About the guest Kerrie is the Group Vice President of Product Management at Epicor Software. Kerrie leads the strategic direction of Epicor cloud-enabled solutions to ensure that they continue to deliver high-value innovation, security, and performance for all of their customers. She is based in Richmond, Virginia, and has over a decade of experience in ERP, supply chain, e-commerce, cloud computing, product development, and business solutions. Connect with Kerrie Jordan Key takeaways ERP is evolving from transactional systems to data-driven platforms powering insights with analytics and AI Top challenges for ERP implementation include data management and customization Involve IT and choose a trusted partner for a successful implementation Foster innovation through customer involvement and crowdsourcing ideas ERP can future-proof businesses by integrating systems and providing visibility Scuderia AlphaTauri exemplifies constant innovation needs in fast-paced industries Quotes “ERP is the perfect place within an organization to consolidate data, to transform it, and to serve it up to really create some helpful insights in the business.” Highlights from this episode What will the true next-generation ERP system look like, and how does that help businesses? According to Kerrie Jordan, the true next-generation ERP system will prioritize the way data is used to make better and faster decisions. It will embed analytics and insights directly into business applications since ERP forms the backbone of operations and financial management. This allows companies to leverage data as a competitive advantage across the entire organization. Next-gen ERP will also be cloud-based, mobile, and focused on data security/protection. It aims to help businesses become “data-first” organizations that can move faster by surfacing insights from their consolidated and transformed data. What are some of the common challenges organizations face when trying to implement an ERP solution? And how is Epicor helping them overcome those? One of the biggest challenges organizations face when implementing an ERP solution is data migration and integration due to the importance of data in an ERP system. Managing data from different formats and locations can be complex. Kerrie recommends involving the IT organization in decision-making, as they understand how data is used across the company. Their expertise can help navigate technological change and position IT as a strategic partner. She also notes that customizing an ERP to each unique business while leveraging out-of-the-box functionality can pose challenges. Epicor helps by providing low-code/no-code configuration tools to tweak the system over time without disrupting upgrades or creating long-term issues. How can ERP help companies position themselves for future success? According to Kerrie, ERP systems can help position companies for future success in a few key ways: – By having strong out-of-the-box integration capabilities, open APIs, and integration platform tools to connect new applications and automate workflows as needs change easily. – By functioning as a data platform to consolidate, govern, and leverage both internal and external data sources to gain insights. – By choosing an innovative and forward-thinking vendor, continuously upgrade and update the ERP system to incorporate new technologies and opportunities aligned with the company’s growth plans. – By providing embedded analytics and dashboards to surface data insights across the organization, allowing companies to make better strategic decisions and “steer the future of their business.” What strategies do you recommend to help foster innovation inside companies? Kerrie strongly recommends adopting an open crowdsourcing approach to ideation. She emphasizes the importance of casting a wide net to collect innovative ideas from all corners of the customer and user base. Whether through online forums, user groups, or advisory councils, organizations should empower their communities to contribute freely and provide feedback on proposed solutions. Once a pool of ideas is generated, Kerrie stresses communicating transparently back to the crowd about where their suggestions are being implemented. By crediting innovators and celebrating incorporated ideas, companies can recognize contributions and further motivate participation. She also advises focusing intensively on thoroughly understanding the needs of a single customer before attempting to scale new solutions more broadly. By partnering closely with advisory customers through the entire innovation process, from concept to implementation, organizations can ground their offerings in real, validated customer value from the start. This customer-centric methodology helps ensure innovations will truly benefit end users. Are there other real-world examples of companies that are successfully driving innovation in their industries? Karrie highlights Epicor customer Scuderia AlphaTauri, a Formula One racing team. She notes how the high-speed, precision world of F1 requires constant innovation as cars are reinvented with over 14,000 custom components. Even minor improvements can make a difference when measured in milliseconds. Karrie admires how Scuderia AlphaTauri is consistently improving its performance through rapid innovation and Epicor’s ability to provide the real-time data insights needed to optimize at such a fast pace. Resource recommendations Books: – Build by Tony Fadell Podcasts: –The New Automation Mindset Podcast Shout-outs –Markus Zirn
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