What are you actually buying with the purchase of an ERP solution?

Enterprise Resource Planners come in different shapes, sizes and costs. While the information research that
follows is no substitute for your own due diligence, it provides an independent overview of the challenges and
complexity of selecting the right ERP for your business. It will also help clear up the confusion between a CRM and
ERP.

NEXUSsoft has created an all-inclusive subscription licence to provide its customers with a fixed ongoing amount which includes upgrades, customisation and system expansion, bug fixes, licencing fees, hosting, continuous phone and email support and integration programming.

It’s no secret that enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems represent a major investment in both time and money. What is less well known is that ERP solutions come with continuing costs that can be highly variable and difficult to predict and mitigate. The total cost of owning and maintaining the system normally includes a great deal of ‘hidden’ on-going expenses. When selecting ERP software, buyers typically make one glaring error – they focus on the traditional ‘cost of ownership’ – software licences, implementation, maintenance and support. But they forget a critical question: “How easily can the software be altered when there is a planned or unplanned business change?”

When the organisation restructures, or there’s a merger or acquisition, or simply a change of business process or legislation, how easy is it to make that change? The answer can significantly impact the ongoing cost of an ERP system but not with NEXUS.

Organisations are spending considerable amounts to customise their ERP solution to their business post-implementation, adding modules and functionality, re-writing applications, modifying outputs, improving system performance, modifying processes, and in general, upgrading the system so that it keeps pace with changes in the business. Due to the cost of customisation, organisations find it prohibitive to make changes to their ERP, thereby reducing their ability to position themselves for growth.

Below is a comparison of the inclusions that form part of the NEXUS optional all-inclusive subscription licence agreement compared to other ERP solutions.

Ongoing Costs NEXUSsoft Other ERP Solutions
Upgrades and bug fixes Tick Included Excluded
On average, 18% of the current list price of the solution each year.
Customisation and Expansion Tick Included Excluded
On average, the annual cost of customisation and expansion of an ERP is double the amount of upgrades, bug fixes and support.
Software and Licence Fees Tick Fixed Variable
Hosting Tick Included Excluded
Phone and Email Support Tick Included Excluded
Integration Programming Tick Included Excluded
Training Tick Included Excluded