Employees and clients, these are the two integral components of any business group. And the communication between them is managed via several business software like ERP and CRM solutions used in the workplace. As of it, the business tool you choose for your end-user must be robust, efficient, self-reliant, needless to say, it must be an ultimate ERP solution offering uninterrupted and productive management of the business.
There are several ERP solutions available in the market ranging from best-of-breed to custom-made ERP solutions. One can wisely choose their business application taking into consideration their scalability, dependency, cost and other desired factors. However, no matter, how much technology, hardware or software you infuse in your end user’s betterment, if it doesn’t come in way of your staff or customers, all your efforts are to go in vain. Ultimately, the success of any ERP or business software is determined by its users (employees and customers).
To make this happen, the business relies on IT solutions. They prefer customizations in their ERP solutions so as to make the software perfectly pitched to their needs. Before the deployment of ERP systems in their workplace, they go for the scope of customizations in software, so as to make the software the way they want.
However, one needs to understand certain elements of ERP customization, before insisting them in a large percentage. Though customizations come along with huge business benefits, alongside there are myriads of reasons that over-customization of enterprise resource planning must be stopped or put-off. Let’s have a look at why professional experts don’t entertain over-customization in the standard workflow of the software.
Time Consumption and Larger Expenditure
All admit that ERP implementation is not a cakewalk. The whole process demands a huge investment of time and other resources, making it arduous. The implementation process demands the key role of both business client and service provider, to make the software adaptable and worthy.
Right from understanding the scope of the requirement to the degree of customizations must be critically analyzed and monitored. The whole process remains challenging and tricky as there is a large number of steps involved in the ERP implementation process. Meanwhile, if the demand for your customization is large, the time to make it happen will also keep stretching, thus delaying the Go-Live of software. The prolonged process can rise up your company costs increasing business expenses.
Upgrade become complex
Well, the majority of business organizations prefer custom made ERP solutions dreaming their better integration for seamless business management. However, customized ERP solutions start raising issues post-implementation. With large additions of change, the software remains reluctant to further upgrading. The ability to upgrade the ERP solutions turns difficult, eventually yielding costly and complicated business enhancements.
Upgrading the business software become progressively troublesome and challenging as each time to support newer software versions, the code needs to be rewritten or modified. The complexity to upgrade thus often paves the way to defer the version migration of the software in many situations. And
this is the major reason, that many business organizations go for replacing their existing ERP software. Because, they have already done with enormous customizations, that now their ERP software is in risk to take the new change. Ultimately the business gets deprived of the advantages of newer versions of the software. So the more you indulge in customizing the software, the more you remove yourself from the product evolutions—which means remoting yourself from the extraordinary features and advances the software offers.
So, well think before you overdo the customization of your ERP. Do you want to put yourself into the shoes of cumbersome undertakings and increase your company costs or go for minimal customizations, accomplishing your primary needs at the same time back you with all merits of newer versions of the software?
Elimination of Best Practices
Software development is an arduous task. It is not just an off-the-rack substitute for immediate use. It comes as the end product of months/ years of research and development. And while designing them, the software engineers make sure that it adheres to standard industry standards. It is made sure that the software is self-reliant in accomplishing all the industry needs as seen from a layman’s perspective.
However, each industry has different workflows and business processes. It is understood that there will be little changes within two manufacturing or trading industry. And this demands certain customization in the software. However, if you insist for the software to behave the way you need rather adapting yourself to the way the software is designed, you are likely to go away from the standard workflow, thus hampering your business in large ways.
Over-customization of ERPs will take you to different directions, far away from best and standard practices. This is the long run can costs your business, certainly much than anticipated.
So post reading this, if you have a thought that zero-customization ERP is ideal, well! we the Odoo official partner advocate for the same. We have witnessed many cases from our clientele, how over-customization ruptured their business processes and workflows.
Therefore, we insist for minimal ERP customization or a zero-customization in the standard ERP workflow. However, with changes in the business pattern, most organizations are bound to undergo customizations in their ERP systems – at least to some degree.
But no worries, with the help of a good ERP consultant, you can make the cumbersome task to a manageable one. Cybrosys offers services in Odoo ERP. Our range of service includes Odoo Implementation, Odoo Customization, Odoo Support and Maintenance, and outsourcing Odoo developers. If you are looking for an Odoo ERP solution for your business and need a good Odoo consultant to define your requirements, write to us to odoo@cybrosys.com. We are ready to assist you.