Being Resourceful

ERP SOFTWARE TODAY TRANSCENDS A BUSINESS ORGANISATION’S BOUNDARIES WITH DIGITAL INNOVATIONS LIKE CLOUD COMPUTING ASSISTING IN DATA MANAGEMENT.

- Mitalee Kurdekar

ON AN ORGANISED SCALE, ENTERPRISE Resource Planning (ERP) systems were first introduced to businesses with core modules in manufacturing and supply chain, later extending to sales, marketing, human resources and general accounting functions. Over the past two decades of ERP evolution, organisations have gathered a host of data points that, if analysed and utilised in a meaningful manner, have the potential of being turned from a data mine into a wealth of information and intelligence.

Explaining this scenario in the context of modern business enterprises, Neeraj Athalye, VP, innovation & digital strategy group, SAP Indian Subcontinent, says, “Today, every CEO wants to leverage Data & AI (Artificial Intelligence), ML (Machine Learning) and IoT (Internet of Things) to enable an intelligent enterprise, which can drive business outcomes such as total customer experience, step change in productivity and transform the way the workforce is engaged.”

The opportunities are immense. IoT would enable the capture and analysis of data in a real-time. On the other hand, Data Analytics and solutions arising therefrom would help enterprises manage both structured as well as unstructured data. In addition, AI applications would support capturing, reading and predicting based on past data, responding and executing transactions in a seamless manner.

Appreciating this positive change, Pradeep Aggarwal, senior director, Cloud, Oracle India, suggests, “Manufacturers must view themselves not just as product companies, but also as service companies. This combination will enable businesses to offer more compelling value propositions to their customers and open up new revenue streams. This approach can be powered by new technology, such as IoT.”