Alright, next big Management Information System software is Enterprise Resource Planning software (or ERP software). ERP basically integrates all departments and functions throughout an organization into a single IT system. So employees can make companywide decisions by viewing companywide information on all business operations.
Confused yet? So let's say we're a manufacturing firm. We have many different departments: Manufacturing, accounting, finance, marketing/sales, and human resources. So EACH of these departments have their own management information system to keep track of all their own data. In reality, there's TONS of overlap; the accounting and manufacturing sides could be keeping track of the same data from their client orders, the finance and human resources departments could be looking at compensation so both have that data in their system. This is not efficient! Without ERP software, there is lots of redundancy, overlap, and entry and reentry.
With Enterprise resource planning systems, there is a centralized database that is the same across the company. So all finance information, all accounting information, all client data etc are inputted. There is of course one overarching format to the entries, and all the data is structured in the same way and correspond to the rest of the data. Now, whenever a department needs information (say manufacturing needs to find the address to ship to, and accounting needs to know the address to send the bill) then they can directly access the same database and look up the same information cell.
Sounds simple no? Well you'd be surprised. In 2002, FoxMeyer, a bankrupt pharmaceutical distributor, sued SAP (a popular ERP software vendor) and Andersen Consulting. The suit charged that the failure of an SAP system led to the drug distributor's collapse. Eventually, both Andersen and SAP settled to the tune of $500 million.
So yeah, it sounds like a great idea that every company should have. But it's a highly risky move! One failure could destroy the organization, as seen in the story above. In fact, it is insanely hard to implement an Enterprise Resource Planning system, and there are many easier alternatives that provide the simple requirements of ERP.
Here's a SAP commercial that doesn't really have anything to do with anything. Enjoy!
The software sounds quite competitive to others in it's market!
ReplyDeleteSAP? FTW.
ReplyDeleteall the companies i know primarily use SAP.
ReplyDeletewow that commercial is great those tricks are sick
ReplyDeleteThink i'm going to be a business software trivia king if you keep these updates up haha.
ReplyDeleteERP is always a risky product if its not adopted by the organisation it will always lead to a failure.
ReplyDeleteI like their commercial
ReplyDeleteAs Mike said, never knew about any of this before you started blogging this stuff.
ReplyDeleteNever heard of it
ReplyDeleteI never really understood anything about SAP's or ERP's. I suppose they can be beneficial for big companies but I've also read about huge financial losses from where these projects have failed.
ReplyDeleteIt always surprises me how much money you sue people for in the states (I assume it's the U.S.). 500$ is an insanely large amount of money.
ReplyDeleteInteresting read, I think I'm actually learning stuff :)
I wish i was sick at soccer :(
ReplyDeleteVery risky, never heard of this before. But the commercial was cool, the moves were crazy.
ReplyDeleteHow strange. Anyways, good post.
ReplyDeleteCool commecial :) Like the blog, im following!
ReplyDeletethe commercial looks good. IT SELLS !!
ReplyDeleteInformative stuff about ERP and I wish I was this crazy in soccer!
ReplyDeleteGood commercial!
ReplyDeleteI never really understood anything about SAP's or ERP's. - me either;/
ReplyDeleteThat commercial... :D
ReplyDeleteReally sick commercial! Also ERP sounds interesting... Ima look it up.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea what any of the stuff you just said is about... I'm gonna stick to rocket science.
ReplyDeleteI know someone who is very close to me whose company they work for tried implementing something similar to this. It failed on a cataclysmic level.
ReplyDeleteI'll take extra efficiency for the risk, anyway.
ReplyDeleteEven in my past experience working at a company with only 3-6 employees it was a huge challenge to avoid overlap in terms of data entry and where information was stored. Trying to keep all of the data for a large company in one format sounds like a nightmare.
ReplyDeleteLol that commercial gave me a good laugh.
ReplyDeleteOh man, ERP?! I hear plenty about that at work. Seems to be about 50% common sense, and 50% overhead/wasted resources for justifying the growth of middle management.
ReplyDeleteit is very risky but a risk that deserves to be taken. the benefits that can be achieved are great!
ReplyDeleteInteresting read, I've never really thought about this sort of stuff before
ReplyDeletehuh, pretty cool commercial
ReplyDeletewhen insects get electrocuted they make a 'sappp' sound
ReplyDeletenice fap advertisement ;)
ReplyDeletefollowing and supporting!
http://alcoholics-unanimous.blogspot.com/
NICE COMMERCIAL wow.
ReplyDeletenice blog, following! :D
ReplyDeleteOh wow, I think you broke my brain @.@
ReplyDeleteI entered the SAP mothership on a few occasions. Hot German women with a far different sense of the term business casual... ftw!
ReplyDeleteGood Stuff man
ReplyDeletehehe, sweet comercial
ReplyDeleteI got lost about two sentences in, herp derp
ReplyDeletethis makes one thinking... and the nthinking again :)
ReplyDeletenice video btw
utubed.blogspot.com
nice vid :)
ReplyDeletenice commercial
ReplyDeleteI'm sure this would be easier to setup in the initial stages of starting a business. Implementing this into a big business that is already in operation sure does sound like a lot of work, with the potential for mistakes. Scary thought.
ReplyDeletelove it!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletetypo~
ReplyDeleteYou're right if you're saying it's a risky move for the SAP company to have invested in the idea of marketing an idea. They should have orchestrated their disclaimer better. They're the ones that got underhanded. The failure company failed because of under-par marketing and management, the same way all companies do. The system was simply to display all information about a product on a single form, likely to be both electronic and tangible, so that each department can simply view/access/alter the info they need to and then pass along the same form when they're done. It's an efficiency system. It will make working companies better, but it won't fix broken ones. What's bullshit is that there's a company making enough money to sue for half a bil who's product could be programmed in microsoft excel by a high school graduate.
Sounds like sharepoint except competent and functional.
ReplyDeleteThis stuff is getting more and more complicated @.@
ReplyDeleteSounds like it could work, because the common man can't screw it up (because they can't be trusted with it)
I thought the commercial was crap, I just focused on the soccer tricks, and the guy's voice just phased out.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jay I thought it was about soccer in some way.
ReplyDeletehahaha great post! thanks
ReplyDeletehey my comment really has nothing to do with anything :) happy easter
ReplyDeleteawesome commercial!
ReplyDeleteThis was really informative! Thanks for the video too
ReplyDeleteERP? Erotic Role Play?
ReplyDeleteLololol at DerpFiles.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. Risky business.
ReplyDelete