{"id":34340,"date":"2022-05-24T14:05:02","date_gmt":"2022-05-24T14:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/glosario-digital\/erp"},"modified":"2026-09-30T12:44:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T12:44:17","slug":"erp","status":"publish","type":"encyclopedia","link":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/erp","title":{"rendered":"ERP"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"boxpad alignright wp-image-34329 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/38.jpg\" alt=\"ERP\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/38.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/38-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><strong>Definition<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<p>An <strong>ERP<\/strong>, short for Enterprise Resource Planning, is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/software\">software<\/a> system that integrates data and processes from different areas of an organisation. Its purpose is to maintain a common operational foundation for managing activities such as finance, purchasing, inventory, production, projects or human resources.<\/p>\n<p>An ERP does not automatically optimise a business or replace its decisions. Its usefulness depends on configuration, data quality and process adaptation. It may consist of several <strong>connected modules<\/strong> and be deployed on premises, in the cloud or through a hybrid model.<\/p>\n\n<h2>How an ERP works<\/h2>\n<p>The system records operations from several areas using a shared set of data and rules. When a purchase, sale or inventory movement is confirmed, the information can update related modules without repeating the same manual entry. This <strong>integrated flow<\/strong> reduces duplication and supports reconciliation.<\/p>\n<p>Its operation usually combines these <strong>basic elements<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Master data:<\/strong> Customers, suppliers, products, accounts, employees and other entities used by several processes.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Transactions:<\/strong> Orders, invoices, collections, payments, receipts, warehouse movements or work records.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rules:<\/strong> Permissions, taxes, approval workflows, calendars, valuations and internal controls.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Integrations:<\/strong> Connections through files or an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/api\">API<\/a> with shops, banks, logistics and other applications.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>ERP modules<\/h2>\n<p>The composition varies according to the supplier and the organisation&#8217;s activity. <strong>Modularity<\/strong> makes it possible to implement selected capabilities and extend the scope when processes require it.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Finance:<\/strong> Accounting, treasury, budgets, assets, tax and consolidation.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Purchasing:<\/strong> Requisitions, suppliers, orders, receipts and invoice control.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Inventory:<\/strong> Stock, locations, batches, movements and warehouse valuation.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Production:<\/strong> Bills of materials, requirements, orders, capacity and manufacturing costs.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Projects:<\/strong> Resources, time, expenses, milestones, billing and profitability.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Human resources:<\/strong> Structure, employees, leave, payroll or talent management, depending on the system.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Not every organisation needs every module. <strong>Functional selection<\/strong> should respond to specific processes and the dependencies between them, rather than to the idea of gathering every function in a single tool.<\/p>\n<h2>Using ERP data<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Integrated information<\/strong> can support operational control, closing, requirements planning and variance analysis. Workflows may incorporate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/automation\">automation<\/a> to assign tasks, validate conditions or send alerts, but they still require defined owners and exceptions.<\/p>\n<p>ERP data may also feed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/business-intelligence\">Business Intelligence<\/a> reports or a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/data-warehouse\">Data Warehouse<\/a>. This <strong>analytical use<\/strong> helps compare revenue, costs, stock, lead times or margins. A dashboard does not correct incomplete records or inconsistent definitions by itself.<\/p>\n<p>In marketing, the ERP may provide information about orders, billing, availability or profitability. It does not replace acquisition, digital analytics or campaign management. Its contribution is to provide <strong>operational data<\/strong> that may be combined, with appropriate permissions, with other sources.<\/p>\n<h2>Implementation and risks<\/h2>\n<p>Implementing an ERP involves reviewing processes, responsibilities, data and integrations. It is not simply a matter of installing an application. A project commonly includes these <strong>operational stages<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Scope:<\/strong> Determine which units, processes, modules, countries and requirements are included.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Configuration:<\/strong> Adapt structures, rules, permissions, taxes, workflows and documents.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Migration:<\/strong> Clean and transfer the required master data, balances and transactions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Testing:<\/strong> Validate complete processes, integrations, controls and exceptional scenarios.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Adoption:<\/strong> Train users, document responsibilities and provide support during the change.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Risks<\/strong> include excessive scope, poor-quality data, customisations that are difficult to maintain, supplier dependence and insufficient controls. The outcome should be assessed through operational continuity, accuracy, processing times, adoption and total cost, rather than through general productivity promises.<\/p>\n<h2>Difference between ERP and CRM<\/h2>\n<p>An ERP and a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/crm\">CRM<\/a> may be integrated or form part of the same suite, but they serve <strong>different purposes<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>ERP:<\/strong> Coordinates resources, transactions and internal processes such as finance, purchasing, inventory, production or projects.<\/li>\n<li><strong>CRM:<\/strong> Manages relationships and interactions with customers and sales, service or communication opportunities.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Shared data:<\/strong> Customers, products, orders or invoices may be synchronised to prevent inconsistencies.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Variable boundary:<\/strong> Some suppliers include CRM functions within the ERP, while others provide them as separate applications.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The difference does not depend on the commercial name, but on the process covered and the system that retains the <strong>primary record<\/strong>. Defining this responsibility prevents duplicates and clarifies which application updates each item of data.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Definition: An ERP, short for Enterprise Resource Planning, is a software system that integrates data and processes from different areas of an organisation. Its purpose is to maintain a common operational foundation for managing activities such as finance, purchasing, inventory, production, projects or human resources. An ERP does not automatically optimise a business or replace [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"template":"","encyclopedia-tag":[1318,1369],"class_list":["post-34340","encyclopedia","type-encyclopedia","status-publish","hentry","encyclopedia-tag-automated-integration","encyclopedia-tag-revenue-models"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia\/34340","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/encyclopedia"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"encyclopedia-tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia-tag?post=34340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}