The key drivers for adopting an ERP system (such as SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics) often relate to attaining visibility of a business’s current state to find opportunities to unify and streamline operational functions.
When executed well, an ERP system centralises data from every department to improve overall data consistency, communication and productivity. ERP systems collate real-time data insights to inform business decisions, streamline efficiencies and enhance existing workflows.
ERP systems can provide substantial horsepower to a business. But what are the limitations?
Cost and deployment time
The initial cost of integrating an ERP system often fails to account for planning, implementation, testing, configuration and customisation. You also may find yourself paying for surprise indirect costs, such as IT infrastructure and updates. Cost, and typically lengthy deployment timelines, can make it difficult to measure the return on investment as savings are unlikely to be realised quickly.
Data migration
Many ERP vendors do not take responsibility for data migration, so converting your existing data can be complex and expensive. When data issues exist in your ERP system, you run the risk of compromising the overall integrity and data cleanliness of the project. Integration with legacy or standalone software systems is key to a successful ERP deployment, along with data cleansing.
Customisation
It’s easy to underestimate the resources needed to customise an ERP system to complement your existing workflows. Customisation requires time, money and specialist expertise, and can inadvertently create future challenges when it’s time to upgrade.
Missing out on best-in-class systems
With the extensive and complex configuration that’s often required when implementing an ERP solution, you may find your organisation reluctant to stray given the significant investment made. However, this may mean you are missing out on ‘best-in-class’ systems that are more agile and evolve at a much faster pace than traditional systems.
So, do you customise your ERP or should you look to complement it using other software?
Traditional ERP systems don’t entirely meet the needs of today
Today’s turbulent economic climate is shining a light on agile and transferable technologies, with companies increasingly looking for best-in-class solutions to complement their traditional ERP software. Companies are fast-tracking technology decisions and are now more inclined to apply cloud-based solutions to the mix.
By nature, ERP’s handle the broad functions and processes common to all businesses. On the contrary, best-in-class solutions are designed to deliver the optimum solution to one specific challenge. When it comes to processes or data which are particularly high risk, complex or highly specific, looking to complement your ERP solution with a best-in-class system is a completely justifiable business case.
Why go beyond ERP for workforce compliance management?
We identify that key decision-makers are increasingly open-minded in seeking an optimum combination of both ERP and best-in-class solutions. This way, they can utilise a solid backbone with their ERP software but also incorporate best-in-class software that was specifically designed and engineered to solve a clearly defined problem.
When applying ERP to address the global cross-industry challenge of workforce compliance, the solution is two-fold. Companies can seamlessly manage workforce compliance by integrating with best-in-class software (such as MyPass®). Alternatively, organisations may opt to customise an existing ERP system to support digital workforce compliance management within an existing workflow.
When it comes to managing worker data (such as qualifications, licences, tickets and police checks), ERP user interfaces can be clunky and outdated, often failing to fully consider user experience. In practice, this challenge is often exacerbated by the nature of the gig economy, whereby the commonality of transient workers and contractors means HR personnel often revert back to using spreadsheets to manage workforce data.
MyPass® Global is the antidote to disorderly spreadsheets and data duplication
Founded in Australia in 2015, MyPass® is a cloud-based software designed to simplify workforce compliance management. Our bottom-up approach to data management empowers workers to manage their own training and competency data contained within their digital worker passport. Where possible, MyPass® verifies certifications at the primary source, thus greatly reducing manual keying for organisations and providing access to verified, real-time compliance information. This approach has been the missing link for ERP software and standalone compliance portals to date, and we are proud to be leading the new wave of workforce compliance tools.
MyPass® as a Best-in-Class Solution to Workforce Management
MyPass® has identified a shift towards industry collaboration and data sharing, with organisations demonstrating a commitment to optimising systems and processes for the benefit of industry. By using the MyPass® online portal to access a single source of truth dataset, organisations are assured their operations remain at the forefront of new technology. This gives them the best of both worlds: a powerful ERP backbone, integrated with a best-in-class industry-endorsed workforce management platform.
Please reach out to us at enquiries@mypassglobal.com if you’d like to set up a discovery session to explore what is possible for your organisation.
