ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) version lock can be seriously debilitating to a business. Getting stuck in version lock means your business or enterprise has reached such an extensive point in the customization of your software that it will break down when an update becomes available; thereby leaving you behind at a former version of the software. If you want to update, expensive and time-consuming re-codes of customized software are in your future, which is often unstable in a new update. This is why, according to a 2011 report by Forrester, about half of companies utilizing ERP solutions are two versions behind, which is the equivalent of their software being four years old. Because this is a cheaper alternative to updating, which costs money, time, and IT resources, many companies get stuck in a loop of ERP version lock.
This on-premises system style, while mostly on its way out, causes this version lock, which in turn generally causes four things to happen, especially today: prevents innovation, compliance is more difficult, remote work is nearly impossible, and real-time information is limited. All of these things are business killers in today's world. Imagine, like we were saying before, being four years behind in the software upgrades in any industry. With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, many workers were sent to work remotely from home for their and other's safety which presents many IT difficulties in an ERP version-locked environment. As more people become fully vaccinated, workers could start to head back into the office, but in some enterprises, the benefits of remote work may keep that as the norm. Today, to stay relevant and competitive businesses cannot take the setbacks that ERP version lock imposes on them daily. Like many solutions in today's industries, we look to the Cloud with our question on how to deal with ERP version lock. The answer comes in the form of a flexible cloud-based ERP, which will allow customization without the time and money cost of reengineering when a new version is released.
In the world of SaaS (Software as a Service) and remote work, it makes sense to look for a cloud-based ERP to take advantage of the power it can give you over on-premise ERP. If created correctly, a cloud-based ERP can liberate you from the cycle of version lock, deliver new functionalities in a fraction of the time as on-premise solutions, and it can retain your customizations, leading to an increase in your return on investment. With such a system, you could update with confidence in knowing everything will work the next day. One such Cloud-based ERP for the waste and recycling management industry is WeighPay. WeighPay is a certified Oracle-NetSuite Solution Provider and, as they say, "an advocate for cloud technology that allows organizations to focus on their core business functions, without having to worry about hosting, servers, updates, maintenance, and other burdensome activities related to owning an on-premise solution."