Mind The Gap – Fast Track Your Business Growth
A new Access survey reveals that with seamlessly integrated software for warehousing, production, scheduling, business intelligence and finance, companies can hasten their growth journey by minding the gaps into which their competitors will fall. This is a vital message at a time when economic growth creates a challenging journey that will stretch existing processes and systems.
Examining the challenges for Business Intelligence and Financial systems, the new survey, called ‘ERP for the Finance Function 2014’, found that where systems do exist, they are unlikely to be linking effectively with financial systems – potentially a big gap in which to fall. One in four financial professionals struggle to obtain an understanding of product costs, costs of wastage, rework and returns, distribution and labour costs – at least at the level of the individual order, customer or product. As a result they are in the dark as to the impact of rush orders, discounting and service costs on the profitability of particular lines. But then 41% of finance professionals use only spread sheets or manual calculations and even among those with access to more advanced IT, around half reckon that up to 40% of calculations are still done the old way. This is a significant source of cost and error.
The new research conducted 200 interviews with Finance & Accounting professionals working in manufacturing, distribution and logistics businesses in the UK during May 2014. It follows recent Access research on Warehouse Management Systems, and Supply Chain Management.
A new white paper has also been released from Access, called: ‘Mind the Gap – Fast track your business growth’. This is the first in a new series of white papers from Access, which focus on the benefits of a ‘complete’ supply chain system. The white papers combine recent research on Warehouse Management Systems, and Supply Chain Management with the new research.
Ian Roper, Director of Access, said: “Firms that cannot adapt their ways of working and fail to mind the gaps will miss out on the growth they are seeking, if they survive at all.
“To cope with these challenges and fast track growth, businesses need systems and processes that offer total visibility, close control, and the ability to recognise and react to changes in close to real time. Equally, systems within organisations, and those that lie between supply chain partners must be capable of working together seamlessly. This will allow a business to mind the gaps and set out on a smooth growth journey.”
