How NetSuite ERP Delivers ROI for Small Businesses

Here’s how small organizations can use cloud enterprise resource planning to eliminate manual work, gain operational visibility, streamline their processes and get to the next level.

There’s a flawed assumption in the business world that says only large organizations can afford and benefit from enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. This is an old school of thought that’s no longer valid in an era where smaller enterprises need all of the functionalities that only a robust ERP can provide, but can also access these systems in a much more affordable manner in the cloud.

Not only does the cloud vastly reduce a small business’ upfront IT investment, but it also takes the burden of maintenance and upgrading off of the company’s shoulders and transfers it back to the software vendor. NetSuite, for example, offers two predictable upgrades per year that happen in the background—no additional participation or support required. Literally overnight, the small business is up and running on the latest version of NetSuite, which is continually enhancing its ERP platform.

These are just a few of the ways NetSuite Cloud ERP delivers return on investment (ROI) for companies of all sizes, including those that may not have previously been interested in a full-blown enterprise resource planning platform.

11 Ways NetSuite Delivers ROI

A metric that compares the expected cost of an ERP to the anticipated benefits—both direct and indirect savings—of implementing the software, ROI is calculated by adding the anticipated returns from ERP and then dividing that number by the total cost of ownership (TCO) of the ERP.

An ROI target that’s solely based on numbers and equations doesn’t always factor in the many other benefits of implementing a unified software platform across the enterprise. For example, if the  2-person finance team at a 50-person company spends most of its time shuffling papers around and trying to pull spreadsheets together into cohesive financial reports, the real “cost” of these activities can’t be encapsulated in a single number.

And when those activities are streamlined onto a single platform that completes the month-end close process in a few hours versus days, the benefits start to add up pretty quickly. For example, the CFO and accounting professional can focus on value-added, business-building tasks instead of chasing down paper all day and sharing data via email (i.e., since everyone has it on dashboards right at their fingertips).

These benefits can help a smaller enterprise transform into a growing organization—and even a midsized to larger entity, if so desired—pretty quickly. Here are 11 additional ways CEBA Solutions uses NetSuite as a platform for helping small companies achieve a high ROI from their software investment:  

1)      Improve communication across all departments by eliminating the need for spreadsheets, disparate systems and constant emails.

2)      Provide a high level of visibility across the entire organization.

3)      Give business leaders real-time insights they can use for good decision-making (versus making them wait around for reports to be gathered, developed and shared).

4)      Reduce inventory levels, including all raw materials, work in progress and finished goods.

5)      Improved planning and control across all operations.

6)      More standardized procedures, improved accounting controls and better legal and regulatory compliance.

7)      Lower material costs as a result of better procurement and accounts payable practices.

8)      Improved labor allocation through better scheduling and human resource management.

9)      Integrated data that’s accessible to remote workers via the cloud.

10)  Fewer errors and more on-time shipments, shorter order-to-shipment cycles.

11)  Happier customers who return to your physical or online location to place more orders.

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Getting to the Next Level

Overall, companies that use NetSuite Small Business ERP are more efficient, collaborative and in sync. Those that rely on legacy systems, disparate solutions and spreadsheets can’t achieve these goals. Small companies that use NetSuite also save money, have better performance metrics to work with, reduce their IT costs and decrease their cycle times.

NetSuite Cloud ERP not only automates business operations, but it also eliminates repetitive and tedious tasks that take up way too much of a small business’ time on a daily basis. With NetSuite in place, team members can focus on business areas in most need of improvement, explore new opportunities, and take the steps needed to get to the next level.

About CEBA Solutions

CEBA Solutions is a long-time Oracle NetSuite Solution Partner that can help your company select, implement and optimize its ERP system and other solutions. We’ll provide as much—or, as little—guidance as you require throughout the process, post go-live and throughout the life of your ERP.  

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