Member Article

Should you buy a Porsche or ERP software?

It’s a tough question – both have their benefits, but which comes out on top?

Let’s be honest – an ERP solution doesn’t feel like a great reward for years of long days of hard work.

But in the cold-light of day (and with tongue firmly in cheek), which of the two offers the best option for giving you more enjoyable free time and restoring the work-life balance?

1. Price for a small business ERP system

£15,000 up to £50,000.

Versus

For £15,000

Used Porsche 968 Sport 1994 (with 145k miles on the clock).

Winner: ERP – while the Porsche is a gem, it’ll need far more work to maintain than any ERP system. That’s on top of your hours already spent fiddling and repairing spreadsheets to compensate for not having any integrated business software.

For £25,000

Used Porsche Cayman 2009 (manual with 28,441 miles on the clock).

Winner: ERP. The Cayman is one of the best-handling coupes available so you will arrive at work faster - but once there, you’ll have the same frustrations with planning and reporting without ERP.

Whereas the Cayman only has room for two - ERP will help all your managers ‘get to work’ faster by giving them a controlling handle on the bottom line.

2. Price for mid-sized manufacturer ERP system

£50,000 – £150,000.

Versus

For £50,000

Nearly new Porsche Panamera 4 Platinum Edition 2013 (with 20 miles on the clock).

Winner: ERP. This left-hand drive Porsche is a great blend of executive comfort and all-wheel drive sports action and this appears to be good value (equivalent UK spec costs over £76k, allegedly).

With ERP, your ‘steering wheel’ is on the right side – proverbially and literally – to drive your business productivity forward without awkward compromises or limited visibility of what’s going on.

For £100,000

Porsche 356A 1958 (completely rebuilt and in right hand drive).

Winner: Porsche. Never mind pragmatism, reason or bottom lines; it’s hard not to want to just drive off in this restored classic Porsche and forget everyone else for once!

3. Price for large corporate manufacturer ERP system

£150,000 and beyond.

We line up Stuttgart’s finest against the best-of-breed ERP systems in a battle of budgets to prove once and for all that you can never be too small for an ERP system.

Versus

For £150,000

New Porsche 911 Turbo S 2014

(£140,000 so there’s some change left over for running and insurance costs).

Winner: Draw – both are thoroughbreds of the modern age, excelling in their disciplines. Better to stick with ERP though and buy the Turbo S as a reward when your bonus is paid in a few years’ time.

For £500,000 and beyond

Used Porsche Carrera GT 2004

(£520,000 to be precise and you’d have go to Germany to pick it up).

Winner: ERP. Porsche’s first supercar, the Le Mans-inspired GT, is known for its brutal performance and handling that demands respect. Or else. On the other hand, top-level ERP offers great performance without the need to take out life insurance. Although, don’t forget the running costs for both will take a step up at this level.

Alternatively, buy a 959 replica for a mere £29,995 on www.pistonheads.com. Bear in mind this supercar copy-cat is unlikely to impress staff or customers who’ve experienced frustrations with how your business systems work at the moment. Think carefully!

ERP vs. Porsche: Key Takeaways

Remember:

– Both are best-of-breed and use proven engineering to be brilliant at what they do.

– But ERP ultimately (if unfortunately!) offers the best reward for your time and money.

– Consider the Porsche as a potential reward once your business has been boosted by ERP.

– Unless it’s a Porsche 356, that is. Then throw all reason out of the window.

Get a Porsche-like handle on your bottom line with the eGuide: Financial Control in Manufacturing: Know What Makes You Money

To download this guide, copy and paste this link into your browser: http://bit.ly/sanderson_eguide

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Paul Bywater .