Leveraging functional project management practices and advanced planning capabilities is critical to the success of any project-based company in any industry…
Read on to learn how project-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems can improve process efficiency and enhance collaboration between employees and business units, as well as how our senior-level consultants can help you make the most of your ERP investment.
What is Project-Based ERP?
Project-based ERP software is a form of enterprise resource planning designed to help project-based businesses optimize core project operations and deliver customer projects on time, within budget, and with the highest quality possible.
Project-based ERP systems give users a more in-depth view of key performance indicators (KPIs) and other performance metrics to ensure their core business processes are aligned to maximize productivity, improve process efficiency, and increase revenues to meet tactical and strategic business objectives.
With project-based ERP software, companies are enabled to…
- Avoid unnecessary customizations to reduce time, money, and risk when it comes to ERP implementation projects
- Increase return on investment (ROI) through accurate and timely insights into project management tasks and objectives
- Streamline business development, talent recruitment, and and workforce management
- Identify issues within the ERP solution and build intuitive solutions to resolve them
- Optimize system utilization through integrations between Professional Services Automation (PSA) and Project Portfolio Management (PPM) tools
How is Project ERP Different from Traditional ERP?
When it comes to choosing the right enterprise resource planning system and applications to meet your needs, it’s important to understand the differences between the main types of ERP solutions and their capabilities.
Let’s take a look at the core features and functionality of both traditional ERP systems and project-based ERP systems…
Project ERP Systems
- Designed to meet product lifecycle and project-based needs
- Offer deeper insights into labor gaps, inventory management, and project milestones
- Place an emphasis on the people at the heart of a successful project delivery
- Provide the functionality needed to manage people and tasks at the same time
Traditional ERP Systems
- Built for extensive, repetitive large-scale manufacturing processes
- Provide the tools and resources needed to monitor the production of tangible goods
- Suitable for physical resource management in product manufacturing
- Drive economies of scale through streamlined activities
Core Components of Project ERP Software
Here are a few functional components of project ERP software that help companies manage their projects, budgets, operations, and people more efficiently across departments and business units…
Human Capital Management (HCM)
With project-based ERP systems, companies can more accurately and efficiently monitor and manage their most valuable resource: their employees. From the recruiting process to hiring, onboarding and training, project ERP makes it easier for companies to identify gaps and shortages in their workforce and allocate labor more effectively across business units.
A project-based ERP system also helps reduce issues with resource management and improve overall productivity by simplifying time, payroll, and expense entries and managing workloads through more accurate labor forecasts.
Project Management
Project-based ERP provides advanced project management tools and capabilities that not only help companies improve planning, visibility, and control across their workforce, but they also enhance time and expense entry, contracts, invoicing, billing, and more.
This kind of ERP software also provides detailed reports that reveal valuable data for budgeting, asset management, and activity tracking and functional data integration to proactively manage projects.
Financial Management
When it comes to optimizing your financial management processes and ensuring projects are properly resourced and accounted for, project-based ERP simplifies budgeting and project accounting tasks. By accurately reporting on project costs, revenues, and operations, your company can quickly and easily identify project gaps and ensure projects are carried out according to budget.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Identifying weak links in the sales cycle and determining the type of customers who are more likely to return is essential in making the most of your sales opportunities and finding new ways to improve customer relationships and satisfaction in the future.
CRM functionality within a project ERP system not only helps manage and forecast opportunities throughout the entire sales cycle, but it also leverages campaigns and proposal automation to further improve the process of finding and winning projects and enhance client collaboration across the board.
Supply Chain Management
With SCM capabilities in project ERP systems, companies greater control over their logistics and warehouse management functions throughout the entire manufacturing process.
From procurement to purchasing, order tracking, approval, and shipment, SCM in a project-based ERP system makes it easier for companies to gain a more holistic view into product lifecycles and improve collaboration between different areas of the supply chain.
Which Industries Leverage Project ERP?
With project-based ERP software, project-based organizations across a wide range of industries can be empowered to improve their day-to-day operations and enable success across all departments and business units.
Project ERP systems typically benefits companies that operate, manage, and monitor multiple projects at the same time, including…
- Government Contractors
- Construction Companies
- Architecture and Engineering (A&E) Firms
- Consulting Firms
- Marketing Agencies
- Accounting Firms
Main Advantages of a Project-Based ERP System
- Simplify resource management with planning and scheduling consolidation
- Foster organizational growth with improved communication and collaboration between employees, departments, and business units
- Manage and meet deadlines by maintaining project control and assigning priority to tasks
- Accurately target customers to ensure project goals meet customer needs
- Strengthen project accounting for more accurate budgeting, forecasting, and reporting
- Improve visibility for day-to-day operations through project-based KPI capabilities
- Quickly adapt to changing market conditions or business requirements
- Leverage business intelligence (BI) and other analytics tools to achieve more predictable project outcomes for repeat customers
Key Project ERP Solutions for Your Company
Project-based ERP solutions are built to optimize business processes, improve productivity, enhance scalability, increase project efficiency, maintain regulatory compliance, and ultimately achieve the greatest level of customer satisfaction possible.
The main project-based ERP solutions in the industry include…
Microsoft Dynamics 365
The Dynamics 365 solution goes beyond traditional ERP functionality by offering advanced integration capabilities that bring together traditional Office 365 tools and comprehensive Dynamics enterprise resource planning capabilities in a single solution.
With Microsoft Dynamics SL, companies in project-based industries, like construction, engineering, or government contracting, can improve service delivery and leverage advanced tools and resources to more efficiently meet consumer demand across business units.
Oracle NetSuite
Oracle NetSuite is a cloud-based ERP software that provides the functionality and extensibility needed for project-based companies to facilitate growth, scale their business processes, and more efficiently adapt to change in the industry.
NetSuite offers applications to improve Supply Chain Management, Procurement, Financial Management, and Warehouse Management functions to ensure companies have the tools they need to drive innovation and accelerate project success throughout their organization.
How Can We Help?
From helping you choose the right ERP system to meet your needs to navigating complex integrations between applications and third-party tools, managing every stage of your project lifecycle, and helping you make the most of your ERP investment, Surety Systems is here to help.
Your company. Your priorities. Our expertise. That’s the name of the game at Surety.
We provide top-notch project management consultants across a wide range of industries and ERP systems, including Workday, Infor Lawson, Oracle JD Edwards, Microsoft Dynamics, who are sure to fit the bill for any of your project needs.
Getting Started with Us
Our team of senior-level project ERP consultants has what it takes to lead your project-based organization to success, regardless of the size, scale, or scope of your needs or the complexity of your projects.
Interested in learning more about our project-based ERP consulting services?
Ready to get started on a project with one of our expert consultants?
Contact us today to get connected!
