Upfront: ERP: Light Under a Bushel

ERP systems have been humming along at the core of companies' processes for some 15 years, quietly automating and integrating functional activities. Maybe too quietly. Sometimes finance executives overlook their potential as sources of innovation, according to a study conducted by San Mateo, Calif.-based Ventana Research. Business Finance was one of the survey's media sponsors.

The report shows that finance functions use ERP software to implement new processes and improve tried-and-true methods, but mostly in their comfort zones, such as reporting and accounting. "We found that when it came to the familiar areas, the areas that they normally think of using ERP for, that's where they would use it," says Robert Kugel, vice president and research director, financial performance management, at Ventana Research. "When you got outside of the familiar areas, it began to fall off pretty sharply." End-to-end processes lend themselves to ERP-based innovation, yet only half of respondents have used their system to set up an order-to-cash process. Two-thirds of participants have incorporated it into a purchase-to-pay process.