As an emerging beverage company leader, you might think an ERP solution is too expensive, complex or unnecessary for your business. However, business management platforms aren’t just a luxury reserved for big players. Your beverage SMB can flourish with the right ERP solution tailored to your unique needs and industry-specific demands. After all, what company can’t benefit from streamlined operations, maximized efficiency and process optimization?
Of course, choosing and implementing a business management system is not a walk in the park. Like the intricate art of winemaking, distilling or brewing, creating a seamless and efficient ERP solution requires a delicate balance of expertise, innovation and adaptability. While the challenges may seem intimidating, your beverage business can navigate careful planning, change management and training with the right strategy and tools to ensure a smooth transition and a successful outcome.
It’s not just about the ERP platform
Investing in a beverage management solution is a significant decision for a beverage business, but it can also bring remarkable operational efficiencies and long-term cost savings. When selecting a business management platform for your beverage company, carefully consider a few tasks that will have to be part of the process, such as:
- Gaining buy-in across all levels of your organization: We understand – getting everyone on the same page can sometimes feel like herding cats. However, implementing a business management platform isn’t just a technical project; it’s also a cultural change that affects all aspects of your beverage business. Therefore, you need to get everyone on board with the vision and benefits of the new system.
- Time and difficulty training staff: Training your staff doesn’t have to be painful. You can turn a dreary obligation into an engaging escapade with the right resources and a pinch of pizzazz.
- Creating new processes for existing tasks: Oh, it’s such a scary word! “Change” might stop you in your tracks, but trust us, the juice is worth the squeeze. Think about it: no more endless hours spent closing books or toggling between systems. With beverage management software, you bid farewell to duplicate data entry and mind-numbing manual tasks. Instead, say hello to smooth automations that’ll free up time and potentially save you some serious moolah.
- Finding the right technology partner: Before you decide which beverage management platform to implement, it’s crucial to consider the company behind the software. After all, you’re entering into a long-term relationship. Select a technology partner that understands your business needs and creates industry-specific solutions to help you reach your goals.
It all sounds worth it, doesn’t it? Well, it doesn’t happen on its own. It takes careful planning, change management strategy and expert training to help even the leanest of teams quickly adapt to a new system.
How to get the most out of your beverage software
From crafting unique flavors to meeting market demands, it’s not news that emerging companies face many challenges. When these organizations have teams on the smaller side, it can be even more critical to ensure everything is dialed in to maximize efficiency and productivity.
“Prior to Crafted ERP, Long Meadow Ranch Winery and Farmstead was on QuickBooks, and it was very painful, let’s just say. We had eight different entities and eight different charts of accounts. You had to log out of one to log back into another. It was very, very difficult,” shared Brett Pinkin, vice president of finance for Long Meadow Ranch.
“One of the key features of Crafted ERP is being able to present the financials and also view some of the financial information through the dashboard all in one location. And being able to look at some of that information real-time helps us spend less time doing the accounting and more time focusing on what our results are,” explained Pinkin.
Long Meadow Ranch is one of many Crafted ERP customers who fully embraced ERP implementation and continue to reap the benefits.
Highlighting the critical role of financial data integration in their journey, CEO and Co-founder of HenHouse Brewing Collin McDonnell shared, “We have our annual budget by department and by location fully integrated into Crafted. We can get month-by-month reporting on how we’re performing to budget, which helps us get specific about where we are doing well, where we can improve and what needs to change.”
So, what must you do to get the most out of your business management platform?
Unveil Key KPIs
Think of KPIs as your trusty guides, leading you through the labyrinth of business metrics and performance indicators, unveiling a story of resilience, innovation and achievement; no more vague estimations or fuzzy guesswork. Picture a business where every move you make is backed by tangible, quantifiable data that reflects the true pulse of your beverage company’s health and progress.
But it’s not just about the numbers on a dashboard; it’s about the insights they provide, the trends they reveal and the opportunities they highlight. It’s about empowering your company to make informed, data-driven decisions. It’s about transforming raw data into meaningful narratives that showcase your business’s evolution and triumphs.
Crafted ERP has integrated features that offer real-time visibility to propel faster decision-making and refined forecasting. Simplify your financial and operational planning while achieving real-time data consolidation. Effortlessly handle audits and variances while gaining valuable insights into project statuses and variances.
Customers have reported:
- Revenue recognition management improved by 40-65%
- Time required for compliance support decreased by 25-45%
- Audit support time reduced by 30-40%
- Reporting time and resources reduced by 60-90%
- Time to close financial books reduced by 40-70%
- Accounting staff productivity increased by 20-50%
- General ledger consolidation time reduced by 20-35%
- Invoice management improved by 45-75%
- Customer support capacity increased by 25-60%
- Cost to purchase and maintain servers reduced by 100%
Develop a Single Source of Truth: No More Double Trouble
Duplicate data entry and manual processes – talk about a productivity killer! With Crafted, you get a single source of truth that’ll keep your data squeaky clean and your processes razor sharp. No more tangled web of contradicting spreadsheets or mismatched records; instead, envision a centralized hub built in the cloud where every team member accesses the same, consistent information, fostering a culture of trust and reliability.
For HenHouse, implementing an ERP system not only provided accurate, consolidated data, but it also helped bring their team closer together. “Spreadsheets are full of lies,” joked McDonnell. “If you’re running everything through spreadsheets, there’s so much room for human error. Someone’s always going to get blamed and then that person is going to have resentment. It creates all these team issues. It’s weird to talk about an ERP as a way to get the team to get along better, but it’s super true.”
Gone are the hours wasted on reconciling conflicting data. Now, your team can do more with less by directing efforts toward driving growth and innovation, confident in the integrity of their information. Your team can access and update data from virtually anywhere, using any device, be it a trusty smartphone or a versatile tablet. This virtual marvel catalyzes growth for emerging beverage businesses, offering scalability, security, mobility and cost-efficiency.
Capitalize on Software Training
Picture this: a comprehensive beverage management platform seamlessly integrates all your business processes, from barrel and keg management to financial planning. With NetSuite + Crafted, the power is in your hands. But how do you unlock its full potential? Effective training.
- NetSuite offers training resources to ensure that every team member becomes proficient on the base platform. From basic functionalities to advanced features, no stone goes unturned. With a hands-on approach, your team can adapt to the system quickly and utilize its capabilities to their maximum potential.
- Doozy Think Tank is a team of implementation and integration specialists with decades of experience with NetSuite + Crafted as both users and developers. Doozy can help you set up and configure your business management platform to match your processes and requirements. They expertly guide you through the project kickoff, data migration, user training and go-live phases.
Comprehensive training leads to faster user adoption and quicker returns on your investment. Take full advantage of all the training resources from NetSuite and Crafted to equip your team with the tools they need for success.
Nurture a supportive environment for a seamless transition
Imagine a workplace where everyone is on the same page, marching toward a common goal. That’s the magic of fostering open communication. By articulating the perks and prospects of beverage ERP software in a language everyone understands, you’ll encourage an upsurge of enthusiasm and collaboration among your team.
Your team can safely explore the business management platform with a reliable support network. Quick solutions to any hiccups or questions will instill a sense of security and allow them the comfort to push boundaries without hesitation.
Communication is a two-way street. Your team’s insights are invaluable and can elevate your beverage software. Encourage a culture where feedback is not just welcomed but celebrated! By actively seeking and implementing suggestions, you enhance the beverage ERP’s functionality and foster a sense of ownership and unity among your staff.
Enhancing Operations with Crafted ERP Tailored for Emerging Beverage Producers
Undeniably, emerging beverage producers can reap long-term efficiencies through a robust business management platform. With the right strategy, meticulous planning and a trustworthy implementation partner, growing companies can navigate challenges and integrate a beverage ERP system into their operations. By prioritizing crucial factors, like gaining organizational buy-in, effective employee training and developing streamlined processes, you can ensure a smooth transition and maximize the benefits of a beverage software platform.
Empower your team with a comprehensive business management platform. Industry-specific solutions will help you reach your business goals faster and achieve long-term success. Unlock your full potential and achieve substantial improvements across your entire organization. Embrace the cloud, establish a unified source of truth and unveil key KPIs to drive your business growth and maintain competitiveness in the market.
Ready to get started? Reach out to our expert team today!
