BI and ERP: together and separately

Many transaction systems, including ERP and CRM, partially contain functionality of BI. However this "merge" of BI and ERP is improbable, Sergey Zablodsky, the director of department of corporate solutions of Department of corporate systems of management of IBS considers. "It is possible to speak about marketing tactics selling licenses when the licenses ERP and BI are offered in one set, it is possible to discuss long enough different architectural and hardware nuances, however, conceptually, "merge" of BI and ERP cannot happen for very simple reason - these functionality, on large, are focused on the solution of two absolutely different tasks. ERP - on permanent registration of a huge number of financial and economic activities. BI - on ezheperiodichesky aggregation of data, their algorithmic processing and representation of results, and, a concept data, in relation to BI are, as a rule, significantly wider, than the volume of the financial and economic activities registered in ERP.

Advantage in the market will be got by the one who will be able to solve each of these tasks most effectively, and for this purpose the functionality needs to separate, providing the solution of the specified tasks and to be focused on optimization of each of funktsionalnost separately. "Merge" will result in need of search of a compromise between the level of optimization of each of funktsionalnost and degree of their joint working capacity - any "combine", in comparison with the specialized tool, is limited in an issue of optimization of the functions".

Alexander Yefimov, the head of the systems of forecasting of Forecsys, the developer of the specialized analytical Goods4Cast platform, considers that "the basic purpose of the ERP system is an automation of accounting and management in the company. The possibility of forecasting is only the ERP systems add-on module therefore often in such modules rather simple prediction algorithms based on the speed of sales are used. However it is required not only to apply more competent prediction algorithms to creation of the qualitative and reasonable forecast, but also to be able to consider a big variety of factors which influence demand.

It should be noted that the companies which implemented the ERP system have a certain advantage: the system of forecasting at them will be based on already smoothly running processes of data collection. At solving of tasks of data mining, including forecasting, the lion share of success depends on quality of collecting and accounting of data. Therefore it is possible to tell that implementation of the ERP system is an obligatory step before implementation of any BI solution".

Tatyana Lyakisheva, the head of department of analytical technologies of FORS group company partly agrees with this opinion: "all have a need for solving of tasks of the analysis and reporting for the principle: at government institutions, large, medium, small business. So, it is really a question of readiness. If operational activity of the company sense is not automated, then to start the project on analytics, probably, early. It is necessary to build "the information base" for analytics in the beginning: modern corporate information systems. And, it shall not be a "heavy" and monolithic ERP system. We recommend to use the process approach to implementation of business applications on the basis of SOA technologies. Such solution architecture allows not only to reduce the price significantly of the project, to reduce its terms, but also to make a system more flexible, easily configured according to the changing requirements of business.  We execute similar projects for the customers for a long time".

The Galaktika corporation offers the solution to this problem – the BI block it offers as independent, but at the same time the integrated block of the uniform ERP platform. Alexander Tsarev, the deputy manager of management of software development of Galaktika corporation, tells: "the complex of the applications "Galaktika of BI" in relation to the integrated Galaktika ERP system is "superstructure" on the relation to "basis", it is the following, higher level of automation for our regular customers. Still not all domestic enterprises managed to reach this level – therefore a ratio of the sold ERP and BI licenses while, naturally, it develops for benefit of the first. But everything is good in its season. Entering the market of BI, we first of all aimed to reduce costs of our customers for implementation of BI products (including the cost of licenses, maintenances, consultants, etc.). Besides, our first clients who worked on the Galaktika ERP system decade managed to save up big databases and began to ask a question: what with them to do? Whether it is possible to use them for the profound analysis of trends of development of the enterprise for many years? The system of the class Business Intelligence is for this purpose necessary".

So, for example, the MAV company, producer of paint and varnish products, uses the ERP system Galaktika since 1997, and since 2007 in the company operate also the BI block. On a response Aleksanda Pavlyutya, the associate director on business concerns of MAV company, the module BI provides much higher data processing rate, especially regarding formation of different reports. Now at the enterprise users of Galaktika are about 100 people, from them about 20 use the BI block, it is sales department, sales office, regional representative offices and directly managers. The single system allowed to optimize and integrate processes not only managerial, but also accounting, to implement an algorithm which "coordinates this work so that everything worked as the uniform mechanism".