|
|
|
|
StrategicPlanning360.com - Strategic Planning Information At Your Fingertips... |
|
|
 |
|
ERP Role in Selling Your Mid-size Business ? Microsoft Great Plains and CRM Example
If you own the mid-size business and actively work in it as executive manager or lead, say marketing, you probably know exactly what needs to be done on the daily basis to keep it running. However, in many cases this business critical knowledge exists in your head only. This means that if you would like to sell your business, it has little value without your participation. So, ahead of the selling time you should "formalize" the business - to make it work within the systems and rules, independent of people. Let's consider the parts we will need. 1 Functional Diagram. Well, one may think that he doesn't have to reinvent the wheel, but we think that this is the only possible way, to start from the top level of formalization. Functional diagram should show the process of getting new customer as a prospect, the sales process up to the closing, then customer order executing. And this diagram should reflect the interaction of your departments and key employees/positions. 2 Sales Control. When you want to formalize sales you are looking for the system, which allows you to distribute leads to your sales people and then have a tight monitoring of the closing rates and the quality of the closed prospects by salesperson. This system will allow you to create formal position: Sales or Marketing director, who can generate new business for the company through this Sales automation system. In our opinion, this is 60% of the formalization success. 3 Order Execution. You need standard ERP to control order fulfillment. Usually such a system is implemented on one of the Accounting applications platforms. In the case of small and mid-size business, we would encourage you to map to your functional diagram, described above and clarify all your needs with the consultant, who will help you with the implementation. Order Execution automation will allow you to introduce another formal position - Controller. 4 CRM/ERP market. You could find variety of the systems on the market. Here you need to stick to the quality rules. When you implement the computer system you should probably take the leaders on the market and be sure that they will stay or get additional market share in the future. In the case of mid-size business, in our opinion you should be selecting between two leaders: Microsoft Business Solutions with its ERP: Great Plains, Navision, Solomon, Microsoft CRM, and Best Software with their MAS 5000 5 Microsoft Great Plains & CRM. These two systems are integrated and allow you to implement Sales Control and Order Execution, if you decide to stake on Microsoft brand. You can always have us help you with the implementation & customization. Call us: 1-866-528-0577, 1-630-961-5918. Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer in Alba Spectrum Technologies ? USA nationwide Microsoft CRM, Microsoft Great Plains customization company, serving clients in Chicago, California, Texas, New York, Georgia, Arizona, Louisiana, Michigan, Florida, Canada, UK, Australia, South Africa and having locations in multiple states and internationally ( http://www.albaspectrum.com ), he is Dexterity, SQL, C#.Net, Crystal Reports and Microsoft CRM SDK developer.
 Strategic Planning News for Monday, Feb 6, 2012...
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Business Results - Four Critical Success Factors Scenario One 10 Critical Facts to Put On the Cover of Your Business Plan... In most business plans, no matter how striking the idea, the covers are critically important. The majority of investors may flip to the executive summary, if they get past the cover, when deciding whether or not they are interested. Exactly like the front page of a daily newspaper, a business plan cover puts the important highlights of the proposal upfront for potential investors to read. Succession Planning for Business - 10 Key Points You Must Know By cranking up others development to meet your business needs, big or small, not just for right now, but for the future, you will find payoffs, big-time. Here are a few ideas to get you started. How to Snuff Out the Competition Without Leaving a Mark Does the competition drive you crazy? Vision Getting Dim? A recent conversation started with a typical question, "How's business?" The reply was equally typical and prefaced by a sigh, "You know (another sigh), same old / same old." Business Plan 101 How to Write a Table of Contents No matter what business you plan to start in your next entrepreneurial endeavor you need to be thinking about writing a business plan. Even if you are not seeking funding for your new business or already have secured funds from family members, angel investor types, personal savings or partners. A business plan helps you start out on the right foot and makes you think about your future strategies. One important thing you need in a business plan is a table of contents that you can use as a guide, as you go thru the hectic and tedious steps to start your new business. There are a myriad of rules, regulations and inane paper work and you must stay focused at all times. Bounced Checks in Your Business Location Outlets The new check cashing instant clearing will take some time to get use to. If checks clear immediately and deposits take a few days then franchise outlets may find more bounced checks in their establishment. Shortening Product Life Cycle! The current state of the available technology at the disposal of designer is the most limiting determinant to what is technically and economically feasible to develop, therefore research into metatechnology such as computer science, whereby interdisciplinary spin off provides advances that both directly increase capabilities, and affects other technologies to dramatically improve system performance, is a necessity, the implication being that despite many of the basic principles being relatively static, the technology used is essentially in a state of constant development. Business Plan Financial Projections: Stop Worrying About Being Right... Business plan financial projections seem daunting because they are so uncertain. This very uncertainty, however, is what makes preparing them easy because you can't possibly be right. You can't predict the future. None of us can. All you can be is competent in the way you prepare your business plan projections. Mining Market Data With a heightened awareness of opportunity, ideas can often be generated by market research. The National Women's Business Center (NWBC) defines market research as "a systematic, objective collection and analysis of data about your target market, competition, and/or environment with the goal being increased understanding. Through the market research process, you can take data, a variety of related or non-related facts, and create useful information to guide your business decisions. Making a Decision to Outsource: Strategic Constraints Many companies are reluctant to dive into outsourcing ocean because of various reasons of strategic nature. As far as strategic goals are touched upon, managers are concerned with the following issues: Call in the SWOT Team: Produce More Opportunities to Expand Your Business Have you ever done a SWOT analysis? No, it's not some dangerous military maneuver. It's actually a fun and incredibly helpful business development exercise that will give your company focused direction and great marketing ideas -- whether your business is brand new or has been around for years. This SWOT exercise will show you where your business is flourishing and where it needs to grow to gain clients and produce more sales. I recommend getting someone else (such as a friend, family member, or trusted business advisor) to brainstorm with you. You'll be determining your strengths and weaknesses, which are *internal* influences on your company. These factors are under your control. Opportunities and threats are *external* influences, things you cannot control, but you can respond to. After you read a short description of each of the four categories, take time to list as many of yours as possible. Consolidation in the Software Industry is Hardly New: Obsess About It or Risk Losing it All Some analysts credit [Larry] Ellison with anticipating the consolidation in the enterprise software industry and leading the charge. Ellison 'called a major shift in an entire market, which was impressive.'(1) 19 Questions to Supercharge Your Business Plan Whether you are seeking capital for your company or are optimizing your business strategy, the most important element - particularly for outside investors - may be your written business plan. You can tune-up and supercharge your plan using this 19-step checklist. When your written plan firmly answers yes to each of these 19 questions, your market/product strategy is in terrific shape plus you increase the odds of attracting investment capital. Documenting the Exit Strategy in Your Business Plan All investors greatly desire and are motivated by a clear picture of a company's exit strategy, or the timing and method through which they can "cash in" on their investment. This picture best comes into focus when the key valuation and liquidity drivers of the company are clearly delineated. An excellent method to accomplish this is through descriptions of comparable firms that have had successful liquidity events, either through acquisition, merger, of initial public offerings (IPOs). Art of Succession Planning Succession planning, like any business acumen, is both an art and a science. That is to say, there are many proven strategies that can and must be followed so that successful transition can occur. Strategic Planning Fundamentals Strategic planning is vital while starting a new business or expansion of an business or planning to boost the performance of an existing business. But it requires detailed strategic planning and controlled deployment activities. Strategic planning is used to delivers its value proposition and achieve its mission. Own Your Niche by Building a Niche Community In 1997, David Steele was making the transition from a professional therapist to relationship coach. Part of his strategy was to become a center of influence and THE Relationship Coach for his community. Be Like Bill - Think! Twice a year, Bill Gates goes to a remote island hide-a-way for a week at a time. No, he's not going for a fishing vacation; instead of rods, reels, and lures he takes market analyses, position reports, engineering reports, and opportunity papers. In solitude he reads and thinks and reads some more, writing notes in the margins then composing questions, thoughts, and his own positions that will impact the future of Microsoft and the entire technology industry for years to come. How To Get More Business During The Winter Months Business seems to drop, slow or even stop during the winter months. As tourist traffic slows or stops during the winter months so does the incomes of many local business owners. The first step in overcoming this problem begins in your brain (don't they all?)
|
Copyright © 2005 - 2012 StrategicPlanning360.com. All rights reserved. Legal Info Site Map |
 |
