ERP is constantly evolving as technology and manufacturing techniques change, and the pace of change will continue and even speed up as users’ expectations increase based on these emerging trends.

1. IoT (Internet of Things)

The Internet of things means that more machinery and equipment is communicating with systems. This will cause a fundamental change, requiring ERP to integrate more closely with EAM and MES systems. Shop floor data collection may no longer be a core part of ERP systems for many companies as equipment begins to update production status automatically. The resulting high data volume will force manufacturing companies to adopt the big data techniques that retail and other industries have been forced to adopt.

2. Consumerization of IT

Consumers using typical web applications such as online hopping or storage expect to be able to use a site without training or instruction. Consumer sites are simple, task focused and easy to use without complex navigation, and as a result, users have higher expectations for all systems they use. They now expect that they can sit down in front of their ERP system and do their jobs without training or wasted motions and non-value added steps. To meet this need, ERP systems will require clean, task-focused role-based screens and user experiences.

3. Analytics Everywhere

Companies are focusing on KPIs and metrics to ensure efficient operations, but the pace of business means that management doesn’t have time to wait for slow data warehouses and traditional BI tools. As users, they’ve come to expect live tiles or cards presenting everything from weather reports to movie times. Traditional ERP menus will evolve to launch pads that display infographic-like metrics on tiles, enabling quick navigation and drill down to priority tasks and rapid information to support decisions.

4. Assumptive Transaction Processing

When everything from wearable devices, RFID and machines communicating automatically come together in manufacturing operations, expect that the company’s ERP system will adapt to make use of the varied inputs. Transactions will evolve to be assumptive rather than reactive, updating records based on an item’s current location rather than waiting for someone to tell the ERP system what happened. Physical inventory may become as simple as looking at a section of the warehouse while wearing a device similar to Google Glass. Users may speak to system as they complete their tasks, or use their eyes to move materials on a graphic representation of the shop floor.

5. Cloud

As SaaS and cloud computing continue to make inroads in the enterprise as well as people’s personal lives, users will come to expect more flexibility and simplicity from their business applications, including ERP. There is a growing expectation that users will be able to access their systems from anywhere and at any time. The cloud also brings with it expectations of faster implementations, so companies expect rapid go live time frames for upgrades and new deployments.

While a few of these trends may take some time to affect manufacturing operations, all of them are changing the way users expect to interact with their ERP system. The best ERP vendors are taking steps today to be ready for the future.