Artificial intelligence is quickly becoming part of the conversation for businesses across almost every industry. From automating routine tasks to analysing data and supporting decision-making, AI is changing what businesses expect from their technology.
For companies already using an ERP system, the opportunities are particularly interesting. AI can help businesses make better use of the huge amount of information held within their ERP, identify patterns, automate processes and provide insights that might otherwise take hours to uncover.
But there is an important question businesses should ask before jumping into AI: is your ERP actually ready for it?
AI might be the exciting part, but the quality of the data and processes sitting underneath it will ultimately determine how useful it can be.
It is easy to focus on what AI can do. It is less exciting to talk about data quality, duplicate records, outdated information and disconnected systems. However, these fundamentals become even more important when AI is involved.
If your ERP contains inconsistent customer records, incorrect stock information, outdated pricing or incomplete product data, AI cannot simply know which information is correct. It can only work with the information available to it.
This creates a particular challenge because AI can produce an answer confidently, even when the information it is working from is incomplete or inaccurate.
A person reviewing a spreadsheet might notice that something does not look right. An AI system may not have that same instinct.
That means businesses need to think beyond simply adding AI tools. They need to consider whether their ERP data is reliable enough for AI to use in the first place.
There are several fundamentals businesses should consider.
Firstly, is the data complete? If important information is missing, AI will have gaps in its understanding of the business.
Secondly, is it consistent? Customer names, product codes, units of measurement and other key information should be recorded consistently across the organisation.
Then there is connectivity. If your ERP, CRM, spreadsheets and other systems all contain separate pieces of information that do not communicate with each other, it becomes much harder to get a complete picture of what is happening within the business.
Data also needs to be clean. Duplicate records, obsolete information and incorrect entries can all affect the quality of the information being used.
Finally, businesses need to consider access and governance. As AI becomes more integrated into business processes, organisations need to understand what information it can access, who can access it and how that information is managed.
These might not sound like particularly exciting AI developments, but they are the foundations that make AI useful.
One of the clearest signs that a business might not be ready for AI is continued reliance on manual processes outside the ERP.
If employees regularly export information into spreadsheets, manually clean it up, combine reports from different systems or maintain important information outside the ERP, there may be a bigger issue to address first.
This does not mean spreadsheets are inherently bad. They can be incredibly useful tools. The problem arises when critical business information is scattered across multiple files and systems, leaving employees to piece everything together manually.
An effective ERP should provide a reliable source of information for the business. The more connected and accurate that information is, the more opportunities there are to use automation and AI effectively.
Being “not ready for AI” does not mean a business needs to completely overhaul its ERP before it can benefit from new technology.
In fact, trying to fix everything at once can make the process unnecessarily complicated.
A better approach is to look at where the data is strongest and where AI could provide the most immediate value. This could be within finance, stock management, purchasing, sales or another area of the business.
From there, businesses can identify where data quality or processes need improvement and gradually address those areas.
This is where having the right ERP partner can make a difference. At Etac, we take the time to understand how a business actually operates, rather than simply looking at the technology in isolation. That means we can help businesses review existing processes, identify inefficiencies, improve how their ERP is being used and make sure the system continues to support the way the business is developing.
Before introducing AI into your business, it is worth taking a step back and checking that the foundations are in place.
1) Is your data accurate?
Are customer, supplier, product, stock and financial records up to date and free from obvious errors?
2) Is your data consistent?
Are information and processes recorded in the same way across different departments and systems?
3) Is your data connected?
Can your ERP access the information it needs, or are employees still moving data between separate systems and spreadsheets?
4) Are your processes working efficiently?
Have you reviewed the processes you want AI to improve? Automating an inefficient process could simply make a bad process happen faster.
5) Do you have the right people and permissions in place?
Do employees understand how AI will be used, and have you considered who should have access to the information it uses?
6) Do you know what you want AI to achieve?
Rather than introducing AI because everyone else is doing it, have you identified a genuine business problem that AI could help solve?
If you cannot tick every box, don't panic. It does not necessarily mean you need to put your AI plans on hold. Instead, the checklist can highlight where your business needs to strengthen its foundations first.
AI is not going away, and its role within business software is only likely to increase.
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is already developing in this direction, with AI and automation becoming increasingly integrated into the platform. But businesses will get far more from these developments if the fundamentals are already in place.
That means having accurate data, connected systems, well-defined processes and people who understand how to use the technology effectively.
The businesses that benefit most from AI may not necessarily be those that adopt the most AI tools. They could be the ones that have taken the time to build the strongest foundations underneath them.
At Etac, we believe technology should work around the needs of the business, not the other way around. Whether you are considering a new ERP system, looking to improve your existing Dynamics 365 Business Central solution or simply trying to understand what AI could mean for your business, taking a closer look at your processes and data is a good place to start.
AI might be the future of ERP, but getting your foundations right is where the real work begins.
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etac Solutions are long established suppliers of Microsoft Dynamics NAV and now provide Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central as part of our ERP services. We pride ourselves in taking a different approach in order to craft the most appropriate solutions for our customers. We are a technology partner who can integrate, implement and then support your ERP solution at every step.