Energy Consulting: Implement ERP in 4 months — it is real

TAdviser: Mark, tell, please, about new boxed solutions which were released by Energy Consulting. What products enter a new line and what their main functionality?

The new line of shrink-wrapped software products from Energy Consulting of "ERP for 4 months" consists of three solutions intended for management of finance in holding, production managements and distribution. It solutions "Sage ERP X3: Management accounting in holding", "Sage ERP X3: Production" and "Sage ERP X3: Distribution". All of them are developed on the Sage ERP X3 platform and can be used as separately, and to be combined with each other by the principle of the designer. It is relevant if the production company, for example, is engaged including in distribution of own products.

Solutions were born on the basis of powerful examination of Energy Consulting in the specified areas of automation. Their creation is a result of the experience of our consultants got during tens of specialized projects in specific area.

The cardinal difference of shrink-wrapped software products of Energy Consulting from an end-to-end system of Sage ERP X3 consists that it is not the designer of the functions offered to setup, and already ready set for automation of specific business processes for the companies with certain features of business. Thanks to it not the solution is set up under processes of the customer, and business of the customer can be recustomized in short terms according to the best practices received by us during automation of the similar enterprises. We introduce in the project the examination and unique experience in which, as we consider, we the best in the market. And ready-made solutions allow to reduce significantly an implementation time of basic functionality in a certain direction. Implementation of each of boxes makes only 4 months.

TAdviser: Did you mention that examination was perfected on specific clients and projects, it is only about the Russian market or the international experience of implementation  of Sage ERP X3?

It is about experience and examination of Energy Consulting therefore in the first and main queue, of course, we made a start from the projects implemented in Russia. In each country of the world there are the specifics of business and financial accounting so partners of Sage usually create vertical solutions for the industries in the country. However our solutions are suitable also for the international companies which are especially planning start of business in Russia. For them it is a good opportunity to receive already ready-made solution at reasonable price.

So the base of shrink-wrapped software products is the western examination accumulated in the Sage ERP X3 platform regarding production, finance, budgeting, distribution over which settings under the Russian specifics according to experience of implementations of Energy Consulting in the real companies working and making profit are made.

TAdviser: Requirements to the infrastructure necessary for deployment of boxed solutions on the party of the customer are how serious?

Requirements of Sage ERP X3 to infrastructure are reasonable and not too big. For the organization of the user jobs the workstation and the browser installed on it as a system works through a web, including on tablet computers suffices. As for server cost for solution deployment, it can fluctuate from 2-3 thousand to 5 thousand dollars in separate large projects. Another thing is that today the companies even more often prefer not to buy the physical server, and to rent computing powers. In such cases of costs for infrastructure are minimum and do not exceed 1-2% of the total cost of the project.

TAdviser: How simple implementation of shrink-wrapped software products is? Whether the small companies will be able to cope with it? How can idle time be integration into other software products if the company uses them?

In principle, it would not be fair to say that the ERP project can be very easy and simple. It so not because software products are difficult and first of all the implementation project of ERP requires the high level of self-organization and responsibility of the client. Implementation of the ERP system is not only efforts of consultants, it is joint work with the customer. At a responsible approach the small company, say, up to 10 users can cope with our minimum support with implementation independently. At the same time I would not begin to become attached strongly to quantity of the automated jobs. Keyword parameter for me is an internal discipline and aiming at result. In general the user instructions are registered very in detail, business processes are visualized on the screen, their editing is performed in an interactive mode. Understand it it is quite real, there would be desire.

As for integration into other corporate applications, the ready-made solutions Sage ERP X3, as well as the platform, are very just integrated as with widespread accounting programs, and specialized class systems of MES, PLM and others at the expense of the built-in interfaces of exchange with databases.

TAdviser: The standard shrink-wrapped software product is limited by ten users and no more than two legal persons. What if in process of business growth does the customer need to increase quantity of jobs or to expand functionality of a system?

We consciously went for this restriction as the number of users directly influences the cost of the solution, and we wanted to make it widely available. The cost of one boxed solution is about 6 million rubles. Licenses for work of missing users can be bought in addition at once or as required. And the user license can cover both the solution completely, and separate modules. The corresponding manipulations can be made for expansion of functionality, the number of legal entities on which account in a system and so on is kept. Certainly to buy the boxed solution to add to it 100 more legal entities and 150 non-standard reports unreasonably: it is absolutely other amount of works. Our target audience — small and medium-sized companies which need the ready ERP solution and fast result. There are no "physical" restrictions for opportunities of the platform, they more likely logical.

TAdviser: It is possible to call your solutions the anti-recessionary offer for the companies which are not ready to any long-term investment projects now?

Exactly. We are ready to help customers even taking into account growth of currency rates, we offer special terms that those companies which want to carry out at themselves a cycle of works on automation would not postpone this solution, and implemented conceived already now and appeared on a step ahead of less agile rivals. I am convinced that crisis is that time when it is possible to get competitive advantages and to strengthen business by its transformation.

TAdviser: By what principle did you select specific business processes for boxed solutions?

If to tell about managerial accounting and the solution "Sage ERP X3: Managerial accounting in holding", for it we selected the main business processes which clients usually ask to automate. This management of receivables and payables, accounting of non-current assets, management of payments, costs, investments, financial planning and budgeting, consolidation of the reporting. Automation of these processes gives complete understanding of financial flows and control over them. It if you want, "dreamboat" of any chief financial officer in our country. As Sage ERP X3 conforms to Russian accounting standards, if necessary clients can start as separate add-on and functionality of accounting.

For the ready-made solution on distribution "Sage ERP X3: Distribution" we implemented the classical trade and purchasing scheme: process of purchases, work with suppliers, import of invoices, planning of deliveries, placement in a warehouse and inventory management, sales and management of customer relation (CRM). The transparency of accounting, maintenance of the minimum stock of goods in a warehouse, planning of all costs, maintaining the client from beginning to end, control of marginality is important for distributors. Use of Sage ERP X3 and our boxed solution gives all these opportunities.

To production companies of discrete or continuous type boxed solution "Sage ERP X3: Production" allows to work with specifications and maps of products, to exercise quality control, to keep track of the status of accomplishment of the production order, to control production costs and actual cost of products. The solution allows to designate exact readiness date of the order and to plan all resources, necessary for its accomplishment.

TAdviser: What else features of the Russian companies are considered in solutions?

One of competitive advantages of Sage ERP X3 consists that the majority of works on setup is performed at the level of the interface changes and does not affect programming. Therefore the main adaptation of a product concerns convenience and speed of work of managers. It is, for example, processing orders from clients in an automatic or semi-automatic mode, integration into web applications, the system of accounting or the system of sending tax statements. The interface of the program is built under specific business process, it is easy for it to train the employee.

Special settings for holding structures will allow to create the budget and to consolidate the reporting at the level of holding and also to conduct intra holding transactions. And work with data at the level of the structures entering into holding out of the cumulative consolidated flow is possible. We considered also such Russian realities as, for example, presence of several legal entities and transactions between them what you will not meet in the European financial accounting.

TAdviser: It is real to start all this functionality in four months?

Absolutely really. As I already spoke, big requirements are imposed in ERP projects to clients, and a lot of things depend on their spirit. Any business — live, it requires participation and attention therefore the implementation project is always joint work with consultants. Having 15 years' experience of implementation of ERP systems, I can assure that if are not engaged in the ERP project seriously, he begins to die. There are, for example, such tasks in the project which only the client can execute. It is preparation of the account balances and to a warehouse, synthesis of data on the available clients, providing infrastructure under the project. We, in return, provide the best examination and the necessary training for the customer's specialists which is already included in the cost of "box". Advantage just also consists that for clients, in addition to purchase of a product, there are no hidden payments, only costs for infrastructure.

By our calculations, the companies ready to spend several million rubles for high-quality automation, very much. It is competitive price against the background of proposals of other ERP suppliers and very few people from them can offer so short terms of implementation, standard make from six to nine months. This year we expect successful implementations of shrink-wrapped software products at 10 customers. By the way, till April 30, 2015 at us special conditions affect acquisition of any of "boxes".