Enterprise Resource Planning

Enterprise Resource Planning attempts to integrate all departments and functions across a company onto a single computer system that can serve all those different departments' particular needs. ERP combines all departments’ applications together into a single, integrated software program that runs off a single database so that the various departments can more easily share information and communicate with each other. This integrated approach can have a tremendous payback if companies install the software correctly. ERP vanquishes the old standalone computer systems in finance, HR, manufacturing and the warehouse, and replaces them with a single unified software program divided into software modules that roughly approximate the old standalone systems. Finance, manufacturing and the warehouse all still get their own software, except now the software is linked together so that someone in finance can look into the warehouse software to see if an order has been shipped. Most vendors' ERP software is flexible enough that you can install some modules without buying the whole package. (http://cio.com/)