Enterprise resource planning (ERP)

ERP Software is a cross-functional enterprise system driven by an integrated suite of software modules that supports the basic internal business processes of a company. ERP gives a company an integrated real-time view of its core business processes such as production, order processing, and inventory management, tied together by ERP applications software and a common database maintained by a database management system.

ERP systems track business resources (such as cash, raw materials, and production capacity) and the status of commitments made by the business (such as customer orders, purchase orders, and employee payroll), no matter which department (manufacturing, purchasing, sales, accounting, and so on) has entered the data into the system. ERP facilitates information flow between all business functions inside the organisation, and manages connections to outside stakeholders

Enterprise systems are complex software packages that offer the potential of integrating data and processes across functions in an enterprise. Although the initial ERP systems focused on large enterprises, there has been a shift towards smaller enterprises also using ERP systems. Organisations consider the ERP system a vital organisational tool because it integrates varied organisational systems and enables flawless transactions and production. However, an ERP system is radically different from traditional systems development. ERP systems can run on a variety of computer hardware and network configurations.