Enterprise Resource Planning or an ERP system is being implemented by a lot of companies for obvious reasons. A lot has been spoken about the benefits of an ERP system, its pros and cons, of how it can single-handedly change any business’s scenario. Some companies find the price spent on implementing an ERP system to be completely worthwhile, while some debate about the costs involved. For some companies, money might not be something to worry and probably they don’t have any qualms in shelling any amount of money. But small and medium scale industries, which are growing by the number with each passing day, need to wisely spend every penny. In this blog-post, we will discuss about the cost that is required to implement SAP Business One and the various factors upon which the cost is dependent upon, so that the first step of deciding what to implement can be taken and the action can be executed accordingly.
The cost of implementing SAP Business One is dependent on many variables: number of branches the company has, number of users, the internal capabilities and requirements of the customers, quantity and quality of data that needs to be managed, level of integration required, extent of customisation that is required, business rules and goals mapped out for the company, workflow requirements and the amount of training required. One needs to keep all these factors in mind before deciding anything. Ensuring that you get a complete solution that is perfectly configured with your business processes can notably reduce implementation costs. You can further assess the complexity and the implementation costs by taking into consideration the following factors:
– You need to take in to account the licenses required. The cost usually depends on the number of users and the type of licenses that your business requires and also if your solution is on-demand or not. Different license types will have access to different functionality sets the increase control of your operations. The more and recent the licences are, the costlier it will be.
– The amount of the support and maintenance that SAP requires should be considered. Some vendors offer an annual maintenance plan whose priced is based on a percentage of the upfront software pricing which is charged on an annual basis. If you have any of the SAP Business One Add-on, then the support and maintenance costs for them would be additional.
– The hardware required by SAP should be taken in account. The server and client machines should meet certain criteria. Factors like how many users are present, if remote access required or not, potential growth plans, the volumes of data that need to be processed matter when costs are being estimated. Ensuring that you have the right hardware solutions will go a long way in smooth running of business processes.
– The geographic location where SAP needs to be implemented affects the cost of implementation. The legal and fiscal requirements differ with each country and the costs are affected that way. With different countries, the complexity of different languages that changes with each county arises. Various language sets need to be made. Business One offers support in multiple languages covering multiple legal and fiscal requirements that is beneficial for companies that are looking to expand geographically.
These are just some of the factors that affect the cost of implementation. The factors may vary for each company, thus the cost will vary accordingly. Evaluate each factor that’s relevant for your company. SAP Business One Addon can also add up the cost on some occasions. So, one shouldn’t make the mistake of overlooking them. There is a possibility of cutting the costs on some factors that need to be considered in the immediate future, so initially that wouldn’t reflect on the implementation costs. As the company expands, the customization and implementing the necessary changes will be included in the costs. Map out the best solution for your company ant invest wisely.
