As the personal computer proliferated inside organizations, control over the information generated by the organization began splintering. For instance, the customer service department creates a customer database to keep track of calls and problem reports, and the sales department also creates a database to keep track of customer information. Which one should be used as the master list of customers? Or perhaps someone in sales might create a spreadsheet to calculate sales revenue, while someone in finance creates a different revenue document that meets the needs of their department, but calculates revenue differently. The two spreadsheets will report different revenue totals. Which one is correct? And who is managing all of this information?
Enterprise Resource Planning
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In the 1990s the need to bring an organization’s information back under centralized control became more apparent. The Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system (sometimes just called enterprise software) was developed to bring together an entire organization within one program. ERP software utilizes a central database that is implemented throughout the entire organization. Here are some key points about ERP. • A software application. ERP is an application that is used by many of an organization’s employees. • Utilizes a central database. All users of the ERP edit and save their information from the same data source. For example, this means there is only one customer table in the Information Systems for Business and Beyond (2019) pg. 53
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