The following post was written by a brand new user of Cetec ERP, logging their experiences and what helped them learn a new ERP platform.

Cloud ERP: 7 Helpful Tips For The New User

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is a huge platform of software, and it takes some time to learn how to use it. Mastering a system whose purpose is to simplify the entire process of shipping, selling, purchasing, accounting, warehouse inventory, and countless other responsibilities within the business cycle comes with a list of challenges and need for expertise. The good news: it’s not impossible. Even better news: learning is correlated with how much is practiced. I’ve done it; you can do it to. Here are 7 easy tips for the new cloud ERP user.

Think Big Picture

It’s easy to get caught in a web of an unfamiliar user interface when learning a new ERP software. Most likely, the new software user has a solid grasp on their industry, a keen understanding of the systems in place that move products, send inventory, order parts, and a universal method of how their business sector works. Take a step back and understand how your world fits into the system. Before attempting to dive into picking and packing, think of why a product takes the path it does, and mesh that process with the software’s capabilities. Proactive discernment of the overall product cycle makes the practice of entering data into the system less tedious.

Pro Tip: Make a list of steps that a product must take for it to be created, shipped to warehouse, stored in house, packaged and shipped to the customer. Follow that list as you walk through the software system.

One Step At A Time

After a list of steps is made for a certain product, take each step with equal importance and focus. Putting the cart before the horse is the perfect metaphor when practicing cloud ERP software. Though it’s important to know the holistic purpose of shipping a product to the warehouse, don’t skip ahead to shipping product before the inventory needed to produce the product is stored and placed in its obvious location in the warehouse.

Ask Questions

Naturally, questions will arise when wading through the waters of a full fledged ERP system. Write them down as you go, and seek answers online or from your Cetec ERP support team (they are amazing!) Make them as simple or as in depth as you would like. If you’re stuck and need some dedicated help, search the Cetec ERP website, or check out some videos that might be helpful.

Take Notes As You Go

Taking notes throughout the learning process will grow familiarity with the software. Writing down explicit notes on the steps taken to create a bill of materials or input a new vendor will increase the performance and memorization of those steps again in the future. Create reference points and reminders within steps that are more difficult to accomplish.

Pro Tip: Write down phrases you’re not familiar with (e.g. Purchase Order, Bill of Materials, PQuote, etc.), and get an answer for their meaning to make them more recognizable in the future.

Practice, Practice, Practice

As previously mentioned, practice is the key to getting to know the software in great detail. Construct real world scenarios and problems in your sector of business that occur on a regular basis, and run them through the software. Simple repetition helps you master the process of picking orders, filing inventory, creating invoice and other operations.

Pro Tip: Keep multiple tabs open on your desktop. Doing this will help you keep track of where each step along your process is located within the software.

Merge The Software With Your World

When entering the inventory, customers, vendors, etc. label them as yours. It’s far easier to understand what’s going on when you’re working with data that you’re used to seeing on a day to day basis. Model your own data in the Cetec ERP system. The software is designed for you; use familiar terms that help keep track of the information you put in.

Pro Tip: Be very specific when entering part number descriptions, so the product is recognizable beyond the esoteric number scheme your engineering department has cooked up. Every user from the warehouse manager to the floor employee will use the software, so descriptions of products beyond 82389-CHM-89328-BDB-00001 can be helpful.

Actively Learn As You Go

This tip may seem obvious, but it’s easy to get into the habit of repeating tedious steps, and forfeit the overall understanding of which procedure performs which task. Though repetition begets comfort, learning why steps are taken is more important than knowing which step is next. Along with taking notes as you go, write down reminders, accomplishments, failures, or shortcuts that help keep track of which stages of the ERP system you excel or fall behind.

There are multiple layers to full comprehension of any cloud ERP software. These 7 easy tips are guidelines to help further the comprehension of ERP, but at Cetec ERP we provide full support for any of your ERP needs. Reach out to us, and we would love to help you.