Facing Economic and Global Challenges with an ERP System

Last week, we took a look at some of the challenges facing manufacturers in an ever-changing business world and if current ERP software is up to the challenge of handling them. You can learn more by visiting here. The challenges addressed previously mainly pertained to what is going on within a manufacturing firm itself, including what we see is true for our clients in Toronto and throughout Canada, but many outside factors and general trends also create challenges for manufacturers. Let’s take a closer look at economic and global factors that also present challenges to today’s manufacturers like you.

Economic Challenges:

• Achieving a competitive advantage as a manufacturing firm with increased quality of products and services which ends up limiting the range of products able to be offered or that can only be offered to a certain niche or narrow market based on costs
• Despite margins narrowing, maintaining a solid bottom line that can handle rising costs and an ever-increasing number of lower-cost manufacturers throughout the world that are now competitors
• Enhancing speed of response, flexibility, and efficiency in order to meet expectations brought on by customers with regards to lead-times, service quality, and commitments

These economic challenges are a result of large-scale fierce competition that has reached a global level and is a response to ever-intensifying customer requirements and expectations that come in response to the economic crises we’ve all faced over the past several years.

Global Challenges:

• Globalized trade and international development necessitating the need for companies to be more clued into different rules and tools if they want to grow
• Companies needing to implement global production processes in order to keep up with distribution and extended production chains
• Shifting consumer behavior because of access to not just local but global products
• Overall technical progress causing shrinking product lifecycles because of constantly evolving and quickly accessible, new technologies
• Changing legislation and increasing environmental compliance standards that need to be met but require extra checks and controls throughout the production and shipping process
• Outsourcing production while diversifying products, extending sales channels, and furthering options for customers who have ample choices in a global world
• Improving marketing and customer relations while implementing multi-channel distribution systems to reach customers worldwide

Design, production, trade, and logistics have all been transformed by global access to goods and a business world that is more globalized and less localized than ever. This presents challenges like never before.

With so many challenges to face with regards to the current economic situation and globalized market, you need an ERP system that can truly respond. Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) is one such system that can transform your processes as you transform into a globally competent and economically responsive manufacturing company. It is available in 60 countries and supports a wide range of languages and legislative systems that can help your company cope with complex processes and deployments across international sites. Learn more about Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) here.

Our small and dedicated team specializes in helping small-to-medium size Canadian businesses and non-profits select and adapt Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Human Resource Management (HRMS) and IT services. With IWI’s 15 years in business and 100 plus years of combined experience, IWI has helped hundreds of manufacturing, distribution, and financial service companies gain efficiency, grow, and lower their operating costs.

With the unique combination of industry knowledge and diverse technology expertise, IWI provides cost-effective solutions to help clients gain a competitive edge.  As a Sage business partner, servicing the Greater Toronto Area, we support evaluation and implementation of operations and finance systems to optimize technology, ensuring high return on investment with a quick and painless transition to new software.