Enterprise Resource Planning

Section A: Objective Type & Short Questions (30 marks)

(Subject Code-B102)
Part one: Multiple choice: (Each 1 Mark) (Total 100 Marks)

1. Which of the following describes an ERP system?

Ans:- (d) All of the above.

2. The responsibilities of the office manager in a firm that produces electronics spares is:
Ans:- (d) All of the above

3. Physiological Barriers of listening are:

Ans:- (a) Hearing impair
ment

4. What is the main function of Business Communication:

Ans:- (c) Persuasion

5. Which presentation tend to make you speak more quickly the unusual:
Ans:- (b) Oral

6. Labov’s Storytelling Model based on:

Ans:- (a) Communication through speech

7. Diagonal Communication is basically the:

Ans:- (b) Communication between the CEO and the managers

8. Direct Eye contact of more than 10 seconds can create:

Ans:- (a) Discomfort &Anxiety

9. How to make Oral Communication Effective?

Ans:- (d) All of the above

10. Encoding means:

Ans:- (a) Transmission
 Part B (Each 5 Marks)

1. Define ERP?

Ans:- Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is a process used by companies to manage and
integrate the important parts of their businesses. Many ERP software applications are important to
companies because they help them implement resource planning by integrating all of the processes
needed to run their companies with the single system. An ERP software system can also integrate
planning, purchasing inventory, sales, marketing, finance, resource, and more.
Examples of ERP software are,
• NetSuite ERP
• Tipalti
• Rossum
• Scoro
• Kechie ERP
• Brahmin Solutions
• Odoo
• SYSPRO
This are some top ERP software which are medium size companies and large corporations are used
widely.

2. What are ERP packages?

Ans:- Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) refers to a type of software that organizations used to
manage day to day business activities such as accounting, procurement, project management, risk
management and compliance, and supply chain operations. The ERP packages is designed to support
and integrate almost every functional area of a business process such as procurement of goods and
services, sale and distribution, finance, accountings, human resource, manufacturing, production
planning, logistics and warehouse management etc.

3. What are the reasons for the explosive growth of the ERP market?
Ans:- The reasons for the explosive growth of the ERP market are as follows:
• ERP affects almost all organization respective of the organizations’ size, industry segment
and nature of the business, ERP has change the way they do business. ERP has increase the
efficiency and competitiveness of organizations. It has automated managed business
processes, streamlined day to day operations and has helped organizations serving their
customers better.
• ERP improves the profits of the consulting firm consulting firms offer a variety of ERP
related services. These services range from Business Process Re-engineering (BPR), selecting
the right ERP package, ERP implementation, end-user training, and post implementation
support and so on.
 • ERP provides flexible decision support is a real time decision support system which can
provide flexible and integrated support for complex decisions. ERP can also provide
alternatives in suggesting a better, less costly but efficient manner for deployment purpose.
• iv) ERP eliminates legacy systems legacy systems are old systems that are still present and
used in a business and can present problems for a company. ERP can address the problem by
pointing out what information is necessary to provide a workable and viable system. Thus,
management will come to realise that the legacy systems are not able to achieve the output
of efficiency required, necessitating the input of network and software update.
• v) ERP takes advantage of untapped markets Business practices are fine-tuned with ERP,
new market possibilities develop that were unknown before. When uncovered, the elements
can yield a new way to introduce sales or other business efficiencies into the system.

4. What is Business Integration and how do the ERP systems achieve it?
Ans:-It’s the best to start with the simple definition:
Business integration is the technique companies use to align the use of their technology assets with
their business to meet a shared goal or outcome. The unification of technology and business goals
allows companies to operate smoothly as they move forward and adapt.
For businesses seeking integration services, an ERP system, or enterprise resource management
system, is an excellent choice. This is because ERP systems are specifically designed to combine
business technology tools and functions together so they can easily be accessed through a single
system. This allows for easy access to information and provides companies with the flexibility and
freedom to grow.
An integrated ERP system works with a variety of business platforms to support enhanced
departmental communication and insight. This means that important, relevant information from
accounting can be shared with marketing and HR- and vice versa.
 Section B: Caselets

Caselet 1 (Each 20 Marks) (Total 40 Marks)

Questions:

1. How Ventura Defined A Global Roadmap To Greater Speed And Reliability?

Ans:- Ventura is an award-winning semi-automated assembly and production company that
serves the automotive, office furniture, education seating, and moulding and assembly of optical
silicone industries globally. Headquartered in Zeeland, Michigan, the company has multiple plants in
Zeeland in addition to plants in Budaörs, Hungary, Saltillo, Mexico and Shanghai, China. When as
demand for Ventura’s services grew and the company began attracting customers worldwide, it was
apparent the dependency on a single ERP system on-premise in Zeeland, Michigan was becoming an
impediment to faster growth. As their eight plants globally running from a single ERP instance on a
server in Zeeland, Michigan, the IT team faced the challenges of scaling their systems to support the
global growth fueling their company’s expansion. They are running IQMS’ manufacturing ERP system
delivered via Hosted Managed Services (HMS) provides Ventura Manufacturing the most economical
system architecture for greater scalability and efficiency as well as to attain disaster recovery goals.
As demands increased on the system, they concerns over Availability and Disaster Recovery
Objectives to the IT Team. They are using the two metrics that are of specific interest to Ventura’s IT
team are the Recovery Time Objective (RTO) and Recovery Point Objective (RPO). The IT team
defined the RTO goal as 8 hours and the RPO as 15 minutes, achievable on a 24/7 basis. To accomplish
these goals, they did created an entirely new system platform that could scale more efficiently with
their growing business. The new platform increase of the speed of system. The organization’s IT
Team challenges of scalability and disaster recovery decided that Hosted Managed Services (HMS)
from IQMS was the best possible solution. Ventura chose IQMS’ Enterprise IQ delivered via Hosted
Managed Services (HMS) because it was the most economical and fastest option for solving the
system performance challenges and attaining the disaster recovery goals the company has. Under the
IQMS HMS purchase option, software licenses are owned in perpetuity by Ventura and hardware and
platform software is provided by the IQMS data centre. IQMS is managing the Ventura systems today
in a secure data centre environment. Due to this technology they can access the handle and operate
the system from anytime and anywhere without any problems.
 Caselet 2
Questions :

1. Why did the Big Bang approach fail for The Hershey Company?
Ans:-
Hershey’s ERP implementation Failure:
When it cut over to its $112 million IT systems, Hershey’s worst case scenarios became reality.
Business process and systems issues caused operational paralysis, leading to a 19 percent drop in
quarterly profits and an 8 percent decline in stock price.
In the analysis that follows, I use Hershey’s ERP implementation failure as a case study to offer advice
on how effective ERP system testing and project scheduling can mitigate a company’s exposure to
failure risks and related damages.
Key Facts of ERP Failure:
Hereare the relevant facts:
In 1996, Hershey’s set out to upgrade its patchwork of legacy IT system into an integrated ERP
environment. It chose SAP’s R/3 ERP software, Manugistics’ supply chain management (SCM) software
and Seibel’s customer relationship management (CRM) software. Despite a recommended
implementation time of 48 months, Hershey’s demanded a 30-month turnaround so that it could roll
out the systems before Y2K.
Based on these scheduling demands, the cutover was planned for July of 1999. This go-live scheduling
coincided with Hershey’s busiest periods – the time during which it would receive the bulk of its
Halloween and Christmas orders. To meet the aggressive scheduling demands, Hershey’s
implementation team had to cut corners on critical systems testing phases. When the systems went
live in July of 1999, unforeseen issues prevented orders from flowing through the systems. As a result,
Hershey’s was incapable of processing $100 million worth of Kiss and Jolly Rancher orders, even
though it had most of the inventory in stock. This is not one of those “hindsight is 20-20” cases. A
reasonably prudent implementer in Hershey’s position would never have permitted cutover under
those circumstances. The risks of failure and exposure to damages were simply too great.
Unfortunately, too few companies have learned from Hershey’s mistakes. For our firm, it feels like
Groundhog Day every time we are retained to rescue a failed or failing ERP project. To help
companies implement ERP correctly – the first time – I have decided to rehash this old Hershey’s
case. The two key lessons I describe below relate to systems testing and project scheduling.
Hershey’s implementation team made the cardinal mistake of sacrificing systems testing for the sake
of expediency. As a result, critical data, process, and systems integration issues may have remained
undetected until it was too late.
ERP Systems Testing:
Testing phases are safety nets that should never be compromised. If testing sets back the launch date,
so be it. The potential scheduling benefits of skimping on testing outweigh the costs of keeping to a
longer schedule. In terms of appropriate testing, our firm advocates methodical simulations of
realistic operating conditions. The more realistic the testing scenarios, the more likely it is that
critical issues will be discovered before cutover.
For our clients, we generally perform three distinct rounds of testing, each building to a more realistic
simulation of the client’s operating environment. Successful test completion is a prerequisite to
moving onto to the next testing phase.
In the first testing phase – the Conference Room Pilot Phase – the key users test the most frequently
used business scenarios, one functional department at a time. The purpose of this phase is to validate
the key business processes in the ERP system.
In the second testing phase – the Departmental Pilot Phase – a new team of users tests the ERP
system under incrementally more realistic conditions. This testing phase consists of full piloting,
which includes testing of both the most frequently used and the least frequently used business
scenarios.
The third and final testing phase – the Integrated Pilot Phase – is the most realistic of the tests. In
this “day-in-the-life” piloting phase, the users test the system to make sure that all of the various
modules work together as intended.
With respect to the Hershey’s case, many authors have criticized the company’s decision to roll out
all three systems concurrently, using a “big bang” implementation approach. In my view, Hershey’s
implementation would have failed regardless of the approach. Failure was rooted in shortcuts
relating to systems testing, data migration and/or training, and not in the implementation approach.
Had Hershey’s put the systems through appropriate testing, it could have mitigated significant failure
risks.
ERP Implementation Scheduling:
Hershey’s made another textbook implementation mistake – this time in relation to project timing. It
first tried to squeeze a complex ERP implementation project into an unreasonably short timeline.
Sacrificing due diligence for the sake of expediency is a sure-fire way to get caught.
Hershey’s made another critical scheduling mistake – it timed its cutover during its busy season. It
was unreasonable for Hershey’s to expect that it would be able to meet peak demand when its
employees had not yet been fully trained on the new systems and workflows. Even in best-case
implementation scenarios, companies should still expect performance declines because of the steep
learning curves.
By timing cutover during slow business periods, a company can use slack time to iron out systems
kinks. It also gives employees more time to learn the new business processes and systems. In many
cases, we advise our clients to reduce incoming orders during the cutover period.
In closing, any company implementing or planning to implement ERP can take away valuable lessons
from Hershey’s case. Two of the most important lessons are: test the business processes and systems
using a methodology designed to simulate realistic operating scenarios; and pay close attention to
ERP scheduling. By following these bits of advice, your company will mitigate failure risks and put
itself in a position to drive ERP success.

Section C: Applied Theory

(Each 15 Marks) (Total 30 Marks)

1. What is the difference between ERP and CRM software?

Ans:-
CRM Software: CRM at its simplest is systems and processes for managing a company’s interactions
with current and potential customers. When we talk about CRM we usually are talking about CRM
Software. CRM software is used to organise, automate and synchronise sales, marketing and
customer service.
 CRM has developed to include all areas of the customer experience, keeping the customer happy and
in turn keeping them loyal and more valuable to your business. It is the process of identifying
potential leads/prospects, nurturing them and guiding them through the sales process to close the
business. Once they are a customer it is ensuring that you maintain that relationship and encourage
repeat business – either more frequent orders or higher value.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) are similar in
many ways, as they are both used to increase the overall profitability of a business.
These systems overlap in some areas, and can be completely integrated in others. However, as their
core functionalities are completely different, it’s best for a business to first look at them as separate,
stand-alone systems. When viewed separately, it’s easier to see how ERP and CRM each play a role in
improving efficiency and increasing sales.
Differences between ERP and CRM:
ERP Software CRM Software
• i) Use ERP software to manage back-office i) Use CRM software to manage the front-office
activities and tasks. activities and tasks.
• ii) Distribution process management ii) Organise marketing efforts
• iii) Supply Chain Management
iii) Manage the sales pipelines
• iv) Services knowledge base
• v) Improve accuracy of financial date iv) Streamline your sales processes
• vi) Facilitate better project planning v) Automates customer service
• vii) Automate employee life cycle vi) Share marketing and sales collateral
• viii) Standardise critical business procedures vii) Create date reports
• ix) Reduce redundant tasks viii) Learn which products sell best and when
• x) Assess business needs ix) Prioritise leads
• xi) Accounting and financial applications
x) Manage inventory based on historical sales
• xii) Lower purchase costs
• xiii) Manage human resources data
• xiv) Payroll xi) Collaborate to sell as a team
xii) Manage your business leads
xiii) share customer profiles with co-workers
xiv) See where leads come from

2. What are some of the risks associated with ERP software?

Ans:-
Focused on business functions and processes, an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system
enhances the flow of decision making and communication across an organization. In other words, it
is the amalgamation of business operation and managements based on contemporary technology.
But the secret to success lies in identifying the factors that can pose hindrance in the growth of your
company. This is so because, though an ERP system comes with a number of advantages, at the same
time it has few implementation risks. Thus, to benefit your business with enterprise resource
planning, understanding the following risks is of utmost importance.
The Major Risks That Comes Along With ERP Implementation –
i) Commitments:

As soon as you implement an ERP system, expecting immediate result won’t be wise. Enterprise
resource planning solutions require time to come with its best end results. It needs to be effectively
selected and properly scrutinized before it come up with any positive results. It will become risky
for your business if you don’t completely commit for the entire process to undergo.
ii) Improper training:
It is a blunder to allow someone to make use of ERP software or systems if he/she is not trained
professional with its uses and techniques. This is so because if the user is unaware of its uses then
he/she won’t be in a position to complete accept it. Secondly, even if they accept it, they might be in
a position to make its best use. As a result of which your business will be hampered instead of
benefiting.
iii) Selection of Software:
All enterprise resource planning software does not fit in all types of business requirements.
Unfortunately, you need to identify your requirement and select the one that will apt for it. This is
necessary because, if you fail to do so you will end up risking your complete business. Don’t make
the mistake of investing in an ERP implementation that won’t bear any fruits for you.
iv) Stability of Software:
Another risk that can knock your door is the instability of the invested software. All ERP systems
are not up to the mark for proper function. It all depends from brand to brand. Before you conclude
up on one system, make adequate research and approach enterprise resource planning software
developers who either possess years of experience in developing such solutions or are very much
reputed in the market. This is also the reason why experts suggests of testing ERP software and
systems, rigorously before finalizing one particular type.
v) Delaying in updating ERP Software:
A mistake that many marketers land up making is that their laid back attitude towards updating the
software from time to time. Whenever an update is released it comes with added features and if you
delay in renewing that portion, you will be at a loss by the end of the day. Your competitors will
make maximum benefits with the fresh features while your professionals won’t be in a position to
benefit from them, due to the delay.