Business Cloud
ERP Solutions

Jon owns a railroad equipment assembly and distribution company. His company used to be part of a much larger, multi-national business. Then, a few years ago the parent company decided to spin-off Jon's business unit and sold it to him.

The parent company had deployed SAP on a mainframe computer for their ERP solution. The same SAP capabilities were needed by Jon in his new business, but his much smaller company did not have a SAP sized budget.

High on Jon's list of must have capabilities was the ability of his ERP system to support the complete set of capabilities needed by a complex distribution business all in one system ‐ drop-shipping, shipping and receiving, flexible order packing for complicated invoices, large multi-level bill of materials, and multiple ship-to addresses for a single customer.

The ability to track gross margins on a sales order basis was also critical for his business. The system needed to be able to track all revenues and expenses arising from a sales order to ensure that each sale was profitable on its own. The system also needed the ability to ensure all sales orders we completely delivered and all delivered items we invoiced and paid for so that revenue leakage was prevented via items falling through the cracks.

Unlike traditional ERP systems, the VersAccounts software did not have to be customized for Jon's business. This was because the technologies used to build the VersAccounts solution have evolved over the past several decades to support configuration via option settings and an application programming interface (API). This is a huge improvement over the traditional way customization was accomplished by re-writing parts of the business system software (source code) itself.

Based on a careful evaluation, Jon found that the Express Edition of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system would meet the needs of his new business at less than one-tenth of the cost of a traditional ERP system like SAP Business One. No integrations with third-party, add-on products were required because of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system already has all of the capabilities Jon needed.

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After a long career working for Fifth Avenue advertising icon, Erin decided to start a SaaS company providing marketers like herself with the next generation of Social Media Marketing tools. The company she set up has two subsidiaries ‐ one in the USA and another in Canada. Customers can subscribe to the company's products through the company's website. These products are offered à la carte allowing customers to pick and choose which service(s) fit their business needs. Billing is monthly based on use instead of fixed price.

To launch their service, the company needed a provisioning and billing system. This system would manage the signup process, provision the servers and software tools the customer would be using, track the customer's usage, and finally bill the customers. They decided to build the provisioning and billing solution themselves and paired with two Sage 50 systems for accounting (Sage 50 US ‐ Peachtree Accounting Quantum, and Sage 50 Canada ‐ Simply Accounting Enterprise).

Each month customer usage data was manually transferred from the provisioning and billing system to the Sage, after which invoices were manually created and sent to the customer.

Besides the independent financials that each company created in their respective Sage 50 systems, a consolidated set of financials were also created manually in a spreadsheet so that the proper group tax filings could be made in the USA.

In addition, because remote access was required to both systems, the company needed to have the Sage systems hosted by a local cloud hosting provider ‐ an additional cost of almost 3x the cost of the software itself.

This approach worked well in the initial stages of the company's life cycle. However, once the company's product hit the market they quickly outgrew the system. It was no longer feasible to manually create each invoice every month and manually email it to the customer. Also, it was no longer feasible to create consolidated financials only once a month; these were needed in real-time, any time. Finally, accessing the Sage systems via Microsoft Remote Desktop or Citrix was slow because the Sage systems were not designed to operate efficiently over the web.

In an attempt to make the system work better, they tried integrating the Provisioning and Billing system with the Sage systems, so that usage data could be transferred electronically. It was impossible. It was also impossible to automate the creation of invoices in the Sage system. Sending invoices from Sage to the customers and having them paid online was also deemed infeasible.

The solution to these difficulties was to replace the two Sage 50 systems, as well as the many spreadsheets that company had developed, with a single multi-entity VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP product. It allowed both subsidiaries to operate independently in their home currencies and supported financial consolidation in real-time, eliminating the manual creation of consolidated reports and once a month reporting. Performance was snappy as the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system is based on modern cloud technologies and operates natively in a browser without the need for access via Microsoft Remote Desktop or Citrix.

The deployment of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system was planned in phases. The focus of Phase 1 was consolidated financials via the Express Edition of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system. Phase 2 was based on the Power Edition and focused on automating the delivery of invoices to customers via integrated email, as well as accepting online payments via integration with a credit card gateway. The focus of Phase 3 was on integrating the company's proprietary Provisioning and Billing software with the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system so that the entire process of invoicing and getting paid could be 100% automated.

For Erin, scaling the business infrastructure was always a big worry. She knew manual processes were fine to start with however automation was required for growth. The VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system allowed Erin to address this concern and put it aside so she could focus on building her business. On top of that, the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP solution cost less than half of what she was paying previously. No need for Citrix and no need for hosting services.

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Simultaneously with the move to QuickBooks Enterprise, Jennifer also realized she needed to put the business online. To do that she had a custom e-commerce site built. Those were still early days and off-the-shelf e-commerce platforms like Shopify and Magento were unavailable. Still, despite these improvements, a lot of work had to be done manually. Orders from the e-commerce site had to be typed manually into the QuickBooks system. Product names, numbers, details, pricing had to be maintained in the e-commerce system and QuickBooks.

Manufacturing costs were not easily tracked. Information was inconsistent and incomplete. The business quickly reached a point where it was no longer possible to grow without a change in the business system. The main requirements of the new business system centered around eliminating as many manual processes and duplicate information silos as possible and making information available in real-time so that decisions could be made quickly.

The custom e-commerce system had to be integrated with the new system so that orders, payment information, tracking details, and product information could flow back and forth electronically. In the future, it should be possible to have multiple e-commerce shops as well as integrations with services like eBay and Amazon. Accepting credit card payments had to be possible within the new system as well as integration with the company's banks via ACH.

For operations, the production process had to be supported within the system, and spreadsheets had to be eliminated. Fractional batches and lot tracking through the production process was a key requirement as was FIFO inventory costing. The system had to track and recommend the exact lot that had to be used in the production process. Fractional UoM was a key requirement with 6 digits of precision required.

Beyond operational requirements, Jennifer required the ability to slice and dice data to gain competitive insights into her business. The dimensional tagging capability in the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system appealed to her as a very powerful way to quickly get the information she needed at any level of detail that she wanted.

For Jennifer, the Power Edition of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system with custom e-commerce, email, credit card gateway, and bank integration met all of the requirements. Integrations were made electronic, and manual transfer and management of data were eliminated; spreadsheets were eliminated. Most importantly, she was able to get powerful custom reporting which provided insights that allowed her to take her business to the next level.

Her parents' first accounting system for the business was Quicken. That was in the late 1980s. That was followed by an upgrade to the original DOS-based version of QuickBooks, then Windows-based QuickBooks Pro in 2005, and finally QuickBooks Enterprise in 2012 (when Jennifer took over), a change she made that they could stop using spreadsheets for inventory management. Spreadsheets and a custom-built software system were still used for manufacturing.

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James runs a global agricultural chemical manufacturing company that manufactures and distributes a variety of products. It has five different subsidiaries that each manufacture and distribute one or more products for their region as well as for global markets.The company originally ran Sage 50 Quantum US (Peachtree Accounting) in its US headquarters. On expanding to Canada they deployed Sage 50 Quantum Canada (Simply Accounting). Further expansions caused deployments of other local systems in each country in which a new subsidiary was set up. Besides accounting systems, additional add-ons for manufacturing were deployed, custom software was created, and spreadsheets were used.

This resulted in silos of information at each subsidiary that could not be accessed by other locations. While the company was global, it still operated like a collection of independent smaller entities, and this disconnect threatened their competitiveness.

The arrival of cloud-based solutions caused management to seek a solution that could harvest its benefits. They envisioned a single system that supported all the subsidiaries including:

• Real-time availability of information at any subsidiary at any time from any device
• The ability to leverage the combined size of the company in purchasing contracts
• The ability to coordinate manufacturing across locations
• The ability to fulfill orders from the most convenient location

They also hoped that add-on software packages could be eliminated, as well as custom software and excel spreadsheets. But at the same time, they wanted each company to be able to operate as an independent entity, in its own home currency, conforming to its local laws and tax codes, using local languages and documentation (including document formats and wording).

For James, the Power Edition of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system, with custom forms and reports for each entity, as well as email, credit card gateway and bank integration, provides the system he needs to continue his expansion to new geographies. The VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system eliminates the silos of information that made decision making very difficult in the past and provides a real-time view of the business upon which better decisions can be made.

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Let's discuss how the versa solution can help your business on our Free Product Demo Tour or call us now at +1 855 445 2281.

Suzanna is passionate about high-quality bedding and started manufacturing and selling fine linen from a retail location in NY. Originally, she sold to wholesalers, but over time she set up retail stores in several states in the US. Eventually, she discovered the power of the internet as a way to reach a global customer base and set up an e-commerce shopping cart.

For business systems, she had deployed Xtuple (Open Source ERP system) for accounting at her headquarters, which they ran on local servers. Retail stores deployed Imonggo POS to take and process orders and manage inventory at the store. For the e-commerce store they used Shopify. Besides store inventory that is managed by the Imonggo system, inventory was also stored at the headquarters and with a 3PL. This inventory was managed within the xTuple System.

This system has served them well over the years. However, with each passing year, the system becomes more and more expensive to maintain. Open-source ERP consultants are in high demand, so having someone come in and fix a problem and/or upgrade the software is expensive. In addition, since the system has been customized over the years, it becomes harder and harder to migrate to something else if it is required. And more expensive. On top of that, nothing is integrated. All data has to be re-keyed to transfer it from one system to another

Other than that, access to information was not real-time. Data had to be manually collected from each location once a week, then consolidated in spreadsheets, before one can get a good overview of the business. One of the consequences was that an e-commerce order may remain unfulfilled (or worse get canceled) because headquarters does not know that a store in another state had inventory

This situation was remedied by a VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system. Shopify ecommerce, Imonggo POS, the 3PL, credit card gateways and banks were integrated into a single system. This allows Suzanna's company to hold inventory in as many locations as she chooses so that she can fulfill orders from the most convenient location possible. This gave her capabilities that many larger companies don't have. In addition, manual data transfers were no longer needed, saving money and time, and eliminating errors including sometimes extremely high costs associated with mistakes

For Suzanna, the Power Edition of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system with Shopify and Imonggo, email, credit card gateway and bank integration provides a platform upon which she can take the next step in the company's journey. This includes the management of multiple e-commerce shopping carts from VersAccounts, as well as the Dealer Portal and associated catalog, to enable self-service among her wholesale customers

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Let's discuss how the versa solution can help your business on our Free Product Demo Tour or call us now at +1 855 445 2281.

Brett has a small but fast-growing company that is doing things that even his biggest competitors can't do. His company is a master distributor - a distributor to distributors (B2B) ‐ for bike parts and accessories. He also sells to end customers directly (B2C).

When he started his business, he deployed QuickBooks Enterprise to manage his financials, Agiliron (QuickBooks add-on) to manage his inventory, and ShipStation for shipping.

Unfortunately, for Brett he had the same problem that many add-on users face. The integrations were not very reliable. Data in each of the systems was not synchronized. The biggest problem was getting vendors of these systems to accept ownership for problems. Each one pointed to the other and nothing got done. All the while customers suffered as did the business. In searching for a system, Brett looked for a vendor who would deliver solution without pointing fingers. Beyond that, he was looking for a single cloud product without the need for add-ons.

Since Brett had aggressive expansion plans, with respect to his B2B business, having a dealer portal was important to him. It would allow dealers to log in directly to his business system, browse through products, check inventory levels, and purchase on terms that were unique to them. In addition, it had to support Independent Sales Representatives. These reps would manage dealers via a Sales Rep Portal; including monitoring the activities of assigned dealers, placing orders on their behalf, and tracking their orders for them.

Brett's B2B business included dealing with retail chains. To support these chains Brett needed the system to offer a real-time feed of product inventory levels. The chains, in turn, could make these products available on their own websites, as well as in their POS systems.

At the same time, Brett also planned to aggressively grow his B2C business. His plans included expanding his online presence to multiple owned sites, as well as eBay, Amazon, and Walmart. The ability to manage multiple e-commerce sites from a single ERP system was essential.

Finally, since Brett shipped product all over the world, it was important that the pick-pack-ship process be such that the chances of shipping the wrong item (requiring replacement) were completely eliminated; via the use of bar-code scanners at every stage of the shipping process.

For Brett, the Infinity Edition of the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system with integrations for email, e-commerce, credit card gateway, shippers, and bar code scanners formed a solid foundation for his future plans. In addition, the VersAccounts Small Business Cloud ERP system eliminated the Agiliron and ShipStation add-ons. Finally, customizations not previously possible could be made via the VersAccounts API, allowing Brett to get a solution that was well-tailored to support his business now and well into the future.

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Talk To Us!

Let's discuss how the versa solution can help your business on our Free Product Demo Tour or call us now at +1 855 445 2281.