ERP gets easier for SMB

Good news for the small medium business (SMB) for which you must be waiting from long time. Now the ERP gets easier for the SMB. A few years back the Enterprise resource planning (ERP) was a self-important expression with expensive software to match. ERP is helpful for the managers to do their responsibilities more efficiently, boost sales and reduce costs. ERP is business management system that gives a support to the mangers of the companies to command of data and workflows to get the clear report of each factors of the business.

The essential part of the business like planning, manufacturing, sales and marketing are also cover with ERP. It also covers activities like inventory control, order tracking, customer service, finance and human resources. For example, ERP software can automatically indicate to the managers when it notices that stocks have gone down in a sales depot. Dealing with the suppliers is sometimes very difficult for the managers but with ERP it will be easier for a company manager to deal with suppliers.

ERP software is now available in much cheaper rate for small business also because now a day’s number of computer users is increasing day by day. A large group of people are using various kind of software to manage all the official details. ERP software, once a privilege for the global multinational, is available on much cheaper rates.

SaaS (Software as a Service) – It is refer to renting of software over the Internet, much like Web based e-mail. SaaS is also contributing to software becoming cheaper and easier to use. Industry officials say the emergence of SaaS and cheaper ERP software has dramatically lowered the barrier for users. Top ERP solution providers are now targeting just about every company, size no bar Consider the case of SAP, the global leader in ERP software, which once was associated largely with multinational giants.

On November 21, 2007 SAP India announced record-breaking quarterly growth for the third quarter of 2007 with the addition of more than 714 new customers till September 2007, translating to more than two new customers per work day in 2007. "A growing SMB (small and medium business) market, opportunistic investors, and middleware technologies converge to make the SMB market for ERP applications one of the most competitive environments for market growth and product innovation within enterprise applications," ---- Says Gopakumar Sivanandan of SAP India.

A spokeswoman for rival Oracle India spokesperson agrees. "Mid-sized companies are driving India's GDP growth today," she says. Microsoft recently launched Microsoft Dynamics NAV designed specifically for medium sized companies.

“Dynamics NAV delivers integrated functionality to support solutions for financial management, supply chain management, CRM and E-Business." According to Sushant Dwivedy from Microsoft India,

For small and medium enterprises sometimes it was very hard to pay the cost at one time.
Earlier it was required Rs 10 to 15 lakhs can be done at a fraction of the price for ERP software. Though it must be that renting out software involves a recurring cost every month. The onetime cost of an ERP package needs returning costs in training and support and to that extent, renting the ERP software over the Web could be a lot better Consider.

The cost of the ERP for SMB is available for three users at Rs 25,000 a month, for five users at Rs 35,000 a month and 10 users at Rs 60,000 a month. No hardware, no personnel, no software cost is required in addition to this. Oracle and SAP have attractive pricing that make affordability a huge attraction. Oracle starts at as low as Rs 2,800 per user license, though it calls for implementation and support cost Much cheaper versions are also available from the Open Source movement, which uses operating systems based on free, modifiable platforms like Linux. Source – HT Times

According to market researcher Gartner, revenues from business platforms in India grow from $12.1 million in 2005 to $16.4 million in 2006, with all leading vendors posting double-digit growth. The Indian ERP market is expected to see a CAGR (compounded annual growth rate) of 25.2 per cent over the next five years. The market was $83 million in 2004, and is projected to be over $250 million in 2009.

India Ahead of China

India is growing in the BPO sector at present India is unquestionably the BPO superpower of the world. But it is also true that the competition is always on. There are other strong competitors of India who might ruin India's BPO. There are lot of countries and one which on top is China.

China is one such country which can eat into the BPO share market of India. But for the time being India is well ahead of China because of some inherent advantages. India is currently booming in the BPO arena and has scored over China to emerge as the top offshore destination for Global businesses. In the 2004 offshore index, India remains the star performer. It has once again captured the top spot in outsourcing by a comfortable margin due to its strong mix of low costs and noteworthy depth in human resources. This fact was brought out in a study conducted by AT Kearney, an international consultancy agency.

India has a very important advantage, their command of the English language. There are lots more Indians with good English skills than Chinese. Forrester also endorses the view that scalability of resources (talent pool) is the major factor that makes India an attractive offshore location. “The cost of operations in India can be 20-30% higher than places like Vietnam or lower than places like Brazil. But part of the challenge for these countries is the lack of skills. There is a very limited set of low-end work that companies like GE are looking at and lack of quality resources makes it hard for these countries to get started. The work going offshore today is geometrically more complex than the Y2K work that India got started on with,’’ says Mr McCarthy.

India proved better than China on account of several factors. The study pointed out that China lags behind India in terms experience and other important factors like IT and management education, language skills, concerns about intellectual property and overall country risk.

According to the study, although India and China are the market leaders in this sector, there are huge opportunities present in the market to give ample space to other countries like Philippines, Vietnam, Romania, Kenya, Sri Lanka and North America market to grow.

The study also said although it is unlikely that India would be able to retain its number one slot with China aggressively trying to outstrip it in the business, it would still be able to get a decent share of the pie.

Golden Opportunity in Call Centers (based on survey)

Careers in BPO and call centers are no longer a passionate choice for urban youth, reveals a survey conducted by ASSOCHAM. The BPO sector, which is already encountering an attrition rate of 25 to 30 per cent, may face a tough challenge of managing with a 30 to 40 per cent shortage in trained manpower in the next two years, a survey says. According to the survey, the apathy is mainly due to uncertainties in job security, coupled with stringent working conditions and the increasing number of people switching over to newer and promising areas of work, namely aviation, hospitality and retail.

Aviation, hospitality and retail sectors are also currently experiencing shortage in workforce to an extent of 25-30 per cent. This phenomenon has created abundant opportunities for urban youth in the above mentioned sectors.

“A majority of 12th Standard pass outs, who were earlier seeking opportunities for livelihood in BPOs and call centers, are now curious to join other leisurely yet attractive areas of work like animation, journalism, designing, and entertainment, besides aviation, hospitality and retail,” the survey reveals.

Factors influencing youngsters to explore their rising career graph in above mentioned areas comprise attractive pay package with more incentives than those offered in call centres and BPOs. Secondly, working conditions and lifestyle seem to be more regulated in sectors like aviation, hospitality, retail, and animation, the survey notes.

The survey reveals that institutes running various call center courses are facing the warmth and are witnessing a shortfall of 15-20 per cent of student fall-outs in their academic sessions. Moreover, call centers and BPOs are cutting their costs to reduce their operating revenue margin; this is influencing the employees’ salary packages and facilities.