Classification of ERP systems in trade and the description of their fixed functions

For classification of "trade" ERP systems it is possible to use a number of criteria. Let's consider the most important of them (according to TAdviser).

If to begin with the largest blocks of classification, then first of all it is necessary to subdivide ERP systems for trade into solutions for wholesalers, the wholesale and retail companies and small wholesale and also the solution for retail. Here it is possible to note division into the systems customized for automation of trade in food and not food goods.

Solutions for wholesale

ERP systems for wholesale automation, as a rule, have the powerful circuit of SCM ensuring functioning with a supply chain, automation of external and internal logistics, automation of an inventory control and management of merchandising and stocks. Much attention is paid to SRM functionality, a part of the CRM functions (on management of execution of orders, maintaining base of clients, tracking of history of customer relations, management of pricing, the range, on demand forecasting and sales planning), to functionality on maintaining nomenclature reference books of goods (MDM). If the producer of goods is engaged in wholesale, in the ERP system also functions on synchronization of production planning and purchases of raw materials with product sales and assortment planning, integration of reference books of goods with a PDM system are implemented. The financial module, the HRM block, subsystems of consolidation of information and a business intelligence implemented in ERP systems for trade, in general, have no fundamental differences from the similar functional units used in corporate systems for other industries.

Physically, such system can consist of two-three independent blocks: WMS (in a warehouse complex), TMS (in the transport distribution center) and the rest of the ERP system (at the central office). If the warehouse complex is combined with the transport distribution center, a system consists, respectively, of two territorially spaced blocks. As for the functionality connected with retail sale of goods, it in ERP systems for wholesalers either is absent, or is implemented at the minimum level.

Systems for retail

Systems for retailers, except all specified modules and blocks, include also functionality, specific to retail, on support of work with a retail store equipment (cash registers, means of goods marking, scanners of barcodes, etc.), management of "intra store" marketing of goods (Merchandising), optimization of use of floor spaces, accounting of perishable products and also support of a system of club and discount cards, "mobile trade". Besides, recently by retailers also the production functionality is demanded: prescription production in product retail and pharmacy chains, assembly production in non-grocery retail.

However, as Natalya Gurova, the head of group of practice of the retail solutions Columbus IT Russia based on Microsoft Dynamics notes: "Distinctions here much more large-scale. First of all, it concerns such important aspects as formation of the range, and both all retail chain stores, and each shop, replenishment action of shops, retail pricing, loyalty systems of clients and many others. And, certainly, each of these points demands information support from the IT system for retail."

"On the other hand, - she adds, - retail networks often have wholesale division therefore the ERP system in addition to functions of retail sales should support also all functions of wholesale. As well as systems for functions of the front office of shop shall not be a part of ERP systems for retail. Selection terms of the ERP system and the system of the front office of shop can be different. And if to follow best-of-breed ideology, then it can be systems from different suppliers who are the best in the class, and the most important – is satisfied by requirements of retail network. It is important that systems were integrated among themselves and represented a uniform information complex for business process management of the company".

ERP systems for the wholesale and retail and small wholesale companies, actually, should support both modes of trade.

It is possible to specify the amount of business of the customer and technology creation of an information system as other criteria of classification of "trade" ERP systems.

Systems for large and for medium business

By the first criterion, obviously, ERP systems can be subdivided into solutions for SMB and large business. The distinction a boundary is not them specific only to trade - solutions for SMB have "weaker" technical characteristics (rather small volume of the processed information, limited number of at the same time working users), less wide and "deep" functionality (functions are implemented at the level of satisfaction of basic needs of the customer and also do not provide support of management of large and geographically distributed business), often, small flexibility (many foreign solutions for small business and a part of domestic contain the fixed set of business processes and practically do not assume their setup), but are available to customers at cost. Solutions for large business include powerful tools of a business intelligence and consolidation of accounting information, conducting simultaneous accounting on several legal entities, a reporting output as according to the Russian regulations, and MSBU and GAAP. As for technical capabilities, certainly, ERP systems for large business are expected processing of large volumes of information and simultaneous operation of many users generating a large number of transactions (that is very relevant for trade). Besides, all systems of the specified class support work with distributed databases, providing their synchronization and updating of information for centralized operation by the enterprise.

At the same time, according to Ilya Drozman, the director of the department of products of Microsoft of GMCS company, "experience of GMCS shows that there is no direct dependence between the amount of business and requirements to flexibility of a system. The main flexibility is necessary for the companies either during growth, or during reorganization when there is a serious evolution of business processes. When business of the company is more or less stable, business processes "settled", the companies do not feel special need in permanent change and reconfiguration of the used system".

Monolithic and compound solutions

On technology creation of the ERP solution were naturally separated into the specialized systems developed on a single platform and systems consisting of a universal ERP system and the special "trade" solution. It is also possible to select, most likely, the "ERP solutions ad hoc" constructed of business applications of best-in-breed based on the integration platform and which are not including a drawing ERP system at all.

The solutions entering the first of the selected classes from the technology point of view are monolithic. They are development of universal ERP systems and differ from them in a set of the add-on specialized modules and settings of the standard modules entering basic delivery, allowing to conform to requirements of trade organizations. As a rule, similar expanded "trade" options of ERP systems are developed by independent developers. Vendors certify such solutions and, depending on the policy of the company, include in the standard package of proposals for clients or position as separate partner solutions. In some cases there was a merger of developers of especially successful solutions and transformation of the independent solution into the solution of vendor.

Composite solutions are a product of cooperation of developers of specialized "trade" information systems with developers of ERP systems or their partners. A universal ERP system in such solution is used for ensuring centralized operation by trade organization, the business analysis, generation of the reporting and accomplishment of other "back office" functions while the specialized solution provides advanced functionality of SCM and CRM at the level of the central office and also is responsible for management of outlets: merchandising, support of POS terminals and a retail store equipment, time keeping of work of a sales personnel, commodity accounting at the level of shop, support of mobile trade, etc.

"Gentlemen's set" of functions of "trade" ERP

Having generalized data on the ERP systems offered in the market for trade automation, it is possible to select the following set of their fixed functions:

• "back office" functions of the ERP system (financial accounting and planning, HRM, consolidation, BI, EAM);
• the SCM and SRM functions (maintaining the reference book of suppliers, reference books on the range and the prices for each supplier, accounting of agreements with suppliers, purchase management, accounting and registration of return of goods to suppliers, management of settlement with suppliers, inventory management, etc.);
• the WMS and TMS functions (drawing and reading of barcodes, management of warehouses of structure, optimization of use of warehouse space, accounting of intra warehouse movements, accounting of the rejected and damaged goods, registration of acceptance and shipment of goods, inventory, order management on delivery, scheduling of transport, optimization of routes and deliveries, etc.);
• control functions by outlets (maintaining reference books on the range and consumer properties of goods, management of a retail store equipment, time keeping, accounting and a design of return of goods, write-off of defects and goods expired, the cash accounting in cash desk, inventory, optimization of an ispolzvaniye of floor spaces, merchandising and dr);
• control functions by own production (prescription and/or assembly production).

It should be noted that foreign classification of the Enterprise resource planning functions for trade differs from a little stated above. In particular, merchandising abroad is understood not only as visual marketing of goods in shop and the accompanying actions, and a complex of all basic functions for trade automation. Respectively, the description of functions of ERP systems for trade abroad sounds as: management of merchandising (Merchandise management), implementation planning of goods (Retail planning), SCM and SRM, management of outlets (Store operations) and corporate management (Corporate administration).