| Special Report Financial Mail |
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The adaptable alternative |
| This kind of flexibility makes it easier to deal with new data flows
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Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are a huge pain to businesses leaders. They provide a unified system for managers to quickly get specific information on what is happening in their company; yet they are often difficult and expensive to implement and not flexible enough to adapt to a change in workflow or business processes.
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| Often ERP systems take up so much time that instead of being focused on running the business, management finds itself running the system.
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The inability of an ERP system to adapt to specific workflow and business processes is sometimes presented as one of the main causes of its failure. No wonder CEOs wince when it comes to implementing and running an ERP. |
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WHAT IT MEANS |
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Research group Gartner praised it |
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Exponªnt won global maintenance deal
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| Technology group Exponªnt says with Agresso it has an ERP financial system that addresses some of the shortcomings of rival systems. There is little risk that Agresso will become obsolete because it is designed to change with the business, says Paul Bouwman, the executive manager responsible for Agresso. "You don't have to structure yourself to the ERP system," he says. |
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| US-based technology consultant TechVentive says in a report that Dutch-based Agresso is one of the few ERP vendors that designs systems from the ground up based on the principle that businesses can and must change. |
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| This kind of flexibility makes it easier to deal with new data flows arising from an acquisition and the introduction of a new business process. |
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| As well as adapting to a company's needs, the comprehensive implementation of Agresso does not leave its users dependent on Exponªnt for guidance once the system is up and running. "With Agresso, Exponªnt does not make money from after-sales service," says Bouwman. |
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| Though it takes four to six months to implementation with Agresso, most of that time is spent on training a client's staff rather than putting the system in place.
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| So comprehensive is the training that when the system goes live there is no parallel with the existing system.
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| Exponªnt's consultants will be on site for a few weeks to monitor the system after Agresso has gone live, after which the client's staff are left to run it. |
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| Agresso is not for start-up businesses. It's designed for firms that employ more than 200 people, and the smallest-scale implementation will cost about R700 000. |
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| Bouwman says because the system was launched in SA only a few months ago, it is too early to determine whether it will be a success here. |
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| Exponªnt says a few companies have shown a lot of interest in Agresso. So far, there are two in SA that operate it. |
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| The public sector will be an important focus for Exponªnt when it comes to selling Agresso, Bouwman says. Globally, public-sector sales of Agresso account for 50% of total sales, with municipalities accounting for 20% of public-sector sales. |
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| Bouwman sees a big opportunity to sell Agresso to local governments in SA because the current financial systems municipalities use are not up to standard in terms of the new legislation. Local governments now have to be managed in keeping with the Municipal Finance Management Act, which is meant to modernise budgeting, accounting and financial management practices. |
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| In addition to this legislation, municipalities have to be compliant with the stringent demands placed on them by the Municipal Systems Act and the Public Finance Management Act. |
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| Bouwman says the group is also looking at selling the system to local universities. Several European universities use it and some SA tertiary institutions have shown an interest. |
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| Agresso customers in the UK and Ireland include 150 municipalities, 60 health trusts, 100 colleges of further education, 100 universities, several police and fire services and central government departments. |
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| It was rated the leading project portfolio management system in Europe by technology research group Gartner last year. |
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| But the relationship between Exponªnt and Agresso is far deeper than that of distributor and supplier. |
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| Exponªnt beat off fierce competition from India and Ireland for the world-wide maintenance contract for the Agresso system five years ago. |
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| Bouwman says working in the same time zone and sharing a common language worked in Exponªnt's favour. |
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| "It's a strong relationship," Bouwman says of his group's dealings with Agresso. The initial three-year contract has been extended. |
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| Exponªnt has at least one of its employees stationed at head office in the Netherlands. It has 12 people working on the maintenance contract, which makes up 8% of the group's total business. |
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Paul Bouwman - The system does not leave users dependent |
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