ERP customization: options, best practices, services & our roadmap

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ERP customization

ERP customization is a reshaping process that involves substantial custom coding modifications of an existing platform-based or custom enterprise resource planning system in line with an owners’ vision and best industry practices.

Itransition is well-equipped to deliver various types of ERP customizations, ranging from high-level design changes to feature-level revamps. Our ERP experts will help you outline the scope of your project, identify a suitable technology stack, and select a team of qualified professionals to perform end-to-end customizations.

ERP customization landscape in figures

of organizations surveyed implemented their ERP software with moderate or heavy customization.

Panorama Consulting, 2022

Percentages may not total 100 percent due to rounding

About Itransition

10+ years providing ERP services

50+ completed projects of different scales across various industries

Hands-on expertise in delivering out-of-the-box, custom, and hybrid ERP solutions

Strategic partnership with Odoo, Microsoft, and NetSuite

The scope of our ERP customization services

Custom ERP upgrade

Itransition helps you modify the functionality of the proprietary ERP system that no longer meets your specific needs to enable capabilities unique to your business workflows and business requirements.

Odoo customization

An Odoo Silver partner, Itransition tailors the Odoo platform to help you support specific business functions and address the pain points of your industry.

NetSuite customization

An accredited NetSuite partner, Itransition extends NetSuite's out-of-the-box capabilities to tailor the platform to your business workflows and processes.

Dynamics 365 Business Central customization

As a long-standing Microsoft Solutions Partner, Itransition tailors Dynamics 365 Business Central functionality to address your unique business needs and requirements.

Dynamics 365 F&O customization

Holding Microsoft Partner status, Itransition seamlessly aligns Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations functionality with your company’s complex workflows and operations.

Tailor an ERP platform to your unique needs with Itransition

Success stories from Itransition’s portfolio

90%

manual work reduction

Odoo ERP customization

When implementing a customized Odoo ERP solution for a US repair and maintenance service provider, Itransition developed a custom warehouse management algorithm to streamline product search and procurement processes.

10%

DevOps cost cuts

eLearning ERP customization

Itransition provided a US-based eLearning company with a comprehensive LMS solution, featuring an array of fully customized ERP and CMS functionalities to streamline and automate its administrative workflows.

ERP customization vs ERP configuration

Both key steps in ERP implementation, configuring and customizing an ERP represent two distinct ways of adapting this tool to your software ecosystem and corporate workflows. Here's a brief comparison to help you select the most viable option based on your operational scenario:

ERP customization

ERP configuration

Functional extension

Functionality is expanded beyond the out-of-the-box capacity.

Out-of-the-box functionality is altered using default settings only.

Possible modifications

The scope of changes is defined by the owner’s business requirements and the platform’s functional limitations.

The scope of changes is limited to the settings enabled by the ERP vendor.

Expertise required

Needs to be performed by qualified software engineers.

Can be performed by ERP administrators.

Change management

Implies profound changes that can potentially redefine business processes, calling for a change management strategy.

Changes are mostly surface-level and can be introduced with minimal employee onboarding.

ERP customization paths

Here are some examples of ERP customizations we perform that require specific development skills and impact different aspects of your software.

UX/UI customization

We modify the default ERP’s look and feel to improve user experience.

Skills required

UX/UI design
Frontend development
Usability testing

Forms & workflows customization

We change the default format of dashboards and forms or restructure off-the-shelf workflows in line with the established business processes.

Skills required

Process modeling
UX/UI design
Frontend development

Process testing
Backend development

Functionality extensions

We introduce new ERP pluggable modules without altering the source code to bridge the gaps between platform functionality and business requirements.

Skills required

Frontend development
UX/UI design
Backend development

Quality assurance
Mobile development

Feature customizations

We change your ERP's pre-existing features through more invasive modifications to meet specific business needs.

Skills required

Frontend development
Backend development

Quality assurance
Mobile development

Custom integrations

We integrate an ERP platform with third-party tools, cloud services, or smart devices through custom-built APIs and other connectors.

Skills required

Backend development
Cloud integration

API development
Integration testing

Automation

We implement smart RPA robots into your existing ERP solution to perform a variety of time-consuming tasks faster and with superior accuracy.

Skills required

Business process management
Automation engineering
Data analytics

AI and machine learning
RPA platforms

Common ERP integrations we help set up

ERP

CRM

HRM

Ecommerce

Hardware

Banking and financial services

Accounting software

ERP + CRM

This combination can prove extremely useful to:
Synchronize supply and demand data
Ensure a 360-degree customer view
Enable personalized customer journeys
Track sales conversion rate
Share customer data across departments

ERP + HRM

A single view into workforce and resource data helps:
Streamline expense management
Allocate human resources efficiently
Monitor employee performance
Facilitate payroll and compensation management
Ensure better employee training

ERP + ecommerce

Integration with their digital storefronts allows companies to:
Harmonize their ecommerce ecosystem
Enhance their omnichannel strategies
Keep track of inventory levels in real time
Gather data on customers, orders, and leads
Enable dynamic pricing and customized promotions

ERP + BI

Business intelligence complements ERP’s analytical features to:
Extract business insights from operational data
Empower your staff with timely reports
Identify new business opportunities
Monitor and forecast major market trends
Optimize your service and product offer

ERP + hardware

Hardware integration helps businesses to:
Enhance supply chain management with smart sensors
Automate operational process for better shop floor performance
Improve the accuracy of forecasting and planning
Identify defects and increase product quality
Predict failures and improve asset maintenance

ERP + banking & financial services

This combination enables:
Automated payment acceptance, processing, and storing
Streamlined cash management
Improved access to banking services for business users
Transactions management from a single environment
Real-time information provision from banks for corporate clients

ERP + accounting software

Accounting software complements ERP capabilities to:
Automate invoicing
Exchange data on orders, partners, products, payments, and invoices to streamline accounting workflows
Quickly identify errors when reconciling accounts
Automatically create accurate budgets and financial plans

Our ERP customization framework

1

Discovery

We frame your business goals and requirements, create technical documentation detailing the architecture and functionality of your future ERP, and set up a suitable project roadmap.

2

Design

Based on your requirements and specifications, we design your ERP system's information architecture, prepare blueprints and wireframes, and prototype the user interface.

3

Coding

We proceed with front-end and back-end development, delivering incremental code changes via script rollout and iterative releases to automate and streamline software building and testing.

4

Testing

Relying on our QA engineers' expertise and powerful automation tools, we perform continuous end-to-end testing to identify any bugs or performance issues and ensure your requirements are met.

5

Delivery

We release the final product, along with proper documentation describing its attributes, design principles, and operation, and prepare software agreements for transferring ownership.

ERP customization best practices we follow

Using KPIs to assess results

We measure the success of an ERP customization project with a variety of key performance indicators, for example, savings of time and resources to perform the same processes and their enhanced accuracy, along with end users’ level of satisfaction.

Aiming for long-term value

Any ERP customization is worth the investment if it delivers benefits in the long run. We achieve this through a solution that addresses key business needs, adapts to your workflow without involving major changes, and easily scales to suit ever-evolving scenarios.

Avoiding unnecessary customizations

Besides requiring proper investments, multiple changes to the structural design of your existing ERP can amplify the risk of running into compatibility issues and critical bugs. Therefore, we cherry-pick the most impactful modifications that may ensure a competitive edge.

ERP customization benefits

Efficiency

With an ERP fully aligned with your business processes, you can capitalize on increased speed, automation, and visibility.

Flexibility

A customized ERP solution becomes easier to scale up or change on-demand to meet emerging business goals.

Innovation

Customization allows you to exceed off-the-shelf ERP software capacity and tap into powerful features and tools.

Plug & play

A bespoke ERP is tailored to your workflow and infrastructure, so you won’t need to adjust your operations after its adoption.

Usability

An ERP designed to work in synergy with your pre-existing software ecosystem ensures a smoother user experience.

How we avoid ERP customization issues

When botched, ERP customizations can cause problems and undermine the business benefits they bring. Here is how we work to prevent these issues:

Issue

Solution

Over-customization

When heavy customizations render your ERP unrecognizable and hinder its normal performance.

We establish clear improvement objectives and identify the right amount of new features that won’t conflict with the core ERP functionality.

Introduced bugs

When developers unknowingly create defects in the ERP source code, UI, or logic.

We make sure to test customizations throughout and after the development, implementing automated tests to streamline the task if needed.

Upgrade conflicts

When customizations turn out to be incompatible with newer versions of the same ERP platform.

When dealing with platform-based ERPs, we develop customizations in line with the ERP vendors’ requirements so that they are backward- and forward-compatible.

Budget overruns

When your organization incurs unexpected ERP customization costs.

We help you define accurate project requirements and constantly monitor the customization progress to avoid wasting time and resources on unnecessary modifications.

Elimination of best practices

When an ERP undergoes substantial modifications affecting its compliance.

We frame your industry's best practices and document any code changes, ensuring that the modified product still fully complies with standards and regulations.

Obsolete customizations

When a customized feature is no longer necessary but still burdens your ERP's architecture.

We can get rid of dispensable customizations by removing them completely or by disabling them if their removal risks affecting several components of the system.

Looking for a reliable tech vendor for your ERP customization project?

More ERP services by Itransition

ERP consulting

We provide holistic consulting services to streamline ERP development and adoption, from gap analysis and tech stack identification to ROI projection and project planning.

ERP development

We create custom ERP systems with a tailored set of features, modules, and integrations for companies of all sizes and industries to meet their most deliberate ERP needs.

ERP implementation

We roll out platform-based and custom ERP software solutions by taking on the whole implementation process, from business needs to user support and onboarding.

ERP integration

We connect the ERP platform with other enterprise software systems and third-party applications by choosing and applying an optimal ERP integration approach.

ERP testing

We help assess ERP software functionality, performance, safety, usability, and compatibility with business workflows as a part of integrated or dedicated testing services.

ERP customization FAQs

Which ERP deployment model is more customization-friendly?

Cloud-based ERPs hosted remotely and managed by the vendor can only be modified or expanded by third-party developers within strict, predefined settings. On-premise ERPs deployed on your own servers, on the other hand, ensure full control over the product and therefore extensive customization options.

Is it better to configure or customize my ERP?

As a rule of thumb, the first option to consider is configuration, since it's generally easier, faster, cheaper, and less prone to creating compatibility and updating issues. However, organizations requiring an ERP adjusted to their established processes and long-term goals should invest in customization.

Should I customize my ERP before or after its implementation?

Nothing prevents your business from customizing an ERP before actually deploying it. Still, allowing your staff to familiarize themselves with the new system for a couple of months will help you assess how it integrates with your workflows, identify its limitations, and set up a better customization plan.