Session 2 of assignment one

Hello~ here is my answer:

SAP Software-Automate the Order-to-Delivery Process

Answer the following questions after viewing the video:

1)Which departments within the company are integrated within the Order-to-Delivery process ?

Ans: Basically, the Order-to-Delivery process vertically integrates the work flow from
i)purchasing department (keeping stock availability),
sales department (receiving orders from customers),
warehouse department (arranging products from warehouse for delivery)
to customer services department (tracking of order status),
assuming that the delivery services are contracted out to independent couriers. The accounting department is also involved (issuing invoices).

2)Which steps are included in the Order-to-Delivery process ?

Ans: Upon receiving the order from client,
(1) the sales manager can check the real-time inventory database to confirm if the item ordered is in stock; if yes,
(2) the sales order can be created with just a few clicks and the warehouse department will be notified right away;
(3) the warehouse manager retrieves the complete details from the sales order, including the item ordered, shipment address, etc.
(4) the warehouse manager assembles the order by the pick and pack manager which:-(i) assigns a unique serial number for each order for future tracking purpose; and(II) generates and prints the delivery note and packing slip for delivery arrangements.
(5) once the carrier has collected the shipment the order status in the system would be automatically updated which the sales manager will know and an email will be sent to the client offering the tracking details.

3)What factors would you consider when deciding whether ERP is suitable or not for a small business ?

Ans: A small business shall consider the following factors before adopting an ERP system:
(1) cost-effectiveness: it is understood that a considerable amount of capital is required to set up an ERP system for not only the hardware for data storage but also the license and/or development for a customized system suitable for the individual uses. It has to be noted that the maintenance cost is also high especially if constant review and amendments are to be made in relation to the infrastructure of the system.

(2) nature of business: following the first point, if an investment in an ERP system can (i) streamline a labour intensive business model, (ii) significantly reduce potential manual mistakes and (iii) effectively enhance the operation efficiency by centralizing real-time database i.e. knowledge management (especially for inter-departmental and/or amongst various physically premises (office/warehouse/factory) communications), the cost and potential loss saved (addtional gain) may justify the trade-off for the capital required. For example, logistics and industry mastering massive information are considered suitable to adopt ERP systems.

3) time of inception: if it is an established business which considers adopting an ERP system, attention has to be paid as to whether the existing business processes are compatible to the system, if not, a large degree of business process reengineering (BPR) shall be required, which will increase the initial cost and other relevant amendments to business practices. It derives another potential problems as to staff training and impact on corporate culture, especially for information sensitive industry such as research and financial institutes.