Integration has been one of my favourite topics for more years than I care to admit. Businesses need two things: all the information in one place and all the information in the best place. By information all in one place I mean that as consumers of information we don’t want to search multiple systems, we don’t want to enter the same information in more than one place, we want quick, easy, intuitive access. However a smooth business process also needs information in the best place; some functionality is better served in a best of breed system rather than an ERP system.
Our customers use SYSPRO and K3 DataSwitch to resolve this dilemma. SYSPRO is an ERP system designed from the ground up to be an open and flexible solution that can handle data from all kinds of sources. To complement this, our DataSwitch integration tool allows our customers to take information from other systems and integrate it with SYSPRO or vice versa. This allows NexSys customers to use best of breed load planning applications within their SYSPRO ERP deployment, or consolidate the general ledger with detail pages, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in. a corporate’s financial analysis package, or integrate through their supply chain to customers and suppliers alike. K3 has also developed specific integrations between best of breed packages, for example, between Microsoft CRM and SYSPRO, giving our customers’ sales team a seamless journey from prospect to quotation to sales order.
So, what’s my advice for customers starting on the integration journey?
- Review your systems, decide what’s key and what should be consolidated
- Consolidate what you can into SYSPRO ERP
- Select best of breed applications to support value adding activities outside SYSPRO ERP
- Integrate those best of breed applications with SYSPRO ERP
