software. Often times, this software is solely in the cloud environment to cut down on costs. The other option is to pay for the software and for the support and updates of that software. These types of ERP software can be cloud based on on-site programs.
Types of ERP Software: Small vs. Large Businesses
One final way to differentiate types of ERP software is to find out what size of a company the program was designed for. Some accounting pieces that are made for a small business would be far too insufficient to help a larger company with national and international needs. The same holds true for a manufacturing program. The ability to handle only small or custom orders would not help a massive maker of basic products that are doing tens of thousands of product in a single run. Fortunately, there are types of ERP software that can help nearly everyone.