Recorded at It Lab’s It Strategy Briefing At Mclaren’s Thought Leadership Centre On 19th September 2017
As business needs change and grow, adapting systems can be a time consuming and expensive challenge. Enterprise Resource Planning (or ERP) systems exist to integrate data and workflows across business processes, from sales to manufacturing and HR to finance. Many of us have experienced first-hand the paradigm shift of ERP systems and the value they realise for businesses.
Similar to the Industrial Revolution, the advantages of business systems are undisputed, and many businesses would struggle without today’s technologies. But what got us here will not necessarily support the next stage of our journey!
Just as developed nations thrived and benefited from the Industrial Revolution, they have needed to change the very fabric of their economy to do so again in the digital and service industry era. Businesses must continue to adapt to compete in a world where flexible technology is, increasingly, an enabler for commercial success.
To take an adaptive approach to business systems and structured data, address:
- Functionality – systems should be appropriate to the needs and roles of individuals and come together in a joined-up way to support the company processes.
- Data – needs to flow between processes, functions and people, but managed in a way that ensures its security and integrity.
- Availability – all of this needs to easily accessible. We need to engage with processes and information on any device, at anytime, from anywhere, yet in a secure, user-friendly way.
- Software-as-a-Service applications – adaptive technology delivers innovation by default and supports the continued simplicity and efficiency of our businesses.
In the future we will see Machine Learning and AI play an increasing role in the automation of business process. We will shift from the human interpretation of information to our opinion being augmented by more intelligent technology, and logical tasks should be fully automated. The value of adapting to take advantage of this changing technology looks set to continue apace.
Panel Host:
- Dan Coleby – Business Performance Director, IT Lab
Panellists:
- Gareth Arnold – Product Marketing Manager – Dynamics, Microsoft
- Mat Clothier – CEO, CTO & Founder, Cloudhouse Technologies
- Rob Jones – Director of Enterprise Applications, IT Lab
- Erin McCall – Technology Strategy Consultant, IT Lab
- Asif Naidu – Technology & Integration Director, Mattioli Woods
