Information Technology Strategy

Does your company need new "gears"?

Companies today are facing unprecedented challenges in keeping up with our quickly changing information technologies.   Consider, for example, the following questions to determine whether your company's Information Technology (IT) "gears" are operating at peak efficiencies:

Is your company overwhelmed keeping abreast of the new and emerging IT products and technologies?
Do you want to further exploit IT to give your enterprise a competitive advantage?
Are you searching for a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system?   Or do you need to exploit more value from your existing system?
Are you confused about the new IT acronyms (such as CRM, PDM, SCM, etc.) and how to integrate those solutions into your existing infrastructure?
Does your company have a realistic and well-formulated E-Commerce strategy?
Are your vendors and customers demanding more collaboration, data sharing, and real-time transactions?
Do you have business needs that can’t be met by your existing ERP suite?
Does your enterprise have multiple IT systems at various locations that need to talk together?
Does your company have a comprehensive, long-term, IT strategic plan?


Relationship to ERP

From an IT perspective, ACUMEN Corporation believes that the "heart" of a manufacturing company is still the ERP suite.   These systems are the ones that manage your customer orders, plan your raw materials, schedule your work centers and personnel, and track your financials.

Although some technology writers may claim "ERP is dead", we know of very few manufacturing companies whose very lifeblood doesn't depend on their ERP system.

In other words, we believe that ERP represents a central and critical "gear" in most company's operations.


Nevertheless, technology continues to have a profound impact on the IT aspects of a corporation.
To name just a few examples...

    The Internet is literally changing the way business is conducted...
    and its speed, too.
    Customer relationships, including providing on-line order entry and support, have become paramount in maintaining and developing business.
    Software tools are taking answers to quality, scheduling, and productivity issues to the manufacturing floor.
    Supply chain management tools are getting raw materials to manufacturers... faster and cheaper.
The job is not to replace your entire infrastructure.
The challenge is how to integrate and exploit these new tools with your existing IT infrastructure!


A Strategic Solution

Many companies just don’t have the time or IT resources to conduct a strategic analysis on their own.   A strategic plan involves a great deal of assessment, familiarity with the new technologies, and understanding of the emerging vendors and products.   An increasing number of companies are relying on outsourced business and technology consultants, such as ACUMEN, to help them formulate long-term IT strategic plans, develop action plans to implement its components, and assist with their internal deployment.

 


Are you ready to make a move?


ACUMEN can help you decipher how the acronyms can help your enterprise compete and grow.   We can help you prioritize your initiatives, budget your time and resources, evaluate potential products, and integrate the solutions into your existing IT environment.


For further information, or call ACUMEN Corporation at 804-323-0467 x214 and let us help you get those gears meshing!