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Infor LX Tips, Infor LN Tips, BPCS Tips, Baan Tips, Infor M3 Tips & Infor ERP News

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Infor ERP Tips & News from the Experts

Infor LX | Infor LN | BPCS | Baan | Infor M3

Manufacturing: How much time are you wasting on manual processes?

Crossroads RMC 0 27300 Article rating: 5.0

It tells us that there is a great need for a review of your manufacturing processes.

Manual processes around labor reporting, production completions, issuing of material, inspection approvals, serialization, and more can weigh down the entire shop floor team and can be the source of significant errors. Your business and your customers’ needs have changed and you are in a constant battle to keep up. It is hard to know which area to tackle first and where the greatest impact can be made.

That's where the Crossroads RMC Manufacturing Utilization Review comes in. Whether you're on an old version of BPCS or Baan, or the latest version of Infor LX or Infor LN, odds are there are aspects of Manufacturing / Production Control in the ERP system that doesn't fit your business's current strategy. Do you throw out the software and start with something new? Odds are that is overkill. Sometimes it just boils down to taking the time to understand how your current state matches up with your corporate strategy, understanding the gaps, and developing a plan to get you from point A to point B.

We have successfully helped companies transform their business in the areas of: 

  • Planning / Scheduling
  • Shop Floor Control
  • Final Assembly
  • Quality Control
  • Production Control
  • Forecasting
  • Work Centers / Routings / Bill of Materials

Our consultants have 30+ years of experience that bring about REAL...

The Best Baan IV | Baan V | Infor LN Financial Reports to Analyze Company Performance

Kathy Barthelt 0 30488 Article rating: 5.0

You know what data you need to analyze your company’s financial health, but sometimes it is a struggle to get that data in a format that is meaningful. Here are some reports in Baan IV, Baan V, and Infor LN which you may find useful.

As is the case with most ERP reports, with each version progression from Baan IV, to Baan V, to LN, there are improvements in selection criteria and report content. Some may require some setup and others may require some formatting if you would like to export them to Excel.  Contact me if you have questions or need assistance.

BAAN & LN FINANCE:

The Best BPCS | Infor LX Financial Reports to Analyze Company Performance

George Moroses 0 26208 Article rating: 5.0

You know what ERP data you need to analyze your company’s financial health, but sometimes it is a struggle to get that data in a format that is meaningful. Here are some reports in BPCS & Infor LX which you may find useful.

As is the case with most ERP reports, with each version progression from the earliest versions of BPCS to the latest version of Infor LX, there are improvements in selection criteria and report content. Some may require some setup and others may require some formatting if you would like to export them to Excel. Contact me if you have questions or need assistance.

BPCS & LX FINANCE:

Finance: How much time are you wasting on manual processes?

Crossroads RMC 0 27865 Article rating: 5.0

Time-consuming processes around month-end close, year-end close, AP matching, invoicing, account reconciliation, vendor payments, tax compliance, and more can weigh down a Finance team. Your business and your customers’ needs have changed and you are in a constant battle to keep up. It's hard to know which area to tackle first and where the greatest impact can be made.

That's where the Crossroads RMC Finance Utilization Review comes in.
Whether you're on an old version of BPCS or Baan, or the latest version of Infor LX or Infor LN, odds are there are aspects of Finance in the ERP system that doesn't fit your business's current strategy. Do you throw out the software and start with something new? Odds are that is overkill. Sometimes it just boils down to taking the time to understand how your current state matches up with your corporate strategy, understanding the gaps, and developing a plan to get you from point A to point B.

We have successfully helped companies transform their business in the areas of:

  • Procure to Pay
  • Record to Report
  • Quote to Cash
  • Financial Planning & Analysis

Our Finance consultants have 30+ years of experience that bring about REAL...

Analytics Dashboard Pre-configured views for Infor LX | BPCS | Infor LN | Baan | Infor M3

ERP Reports: Get EXACTLY what you need when you need it for as little as $125/user/month

Crossroads RMC 0 28764 Article rating: 5.0

Everyone understands the importance of ERP reporting, but what if you’re relying on the wrong reports?

Having access to ERP data in a usable format allows for a common understanding and the ability to take action based on what the data is telling you. What do you do if the way your data is presented is not useful, or flat out wrong?

How can your reports be wrong? That would mean that the data is wrong, wouldn’t it?
Not necessarily. Reports are wrong because they are stagnant. They represent the truth ONLY at the moment they are run. If that data is shared with others within your organization, the information the report(s) is trying to convey has already changed. Decisions are then made on bad information.

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Tips:  LX | BPCS | M3

TECHNOLOGY: Facility Security Ranges

Previously, a user could complete the Cost Transfer (CST920) process for any range of facilities regardless of their security settings established in SYS600. This enhancement verifies the user security settings set up in SYS600 before processing cost transfers for a range of facilities in CST920. If the user has authority for a facility range, but there are facilities within that range that are not authorized, the program skips those facilities and completes the cost transfer process.

FINANCE: Expiration Date for Quotes and RMAs

A Cancel-by-Date has been added to the Quote Header and RMA Header panels. This optional field can limit how long a quote or authorization to return items for credit is valid.  

For quotes, this enhancement provides an optional end date for the quote. For RMAs, it provides an optional date by which the customer must return the items to receive the credit listed on the RMA.

The Cancel-By-Date prints on the Order Acknowledgement and RMA Acknowledgement to inform the customer of this important limitation to the quote or return authorization. 

An Order Entry user cannot copy the quote to create a new order if the Cancel By Date has caused the quote to expire.

OPERATIONS: Default Split Salesperson to Customer Orders

Sales commissions are based on combinations of the Primary, Split, and Line-Level salesperson and the commission codes defined for the customer and item. You can now define the Split Salesperson in the same master files as the Primary Salesperson. While the Primary Salesperson is mandatory, the Split Salesperson is optional. It defaults during Order Create using the identical hierarchy as Primary Salesperson. Using Split Salesperson provides more flexibility in the calculation of sales commissions. The ability to define a default Split Salesperson improves the accuracy of sales commission qualification and calculation and reduces maintenance and adjustments necessitated by corrections.

Previously, a user could complete the Cost Transfer (CST920) process for any range of facilities regardless of their security settings established in SYS600. This enhancement verifies the user security settings set up in SYS600 before processing cost transfers for a range of facilities in CST920. If the user has authority for a facility range, but there are facilities within that range that are not authorized, the program skips those facilities and completes the cost transfer process.

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Tips: LN | Baan

An ERP System Review is NOT a Report Card

It's a no-judgment-review - we promise!

report card C minusWe all remember our school days and the nervousness that we felt when it came time to get our grades. Even if we were doing well, we were still nervous. Sometimes we experienced that same nervousness when it came time for a performance review on our job. Nervousness…sometimes dread…knowing that our performance was not what we wanted it to be, or others expected it to be. 

Somehow I think the feelings that we felt in our past often find ways to creep into our present. I have seen this recently when I suggested an ERP system review to one of our customers. They immediately became flustered and thought about every possible problem that they knew existed within the software and how they were currently using it. I asked them to consider the purpose of the ERP system review.

An ERP Utilization Review will:

  • Document how your company is using your ERP system (or a particular aspect of the system) and to what extent the system meets the needs of the business.
  • Identify challenges encountered using the software.
  • Create opportunities for improving business processes and generating additional value.
  • Identify potential risks and areas that need improvement.


key hole to the futureSo, if the result of ERP system review is to establish a path forward for growth based on current status, then why doesn’t every company take advantage of it? I think for some, the answer lies in the feelings of nervousness and dread still stuck in the recesses of our brains.

An ERP system review or more specifically a utilization review is NOT a personal report card, or performance review showing how well a particular individual does his/hers/their job, nor is it an attack on the team that implemented the software. 

As they say, hindsight is 20/20. What we view now to be a less than ideal implementation methodology may have been absolutely appropriate at the time the software was originally deployed. The software has likely matured and the skillsets of the individuals responsible for the system have likely matured as well. In some cases, those resources are no longer with the company, leaving those that remain with no back story as to how and why implementation decisions were made.

Instead of viewing the ERP utilization review as a reason to find fault in previous decisions, think of it as discovering untapped potential – both of the ERP system and the people who use it. Viewing an ERP utilization review in this way puts a positive spin on it and allows us to challenge ourselves to identify opportunities for growth far greater than anything we imagined before. This means not only moving our businesses forward faster but also advancing the strength of the company as individuals and as a team.

What untapped potential lies within your company?

Consider a utilization review of your entire ERP system, or just a part of it like Finance, Technology, Materials Management, Order Processing, or Shop Floor Control. You just might be surprised at what greatness can be achieved… far greater than anyone could have imagined.  

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Kathy Barthelt

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