Selecting the best ERP solutions for our customers

Over the course of the next week we will be posting a series of short blogs. In these postings we will be explaining the strengths of the solutions we offer to our customers and how we work with them to ensure we meet their requirements and select the best solution for them to expand their capabilities.

 

As you are probably aware Nolan Business Solutions recently announced that we have become Sage ERP X3 partners. This puts us in an unusual position because we are now able to offer our customers the choice of 3 leading ERP solutions, Microsoft Dynamics GP, NetSuite and now Sage ERP X3. Some might suggest that taking on so many solutions may dilute our expertise in each one but we disagree. The main reason we have chosen to offer 3 solutions is to ensure that we can meet our customer’s needs. No two clients are the same, even clients within the same industry have varying requirements and it is crucial that we understand this and are able to present the best solution for them. We are now able to offer a relatively unbiased judgment on which is the best system for a given client as we are not forced into only putting forward a single solution.

 

Many Value Added Resellers (VARs) focus on just one solution, this means that during new client meetings they are only looking to sell them that single solution which may not always be the best solution to support that businesses current requirements and crucially it’s future plans. They will try and convince them that their solution is the best one and look to fill any functionality gaps with third party add-ons and development projects. This just complicates the solution and leads to increased costs and a more difficult implementation and on-going support situation.

 

At Nolan we follow a tried and tested methodology when it comes to helping customers select a new system. We understand how difficult it is to compare ERP solutions and aim to simplify this process by providing industry and product insight to our clients. This starts with an on-site discovery meeting where we sit down and take the time to understand the customer’s business. This includes current systems, project scope, key functionality required, preferred IT environment, budget, and more crucially future growth plans. We believe that if we don’t understand how the business works and where they are looking to go, then we cannot say with any authority that we can provide a solution at all, let alone decide which product from our portfolio best suits their needs.