While these areas aren’t normally covered in an ERP’s standard features, the good news is that modern ERPs are highly adaptable. You can expand their core functionalities to include extended business solutions, like additional modules for customer relationship management (CRM), human capital management (HXM), business intelligence (BI) and much more.
With the right add-ons, your ERP can bring the same level of efficiency, visibility, and automation to those areas of your business as it already brings to your core operations.
Why expand your ERP’s core functions?
Since your ERP consolidates data from your business’s core operations, it contains vital information that improves decision-making and planning. By extending the core features, you ensure a seamless flow of real-time data between operations and other key areas like customer engagement, marketing, product development, and workforce planning. This keeps all areas of your business fully aligned and improves overall efficiency.
Which additional business solutions are available?
Here are some key areas where companies benefit from ERP extensions:
Customer experience (CX)
To improve customer experience, you can integrate CRM and CX tools into your ERP. For example, DIY brand Deli Home integrated the SAP CX Suite with its ERP to gain full visibility over customer interactions and sales processes. This allows them to track customer touchpoints, personalise engagement, and provide seamless online and offline customer experiences.
Advanced analytics & business intelligence (BI)
ERP systems also create the opportunity to turn operational data into predictive analytics. There are now advanced, AI-driven tools that you can incorporate into your ERP to produce actionable business intelligence (BI). For example, BI tools can automatically analyse seasonal sales trends and adjust procurement orders accordingly, so your company buys supplies more wisely and maximises profitability.
Employee Engagement & Human Experience Management (HXM)
Your core ERP may include basic HR functions like payroll and compliance, but you can expand it with specialised tools that cover important processes like talent development, performance management, or employee engagement. By integrating modules for HXM, you can track employee performance, automate training programmes, and improve retention through career development plans.
Industry-Specific Customisations
ERPs can also be expanded to address the unique needs of specialised industries. For example, Vitamunda, a nutraceutical company, worked with Aiden to enhance its SAP Business One ERP with custom production tracking and regulatory compliance extensions. These add-ons help manage batch traceability, ingredient sourcing compliance, and quality control measures, ensuring they meet the industry’s strict health and safety regulations.
When the ERP system does not offer solutions to expand functionality for specific industries, another option is to use low code solutions to build on top of the ERP.
Supplier Relationship Management (SRM)
Procurement is a core ERP function, but you can also add tools for optimising supplier relationships by tracking KPIs like on-time delivery rates, defect rates, and compliance with other contract terms. SRM tools automate supplier evaluations, so your company has access to real-time performance data that helps you negotiate better contracts or spot inefficiencies like multiple vendors offering the same suppliers or services.
Sustainability & ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) compliance
You can also incorporate dedicated tools into your ERP for sustainability tracking, carbon footprint reporting, or ESG compliance. By integrating an ESG module to track emissions in your company’s logistics, for example, you can ensure regulatory compliance and efficiently generate sustainability reports for investors and auditors.
Enterprise asset management (EAM)
There are also comprehensive tools that you can add to your ERP to manage your company’s physical assets. This includes features like automatically monitoring and triggering workflows for maintenance schedules. EAM tools can also keep track of your equipment’s locations and usage levels, generating data insights that enable you to use assets optimally.
Field service management (FSM)
With FSM tools for your ERP, you can track and monitor activities carried out by field sales reps and service technicians. This enables your field service staff to resolve inefficiencies (like double bookings), identify additional sales opportunities, and easily log their activities in a unified format and location, so everyone is on the same page. For example, Dekker Zevenhuizen, a manufacturer of high-quality custom countertops for kitchens and bathrooms, worked with Aiden to incorporate SAP Field Service Management into its SAP Cloud ERP (formerly SAP S/4HANA). This enables service technicians in the field to coordinate with office staff seamlessly and log their activities on-site using a mobile app.
Solutions for any business use case
The list of extended business solutions for ERPs goes on. For virtually any use case, you can integrate helpful tools into your ERP to build upon its core functions. This ensures a seamless, synchronised flow of data throughout your organisation. From optimising customer engagement, to automating supplier management and streamlining field service operations, the right ERP extensions help make your company’s operations more efficient and profitable.
