6.Important Factors
Now that you are aware of the technical details, below are the important factors that should weigh in your decision.
1.Accessibility
Would you like to access your data where ever you are? As your business grows this will become a big factor in how you run your business. With the advent of Internet, accessibility has become a one of the most important factors. ERP software allows users to have access to data via LAN (Local Area Network) or WAN(Wide Area Network). This totally beyond the capacity of Desktop bound software. ERP software also allows other users to access your system based upon your needs. You run it on one computer(server) and all others can access the same data. Desktop bound software cannot offer this flexibility.
2.Scalability
The software you buy should be matched evenly to your business. Smaller businesses are less structured. They are less process oriented. Larger businesses are more structured and have more processes. They generate more data. As your business grows your software should be able to handle the growth. This is called scalability and is a big factor later on. You don’t want to throw away your software and look for another that can handle the increased data volume every couple of years. So you should choose wisely. A software that separates the three main functions will be able to scale better. Relational database scale much better than flat file databases.
3.Reliability
As discussed before flat file databases are notorious for data corruption. The danger grows with the size of database. The "Extremely User Friendly" desktop software will lose its title very quickly if it becomes unusable due to data corruption. Also the desktop software are inherently more susceptible computer crashes due to their architecture as they do not separate the three basic functions. A computer crash can leave you high and dry very quickly as the files may refuse to open due to corruption. Relational databases have much more advanced features to safeguard against this type of situation.
4.Security
Business data security is another big concern with desktop software. Most of them are not password protected. This can make easy for someone to steal the data. There are thousands of horror stories about hacker operating bot net and bot armies that take over computers and use them as slaves for their nefarious activities without you even knowing about it. It takes just one script monkey to download all your data files and sell it to your competition. In case of desktop software it is easy to read the files as the information is stored in flat file format. You can open them in notepad and see the actual information. In case of relational database it is different. Relational database can be locked down on database level also. The files are named in machine readable sequence and no one file contains all the information. So even if someone does get some files, it is very hard to open and look at them outside of your database.
5.Extendability
Does your software allows for addition new business functions? Say you are diversifying into another business. Will you want to get a whole new software to manage the new business? Or you can get going by adding new screens to your current software? Desktop Business software usually have no extendability at all. Try to ask them for addition of new screens or even a new report. They will tell you that you have to wait for the next version release. It is the very nature of the software that disallows this. Desktop software is compiled software. Which means a lot of work has to be done to make small changes. Files have to be compiled again after the changes. Where as in ERP software you can get new functionality added much more easily. It is modular in due to its superior architecture and can be extended as per your specific requirements.
6.Customer Service
Lets face it, you will need to contact customer service during the course of your usage of the software. Your need may be even more urgent if you are heavily dependent upon software. So you should choose a company that offers knowledgeable customer service. Lot of large desktop software companies employ novice people to answer phones. They are neither interested in your business not they are knowledgeable enough to really help you. They usually waste your time effort giving you frustration instead of customer support.
7.Your Budget
Money makes the mare go. After all business is about making money and being profitable. So budget will invariably be a factor in your decision. But it should NOT be the only factor. In fact it should the last factor you should consider. Only you know how much money you want to spend. If you choose wisely you will be able to reap the benefits for a long time.
Hopefully you are now armed with the knowledge needed to make an informed decision and get best value for you money.
For any questions, comments or concerns please do not hesitate to contact us.
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