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In today's economic environment of constrained and highly scrutinized IT budgets, many growing businesses are looking for ways to reduce the long-term total cost of ownership of their core applications. One of the key areas that our customers want to see good ROI on is ERP maintenance.
Did you know that the eventual cost of not having ERP maintenance support can prove to be even more expensive? Here are a few risks to be aware of if you don’t sustain your ERP maintenance contract:
Risk #1: Your business can no longer upgrade to new releases published.
Without a maintenance agreement, your business will generally be ineligible for automatic upgrades. You will only have access to the release you are currently using.
ERP providers spend significant amount of money on research and development to improve their software functionality, provide the best innovation and incorporate best practices learned from their client bases. You don’t want to miss out on new and better performance when it’s available.
Risk #2: Your growing business begins to lag behind your competition.
You may find it challenging to keep up with competition as they continue to evolve and grow. Having scalable technology is key to sustainable growth. Even if you are not considering the newest technology to boost your business, your competitors are taking advantage of optimizing their ERP solution.
Also, over time, your business needs are likely to become out of sync with the functionality of the software. This misalignment may create the need to completely replace your ERP system, which can be even more costly than the regularly scheduled annual maintenance.
Risk #3: Your ERP system may become another road block to your company growth.
The first two risks will cause ERP users to become frustrated with the system and start adopting their own business processes and workarounds outside the ERP system. This will generally decrease user satisfaction with the system and undermine business benefits. So even though you have the right technology in place, not optimizing your ERP with ongoing maintenance can damage your overall return on investment and business performance.
Risk #4: Overhead costs will increase.
Having a maintenance contract in the long term has a lower cost overall compared to keeping someone with the requisite expertise on staff. This is especially the case if you have a customized or an integrated ERP solution, as you could result in hiring multiple resources with the right talent, leading to increased overhead costs.
Risk #5. Opting for another vendor to maintain your ERP.
Other ERP providers may offer similar services at a discounted rate. However, many businesses charge start up fees and you can fall into a trap. These other providers won’t be familiar with your business, systems and procedures and it can come back to bite you. Sustaining an ERP maintenance contract with your ERP provider allows your business to avoid costly interruptions later on.
With offices located across North America, Vision33 takes pride in providing our customers the right balance of software, world-class consulting and support services to help them better manage and grow their business.
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