ERP Archives - PCG

How to Upgrade On-Prem ERP to the Cloud with Infor Leap

PCG — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 15:26:57 +0000

Insights Blog

How to Upgrade Your On-Prem ERP to the Cloud with Infor Leap

Important information as it’s always best to “look before you leap”.

Author: Dan Aldridge — PCG Director of Solutions Marketing

The Beginning: from the Moon to the Cloud —

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy challenged America to reach the moon within a decade. Just eight years later, Apollo 11 achieved that audacious goal—powered by a roomful of mainframe computers with less processing power than the smartphone in your hand today.

When Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, he declared, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Behind that leap stood engineers calculating by hand—years before the first spreadsheet even existed.

In a similar way, when Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems emerged in the early 1990s, they represented another technological revolution. For the first time, entire companies—especially manufacturers—could manage operations through a unified digital backbone. ERP became the “system of record”, the “one version of the truth.”

Taking off to the Cloud —

By the late 1990s, the next evolution began. In 1997, NetSuite launched the first cloud-based ERP platform. It took traditional vendors such as Oracle, SAP, and Baan (now Infor) several more years to follow suit.

Convincing organizations to abandon their costly, complex on-premises ERP systems proved difficult. Many companies had invested millions—sometimes billions—in heavily customized environments. Even today, Gartner estimates that fewer than 40 percent of SAP ECC customers will have migrated to S/4HANA by 2027, despite more than a decade of pressure. Those who don’t move will lose maintenance support—and access to SAP’s new AI platform, Joule.

The bottom line: On-prem ERP customers, regardless of vendor, are falling behind if they don’t move to the cloud.

The Big Leap —

Infor has taken a very different path with its new Leap program, an innovative upgrade initiative that combines Infor’s Velocity Suite and Agentic AI to accelerate migration from on-prem ERP systems to the cloud.

Infor’s Leap makes it possible to take existing Infor environments—such as LN, Baan, XA, or SyteLine—and modernize them into the secure, multi-tenant Infor CloudSuites running on Amazon Web Services (AWS).

In the spirit of Armstrong’s famous words, this is truly one small step for Infor, one giant LEAP for Infor customers.

Unlike other ERP vendors, Infor has paired cloud migration with industry-specific intelligence and fixed-price project delivery. No one—not even SAP or Oracle—is offering a similar combination of industry focus, AI automation, and predictable cost.

Why Infor? —

Infor CloudSuites are consistently ranked among the top ERP systems by Gartner, Nucleus Research, and independent advisors such as Third Stage Consulting’s Eric Kimberling. Built on AWS, Infor’s cloud ERP offers the scalability, security, and AI infrastructure modern manufacturers need.

Each Infor CloudSuite is designed for a specific industry—manufacturing, distribution, aerospace & defense, automotive, high tech, and more. Preconfigured best practices reduce costly customizations and speed time to value.

Here is our PCG Insights BLOG article that explains “What is Infor CloudSuite?” including several instructional videos from our new PCG Insights HUB.

Why PCG? —

To make the Leap successful, you need the right partner. PCG is the only Infor partner in North America offering both:

SyteLine upgrades to Infor CloudSuite Industrial (CSI)
LN, Baan, and XA upgrades to CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise (CSIE)

For over a decade, PCG has refined its Velocity implementation methodology, delivering fixed-price, on-time, on-budget cloud migrations. In essence, PCG “took the Leap” years ago.

Here is our PCG Insights BLOG article entitled “Why PCG Should Be Your Infor Consulting Partner”. We’ve been doing Infor ERP implementations for over 20 years, so we know our way around these systems really well!

What Infor Leap with PCG Delivers —

For Infor’s on-prem customers (LN, XA, SyteLine, Baan, etc.), PCG’s Leap offering delivers:

1. Industry-Specific Cloud ERP
CloudSuites are built with decades of industry experience, embedding best practices from day one. PCG tailors only where it matters, minimizing risk and cost.

2. Unparalleled Industry Knowledge
From aerospace to electronics, PCG brings deep vertical expertise. One example: implementing CloudSuite A&D for AEVEX Aerospace—the first drone manufacturer in North America to do so—in just six months.

3. Free Cloud Readiness Assessment
PCG begins with a complimentary workshop to design your personalized cloud roadmap. Using Infor’s Industry Process Catalog, the team builds a demo tenant—later used in production—to accelerate deployment.

4. Deployment and Adoption
PCG’s proven project methodology ensures smooth migration and end-user adoption. Tools such as Infor Adoption Accelerator provide in-app guidance to increase proficiency and engagement.

5. Value Realization and Ongoing Support
Post-go-live, PCG continues to deliver value through its Customer Success and Assure Support programs, combining managed services with customization assistance.

How PCG Enables Your Leap —

PCG helps you qualify for the Leap program and ensures a fast, cost-effective journey to the cloud. Customer fit is evaluated across key criteria—company size, users, plant locations, business model alignment, and industry-specific functionality.

For many manufacturers, the Leap program eliminates long-standing fears about re-implementation complexity or uncertain project costs. PCG’s structured “health check” determines eligibility and defines a realistic, fixed-price scope.

How PCG Uses Industry AI Agents and Velocity Suite —

PCG leverages Infor’s Velocity Suite—a set of advanced tools for business process mining, robotic process automation (RPA), and AI-driven insights.

At the core are Industry AI Agents: pre-trained, role-based assistants built on micro-vertical models. These agents are ready to work out of the box, requiring minimal setup.

With Industry AI Agents, organizations can:

Optimize every process with AI grounded in industry context
Make faster, data-driven decisions
Orchestrate and scale automation securely across the enterprise

PCG has deployed both Infor’s pre-built agents and custom AI agents tailored to client workflows—helping customers unlock measurable productivity gains.

Extending the Leap: Business Transformation —

While the Leap program focuses on technical migration, PCG ensures that transformation extends across people, processes, and technology:

1. People – Cloud Readiness Assessments evaluate organizational culture, staffing, and change-management needs, supported by robust training and testing plans.

2. Processes – Infor’s standardized Industry Process Catalogs and process-mining tools help streamline operations and identify inefficiencies.

3. Technology – PCG handles configuration, data cleansing, migration, and documentation with AI assistance—ensuring your system is optimized for the cloud

Taking You Beyond the Leap —

Migration is only the beginning of your journey. PCG extends value through complementary solutions that enhance your CloudSuite environment:

Data Lake Sync – Integrate ERP, CRM, and other data sources—including SAP—into the Infor Data Lake via APIs.
Business Intelligence – Leverage Actualize/OrangeQuery dashboards, KPIs, and predictive analytics with Infor BIRST, Power BI, or Tableau.
Infor MES – Connect your shop floor to ERP for real-time production feedback, machine monitoring, and OEE tracking.
PCG Smart Factory – Extend CloudSuite ERP with MES+, enabling IoT-driven insights, material tracking, and predictive maintenance.

Some customers have achieved enough ROI from Smart Factory and analytics solutions to offset much of their ERP upgrade cost—shrinking payback periods dramatically.

The Next Giant Leap for Manufacturing —

ERP modernization no longer needs to be a risky reimplementation. With Infor Leap and PCG, it’s a structured, intelligent transformation—powered by AI, grounded in industry expertise, and executed with precision.

PCG invites all Infor on-prem ERP customers to schedule a Cloud Readiness Assessment and explore whether they qualify for the Leap program.

Because in today’s competitive landscape, standing still is not an option.

So, let’s take the Leap to the cloud—together—and go beyond the moon dust.

For more information, visit PCG or connect with Dan Aldridge (The ERP Doctor) on LinkedIn. Come join us by “ringing the bell” on the PCG LinkedIn page to get frequent updates on cool technologies.

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Dan Aldridge

Dan has 25+ years of corporate management experience including CEO, CFO and Controller of the consulting firm he founded and grew for 13 years. He has ERP software and digital transformation experience working with CEO’s, CFO’s, Controllers, and other C-levels at Fortune 500 companies. He specializes in Finance (e.g., Financial Statements, General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Cost Accounting) and Manufacturing (e.g., MRP, Production, Industry 4.0, Smart Factories, MES systems) consulting and project management.

Contact Dan Aldridge.

Work together with PCG for great Infor platform success. Contact us, and let’s get started!

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More Downloadable Resources

Company

Solutions

Augmented Intelligence

BI/Analytics

Cloud Enterprise Platforms

Enterprise Resource Planning

Industry 5.0

Manufacturing Execution Systems

Regulatory Compliance

Services

Business & Technical Advisory

Platform Deployment

Platform & Edge Integration

Platform Optimization

Technical Training

Upgrade Testing & Validation

Validation & Compliance

Support

Platforms

Technology Partnerships

The post How to Upgrade On-Prem ERP to the Cloud with Infor Leap appeared first on PCG.

What is Infor CloudSuite?

PCG — Mon, 02 Jun 2025 20:44:06 +0000

Insights Blog

What is Infor CloudSuite?

Author: Dan Aldridge — PCG Director of Solutions Marketing

Introduction —

Infor is one of the best-kept secrets in enterprise software. They are consistently ranked in the Top 10 ERP Software Vendors in the world by the leading analyst firms like Gartner, such as in the Leaders in the latest “Magic Quadrant”.

Infor’s global revenue is substantial, with recent estimates placing it around $3.5 billion. This makes it the third-largest supplier of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software applications. Infor also has significant revenue from its SaaS (cloud) offerings, with SaaS revenue reaching around $1.2 billion.

So why doesn’t Infor have the same brand awareness and press? The biggest reason is that the top competitors in the ERP market – Microsoft (Dynamics 365), Oracle (Fusion Cloud and NetSuite), and SAP (ECC and S/4HANA) – have been around a lot longer.

These behemoths have also built significant market share through advertising, marketing, and capturing big systems integrators (e.g., Big 4, IBM) that have sold billions for them! Comparatively, Infor isn’t able to spend nearly as much.

For example, you see SAP’s logos and slogans everywhere in airports, sports arenas, publications, and videos. That’s understandable, given that at $36 billion in revenue, they can afford to put their name all over everything.

So, when we say that PCG is an Infor partner, we sometimes get an “oh…..what do they do?” To that, we usually say that Infor is an American competitor to SAP – because everyone’s heard of SAP (thanks, massive advertising dollars) – and they’re the third-largest ERP vendor in the world.

This article is a way for us to display the Infor products with many videos and website links. So, we can, in our small way, show off these magnificent solutions that Infor is keeping (somewhat) secret – such as Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise (LN).

So, let’s dive into the Infor CloudSuite software and capabilities…… We just want you to pop it onto your radar, so maybe we don’t need Infor or PCG on Rory McElroy’s hat to get you to come see what we offer!

Infor CloudSuite Overview —

Infor has 3 flagship ERP systems and PCG, carries two of them: Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise (LN) and Infor CloudSuite Industrial (CSI/Syteline). I will focus on one here, Infor CloudSuite LN, and then present CSI in another article.

PCG is the leading Infor Partner for Infor LN in North America, and we’re moving up fast in the CSI ranks too! LN and SyteLine are the legacy names, and we often slip up and call them by those names – so forgive us if we slip up here.

A lot of the videos below present the Infor CloudSuite software itself, mostly LN. I’ve also shown the products that integrate seamlessly with the Infor ERPs we offer, as well as edge applications that are essentially the same for both. The analysis is generally applicable for both solutions, but in this article, we’re mostly focused on LN.

Infor’s Modern User Experience —

Here is a nice, short video showing the updated User Interface (UI), which is now one of the most modern in the ERP software market. It starts with role-based Workspaces containing charts, graphs, and built-in widgets, and then drills down to the hundreds of 360 dashboards in the system.

Infor Business Process Intelligence and Mining —

In the past, users complained that there was a high learning curve. Infor has listened and is doing something about it. They are now using Process Catalogs that help with process and system training, process mining tools to automate the discovery of how workers are working, and generative AI for user documentation.

Infor’s Process Intelligence has vertical industry catalogs, such as Automotive and Aerospace & Defense, that help our consultants at PCG REALLY speed up the implementation process. For example, we implemented this for a drone manufacturing company, in six months using process intelligence and Infor CloudSuite Aerospace & Defense! This rarely happens.

Another business process management tool that speeds up implementations and allows for automation of processes is process mining. We use it to map out and monitor what processes are being used to eliminate unnecessary processes, add better ones, and automate steps using Infor’s tools; such as generative AI and robotic process automation (RPA).

This is a recent addition to the Infor portfolio, and it is slick! It compares favorably to SAP Signavio and other tools such as Celonis – and it’s embedded in the ERP system (nice).

Infor Business Intelligence and Predictive Analytics —

Analytics also summarize information so it’s easier to consume, and reports don’t have to be combined manually or in spreadsheets.

Infor uses Infor Analytics within the ERP and Birst Analytics to power the dashboards and predictive analytics. So, instead of having IT create new “sessions” for reports within the ERP and search through paper or spreadsheets manually, end users can create new reports, alerts, dashboards, etc. in minutes. It’s like night and day.

Here’s an example of how reports and dashboards are combined now. And, so you know, you can STILL export reports and data to Excel if your heart desires!

Infor is the Best Manufacturing ERP System Available —

With all the new UX improvements and workflows, it’s almost easy to forget that there’s a big, powerful ERP engine underneath the hood. The Infor CloudSuites are comprehensive, highly configurable ERP systems that manufacturers of every size have come to trust for their robust features, business process templates, supply chain visibility, and ease of use.

Here’s an overview video of Infor LN that shows the power of the ERP in a cross-functional fashion including engineering, projects, and the integration with Infor’s Gartner award-winning Configure Price Quote (CPQ) tool for make-to-order manufacturers.

Infor CloudSuite LN Overview —

This is an overview video “Infor CloudSuite LN Solution Overview”. Some of the operational screens have been updated since this video was made, but it’s still a great intro to the system.

Infor Configure Price Quote (CPQ) —

Here is another video featuring the Infor Configure Price Quote (CPQ) software, which is natively integrated with Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise (LN), and it shows how CPQ feeds into a Sales Quotation in the Infor CloudSuite ERP.

This combination is perfect for make-to-order manufacturers who want their salespeople to be able to make sales quotations or orders online by simply choosing features and options. The CPQ has the constraints built in, and these are enforced automatically as the quotation enters the ERP – which customized pricing intact!

From organizations with one site to global multi-site enterprises, every business with manufacturing in its portfolio will be able to realize the benefits of a modern ERP system by implementing, upgrading, or migrating to one of the industry CloudSuite solutions such as Infor CSIE/LN, CloudSuite Aerospace & Defense, or CloudSuite Automotive.

Benefits of the Infor CloudSuites —

The many benefits of the Infor CloudSuites include:

- Global solution with comprehensive and rich manufacturing and service capabilities.
- Modern user experience with role-based homepages, social collaboration, and workflows.
- Advanced Generative AI, RPA, and ML capability built in across the ERP and edge systems.
- Built-in standard processes, even for micro-vertical industries.
- Flexible business process models are easy to modify and you don’t have to fit your business to the system.
- Innovative features like predictive analytics and planning for the supply chain.
- CPQ capability is great for complex make-to-order sales, pricing, and manufacturing.
- A powerful enterprise planning engine.
- Advanced data analytics and business intelligence in real–time.
- Industry-specific functionality to cover unique business needs for Automotive, A&D, Industrial Machinery, High Tech, Electronics, and others.
- A multi-company, multisite, multicurrency, multi-language ERP solution.
- Infor Process Catalogs, Process Intelligence, and Process Mining for a low total cost of ownership and quick time to value.
- Cross-device accessibility anywhere you and your teams are working.
- Enhanced cross-functional collaboration among teams throughout the organization.
- Process automation and improved data collection through integrations and other built-in tools.
- Highly customizable features and functionality for specific business needs related to project manufacturing, engineered-to-order products, discrete manufacturing, and more.
- Always up-to-date regulatory compliance features for SOC, ISO, HITRUST, HIPAA, and other regulations.
- MES software that combines the ERP with machines and Internet of Things devices to communicate and enter data on the shop with tablets and other devices.
- PLM (Product Lifecyle Management) software embedded in the ERP (most ERP vendors have it separate) to handle drawings, specifications, bills of material (BOMs), etc.

Top 10 Manufacturing ERP Sytems in 2025: Infor CloudSuite LN is #1 —

Infor CloudSuite LN (M3 for process) comes in as a BIG #1 in analyst Sam Gupta’s list of the Top 10 Manufacturing ERP Systems in 2025 from ElevatIQ.

In Gupta’s estimation, Infor CloudSuite is the right size for mid to large-sized companies from $50 million to over $10 billion in revenue, and it competes straight up head-to-head with SAP S/4HANA as one of the few true multi-tenant cloud solutions in the market. (SAP S/4HANA ranks #5 on Sam’s list, btw).

Here is a graphic of the rankings. Nice to see Infor CloudSuite #1 where it belongs. Take that, Ernie Els!

Here are the strengths of the Infor CloudSuites from independent industry thought leaders like Gupta (above) and Eric Kimberling at Third Stage Consulting Group.

- Vertical industry solutions for manufacturing (e.g., automotive, aerospace & defense).
- Flexibility – Very flexible compared to SAP, Oracle ERP Cloud, etc. because Infor has grown the solution through acquisitions like Lawson and Baan.
- Infor CloudSuite has business process models that are easy to modify and you don’t have to fit your business to the system.
- Broad and diverse capabilities rival SAP and Oracle.
- Innovative features like predictive analytics and planning for the supply chain.
- Configure Price Quote (CPQ) capability is great for complex make-to-order sales, providing pricing and order information to feed into manufacturing processes. Many other vendors don’t have this.
- For retail, apparel, and fashion – ability to handle colors, sizes, etc. is a strength.
- For food and beverage – dealing with units of measure is a strength.
- Product innovation – Koch acquired Infor and is putting a lot of money into R&D and resources.

With extensive R&D investment from Infor parent company, Koch, you get a modern, clean look and feel for the CloudSuites plus the user-friendly experience that shows beautifully in the videos. ERP systems are supposed to be “old school”, right? Well, it’s not “old school” in my book – and believe me, I know “old school” when I see it!

Infor Videos from Infor —

Here are some links and screenshots that I gathered for you. The Infor Global YouTube channel has demo videos, podcasts, customer testimonials, etc.

There are many Infor CloudSuite videos on the Infor Youtube channel that are focused on Infor’s innovative technology. This is one that I especially like called “Introducing Infor Operating Service (OS) Portal”; which is the platform to build AI, RPA, Workspaces, Predictive Analytics, Workflows, APIs and many other technologies to link Infor and non-Infor technologies together.

For example, here is one about the new Generative AI capability – Robotic Process Automation (RPA) in identifying Purchase Invoice Anomalies. This is one of those dirty, repetitive tasks that AI is designed to help with!

CloudSuite Enterprise (aka Infor LN) —

The Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise (LN) homepage represents the Automotive, Aerospace & Defense, and Industrial Enterprise vertical solutions.

PCG Services Website Information —

PCG is the largest Infor CloudSuite LN and SyteLine combined partner and we’re the only Infor Partner to offer implementations and upgrades for both Infor LN and SyteLine. Here is our Infor Services and Solutions page.

On these web pages there are a number of customers of Infor LN and the Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise, but here’s a graphic with the many Infor customers we’ve worked with.

Conclusion —

The Infor CloudSuites are usually an excellent fit for medium-sized manufacturers, typically defined as $100 million to $10 billion…or even larger companies with 10’s of billions in revenue. They are especially appropriate for companies in the vertical industries of Automotive, Aerospace & Defense, Industrial Machinery, Electronics/High Tech, and general discrete manufacturing.

The Infor CloudSuites are an excellent choice for you if you are:

- A medium to large discrete manufacturer in the verticals mentioned above.
- Medium to high-growth business.
- Needing a more flexible ERP solution.
- Needing a more flexible set of industry business models.
- Looking for business process workflow automation.
- Looking for a lower complexity cloud solution that can be implemented as largely standard.
- Currently have an older or end-of-life Infor ERP like Baan IV, Baan 5, Infor LN (any version), or some “compass” solutions like Infor XA or BPICS.
- Currently have end-of-life systems from Microsoft like Dynamics AX or GP as going to Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations or Dynamics 365 Business Central may require a reimplementation.
- Currently have SAP ECC and you’re fearing the significant investment and time required to upgrade to SAP S/4HANA Public or Private Cloud by the stated deadline of the end of 2027.

I hope you liked this article and I invite you to read the others in the series. I welcome your comments and would greatly appreciate a share of this blog on LinkedIn.

If you are interested in evaluating the Infor CloudSuites like Infor CloudSuite LN or Infor CloudSuite CSI/SyteLine in your shortlist, then we can help with that as well. We have done Infor CloudSuite and Infor ERP LN implementations around the world.

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Dan Aldridge

Contact Dan Aldridge.

Work together with PCG for great Infor platform success. Contact us, and let’s get started!

NOTE: All third-party videos, quadrants, content, and links are the property of their respective owners. PCG is not responsible for any third-party content updates or broken links as a result of third-party content change.

Presenting third-party content does not represent an implied or explicit relationship with any third-party content owner.

More Information for You

More Downloadable Resources

Company

Solutions

Augmented Intelligence

BI/Analytics

Cloud Enterprise Platforms

Enterprise Resource Planning

Industry 5.0

Manufacturing Execution Systems

Regulatory Compliance

Services

Business & Technical Advisory

Platform Deployment

Platform & Edge Integration

Platform Optimization

Technical Training

Upgrade Testing & Validation

Validation & Compliance

Support

Platforms

Technology Partnerships

The post What is Infor CloudSuite? appeared first on PCG.

Why PCG Should Be Your NetSuite Consulting Partner

PCG — Mon, 12 May 2025 19:53:22 +0000

Insights Blog

Why PCG Should Be Your NetSuite Consulting Partner

Author: Dan Aldridge — PCG Director of Solutions Marketing

A PCG Overview —

Providence Consulting Group (PCG) is a leading implementer of business predictability through successful business and digital transformations. That means we consistently deliver on the promise of advanced business technology.

With NetSuite, we focus on manufacturing verticals such as Industrial Manufacturing, Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), Food & Beverage, Life Sciences, and many more.

Here is our new logo and completely rebranded website. And, here’s an “explainer video” that does a nice job of summarizing the many services we offer.

With the technical expertise of highly trained NetSuite consultants, project managers, and solution architects, we have tremendous resources and capabilities to care for every aspect of a customer’s technology environment—from the back office, to edge apps, to the shop floor — with everything in the cloud

A NetSuite overview —

NetSuite is the highest-rated Cloud ERP for the Small and Medium Business (SMB) market, as shown in this recent ranking of SMB ERP systems by the prestigious research firm Nucleus Research*.

*Here is the link to get the full report from Nucleus Research.

Beginning in 1998, NetSuite built the first cloud ERP, and they are still the largest Cloud ERP software company, with over 41,000 customers! Now that’s impressive.

If you have NetSuite or you’re considering taking your business onto the NetSuite platform, you’ve made a great choice. The NetSuite technology platform brings best-of-breed functionality with cloud-based flexibility, security, and management.

NetSuite allows you to streamline your business processes with NetSuite’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Cloud platform for:

- Powerful and high-performance financials
- Better procure-to-pay procurement processes
- Improved project portfolio management and more

Our customers leverage the power of NetSuite cloud technology solutions to:

- Increase business and individual productivity
- Lower the cost of business
- Improve controls
- Increase business velocity to meet new demand

To learn much more about NetSuite, the software, try our comprehensive blog article “Why You Need NetSuite in Your Small to Mid-sized Business” on our PCG Insights Blog.

Why you need NetSuite for your SMB —

As the article shows, Oracle NetSuite is an excellent fit for small to medium (SMB) manufacturers, typically defined as $100 million and below. NetSuite is scalable to somewhat larger organizations, though, so we look at this on a case-by-case basis.

NetSuite is an excellent choice if you are:

- An SMB manufacturer in the verticals mentioned above.
- A medium to high-growth business.
- Needing a more flexible ERP solution.
- Needing a more flexible set of industry business models.
- Looking for a lower complexity cloud solution that can be implemented as largely standard.
- Using an older or end-of-life system Oracle EBS, Peoplesoft, JD Edwards or another smaller package in the Oracle stack.
- Using an end-of-life system from Microsoft like Dynamics AX or GP that require a reimplementation to go to Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations or Dynamics 365 Business Central.
- Using a smaller SAP system like SAP Business One or Business By Design which is either out of maintenance or not being developed.

Using Quickbooks Enterprise or a smaller financial system like Zero where you’ve grown to need a full ERP system like NetSuite.

How PCG builds business predictability with NetSuite —

We’ve all heard in the news that business transformations should allow companies to get ahead of, not just keep up with, the competition. Also, there are a lot of supply chain disruptions and unpredictability for small and medium-sized manufacturers and distributors in today’s market.

We address this challenge with our unique approach to “business predictability” that provides the following benefits for NetSuite customers.

- Opportunity – Enhance the ability to innovate and proactively go after opportunities before competitors.
- Capital – Consistently execute projects that stay on time and on budget, allowing capital and resource predictability.
- Performance – Implement business systems, processes, integrations, communication, and workflows that easily keep up with the speed of business.
- Outcomes – Help monetary and resource investments in technology to bring greater ROI, leading to new opportunities and profitability.

Here is the link to our webpage describing what business predictability is (click on graphic or link below):

PCG vs. other NetSuite partners —

There are a number of NetSuite partners in the market. So, what advantages do we offer over our competitors?

- PCG is the most sought-after manufacturing and warehouse distribution systems integrator and consulting partner for Oracle NetSuite.
- PCG is the North American partner that NetSuite brings to the table for SMB manufacturers.
- PCG is the source for SmartFactory (Factory of the Future) solutions to manufacturers worldwide, including a full NetSuite integration on the Cloud.
- PCG is a leading Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0 resource for NetSuite in the market.

PCG’s NetSuite consulting —

PCG and NetSuite form a great team to bring you options like:

- Revenue Management Cloud
- Accounting Hub Reporting Cloud
- Project Financial Management Cloud
- Project Management Cloud
- Procurement Cloud
- Risk management Cloud
- Integrated Cloud

Here is the link for our NetSuite Advisory Services. As the sign says, “We LOVE NetSuite just as much as you do”.

Our NetSuite Advisory Services exactly align your business to the right NetSuite platform that will deliver what you need.

We take the mystery out of learning how NetSuite can meet the exact requirements of your business, so you can learn how each platform and function can benefit your operation.

Here’s a list of some of our NetSuite Advisory services:

- ERP & Platform Selection
- Assessment & Roadmaps
- Business Impact Analysis Studies
- Change Management Strategies
- Solution Architecture Strategies
- Strategies for Existing Solution Migration
- Business and Enterprise Optimization
- Access Management Strategies
- Component Upgrade Strategies
- Data Migration/Restore Strategies
- Ongoing Change Management Strategies
- System Administration and User Management Strategies
- Security Strategies
- Audit & Governance Strategies
- Help Desk/Ticket Strategies

Frequently, we find that companies implementing NetSuite may do it piecemeal, failing to take advantage of every benefit. Most of the time it’s not the softwarethat falls short—it’s because of inadequate change management, testing, or training. We don’t let our customers make that mistake!

PCG makes NetSuite work —

Still, the NetSuite software is only part of the solution your business requires. The more important part is that your NetSuite Consulting Partner has the right experience, skill, product knowledge, and resources that turn NetSuite into the transformation you seek.

PCG brings the industry, business, product, and experience-based knowledge to turn your NetSuite platform into the real, value-added transformation you need. PCG is the “other half” of your digital and business transformation solution. We are the connection between your business and the NetSuite platform.

We offer the following Infor/CloudSuite/Baan Consulting Services:

- Assist with ERP Selection projects
- Infor ERP Implementations of CSI or CSIE
- Infor ERP Upgrades from Syteline to CSI or Baan IV, Baan 5, Infor LN, Infor XA, etc. to CSIE
- Infor LN or Baan Consulting
- Legacy ERP Assessments like Microsoft Dynamics GP, AX, SAP ECC, etc.
- Discuss the CSI and CSIE Roadmaps
- Business Process Management (BPM) through Industry Process Intelligence
- Business Process Mining
- Business Impact Analysis Studies
- Change Management Strategies
- Solution Architecture Strategies (e.g., Infor OS)
- Strategies for Existing Solution Migration and Upgrades from legacy Infor ERPs
- Business and Enterprise Optimization

The PCG HUB video library —

To help our existing NetSuite customers with video tutorials and prospects with doing research into NetSuite, we have started a new PCG HUB” Video Library” project to give back. Here’s an example of a training/demo video like what we will offer. It’s a comprehensive “how-to” on SuiteSuccess Financial Statements and Dashboards in NetSuite.

Although NetSuite isn’t always known as a manufacturing solution, PCG knows how to maximize the production and operational modules as well as Finance. For instance, here’s an example of how to handle make-to-order or make-to-stock production.

To enhance NetSuite’s Production, Warehousing and Quality modules, we have developed the only full-featured SmartFactory Solution in the NetSuite market! It is a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) software solution that is seamlessly integrated with NetSuite Production.

SmartFactory can take a production order from NetSuite, record time against it using scanners or tablets, report completions and rejections, do quality testing, integrate with machine controllers, issue material, and execute many other shop floor functions. Incredible.

Here is an overview of our SmartFactory MES Software that was built for NetSuite using the Tulip platform on the AWS Cloud. It’s a certified SuiteApp and it’s something that extends NetSuite’s native Manufacturing/Production capability. You can’t get this software from NetSuite or any other NetSuite partner! (Viewing tip: Grab a coffee as it’s 9:40…..well worth it)

SmartFactory for NetSuite is so important to us, and we believe to the NetSuite ecosystem, that we created a separate website! https://asmartfactory.com/ .

If you want a FREE subscription to the HUB, or you want to learn about any of the services I’ve described, send me an email using the link below.

Conclusion —

At PCG, we are uniquely equipped – and ready – to be your NetSuite implementation and business transformation partners. We pride ourselves on being a company that brings the “human touch” to all our projects. In other words, we are easy to do business with!

In addition to having a 20+ year history of doing ERP implementations, we’ve developed deep expertise in the whole technology “value stack” and methodologies of our partner NetSuite. With many successes, we have been awarded many times for our performance, as shown here (NetSuite is on the right).

I welcome your comments and would greatly appreciate a share of this blog on LinkedIn. I’m the Director of Marketing for PCG | PREDICTABLE BUSINESS AND DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION working out of our VA USA office. We are one of the most sought-after Oracle NetSuite partners in the North American market.

Explore more on our website or on our YouTube channel

If you are interested in evaluating Oracle NetSuite in your shortlist, then we can help with that. Also, although we are focused on North America, we support international manufacturers and distributors with NetSuite ERP implementations around the world.

A free NetSuite health check? —

Upon request, we are offering a FREE NetSuite “health check” with up to 2 hours of consultation with a PCG team consisting of one of our NetSuite consultants and an experienced solution architect.

If needed, we can sign an NDA leading up to this session where we will focus on “readiness” and “Phase 0” of a potential project.

To get more information about this health check offer, email me using the link below.

///

Dan Aldridge

Contact Dan Aldridge.

Work together with PCG for great NetSuite platform success. Contact us, and let’s get started!

Presenting third-party content does not represent an implied or explicit relationship with any third-party content owner.

More Information for You

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Company

Solutions

Augmented Intelligence

BI/Analytics

Cloud Enterprise Platforms

Enterprise Resource Planning

Industry 5.0

Manufacturing Execution Systems

Regulatory Compliance

Services

Business & Technical Advisory

Platform Deployment

Platform & Edge Integration

Platform Optimization

Technical Training

Upgrade Testing & Validation

Validation & Compliance

Support

Platforms

Technology Partnerships

The post Why PCG Should Be Your NetSuite Consulting Partner appeared first on PCG.

Why PCG Should Be Your Infor Consulting Partner

PCG — Tue, 06 May 2025 22:03:18 +0000

Insights Blog

Why PCG Should Be Your Infor Consulting Partner

Author: Dan Aldridge — PCG Director of Solutions Marketing

A PCG Overview —

PCG is a company built on relationships, partnerships, and 20+ years of experience with business transformations and enterprise resource planning (ERP) projects. We partner with one of the top ERP vendors in the market: Infor Global Solutions or Infor. We have deep expertise in manufacturing verticals such as Industrial Manufacturing, Automotive, Aerospace & Defense (A&D), and Construction & Engineering.

Here is our new logo and completely rebranded website. And, here’s an “explainer video” that does a nice job of summarizing the many services we offer.

With the technical expertise of highly trained consultants, project managers, and solution architects, we have tremendous resources and capabilities to care for every aspect of a customer’s technology environment—from the back office, to edge apps, to the shop floor—with everything in the cloud.

At PCG, we enable your entire business, from supply, through production, to demand fulfillment!

Infor CloudSuite, Infor LN, Infor SyteLine and Baan Consulting —

Dating back to the days when I was at Baan in the mid ‘90s, before ERP was cool you might say, we’ve been providing Baan, Infor LN and now Infor CloudSuite consulting services. As the graphic says, we’ve “Been There Done That” with Infor.

Here is the website link that explains our Infor Advisory Services.

Infor Services and Advisory —

And here’s a video-packed article by yours truly that shows off Gartner’s #1 rated ERP system – Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise (LN)!

What are the Infor CloudSuites? —

One of the videos in the article is this demo of CloudSuite (formerly Infor LN) combined with Configure Price Quote (CPG) for make-to-order manufacturers. Pretty sweet.

Infor is Ideal for SMB to Large Manufacturing Companies —

Infor CloudSuites are an excellent fit for medium to enterprise-sized manufacturers, typically defined as $100 million to $10 billion…or even larger companies with 10s of billions in revenue. They are especially appropriate for companies in the vertical industries of Automotive, Aerospace & Defense, Industrial Machinery, Electronics/High Tech, and general discrete manufacturing.
The Infor Cloudsuites are an excellent choice if you are:

- A medium to a large discrete manufacturer in the verticals mentioned above.
- A low to high-growth business.
- Needing a more flexible ERP solution.
- Needing a more flexible set of industry business models.
- Looking for business process workflow automation.
- Looking for a lower complexity cloud solution that can be implemented as largely standard.
- Using an older or end-of-life Infor ERP like Baan IV, Baan 5, Infor LN (any version), or some “compass” solutions like Infor XA or BPICS.
- Using one of the larger end-of-life systems from Oracle like EBS or v11 or Microsoft like Dynamics AX or GP.
- Struggling with SAP ECC and you’re fearing the significant investment and time required to upgrade to SAP S/4HANA Public or Private Cloud by the stated deadline of the end of 2027.

Infor Deployment Method —

We begin all of our Infor projects with a “phase 0”, also called the Engage phase in the Infor Deployment Method (IDM). During this time on site, we do a readiness assessment of the sites (HQ, plants), timelines, stakeholders, and “as is” processes using our Infor Process Catalogs (IPCs) as a basis.
Here’s a diagram with the phases of the IDM we use for Infor projects. It’s proven itself over 200+ projects.

Business Process Management (BPM) —

Here’s a diagram with the phases of the IDM we use for Infor projects. It’s proven itself over 200+ projects.

We offer the following Infor/CloudSuite/Baan Consulting Services:

- Assist with ERP Selection projects
- Infor ERP Implementations of CSI or CSIE
- Infor ERP Upgrades from Syteline to CSI or Baan IV, Baan 5, Infor LN, Infor XA, etc. to CSIE
- Infor LN or Baan Consulting
- Legacy ERP Assessments like Microsoft Dynamics GP, AX, SAP ECC, etc.
- Discuss the CSI and CSIE Roadmaps
- Business Process Management (BPM) through Industry Process Intelligence
- Business Process Mining
- Business Impact Analysis Studies
- Change Management Strategies
- Solution Architecture Strategies (e.g., Infor OS)
- Strategies for Existing Solution Migration and Upgrades from legacy Infor ERPs
- Business and Enterprise Optimization

PCG is the Only Infor Partner to Offer Both Infor LN and Infor SyteLine —

PCG is pleased to announce that the CloudSuite Industrial (CSI/SyteLine) team from Barry-Wehmiller Design Group has successfully transitioned to become part of the PCG Infor portfolio. This strategic addition to our ERP software portfolio complements our already large practice in CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise (CSIE/LN).

Now we can offer the full spectrum of Infor ERP Solutions for SMBs at $10 Million in revenue to approximately $200 Million with CSI to $200 Million + with CSIE, depending on the industry. CSIE can handle manufacturing companies at the enterprise level with Billions in revenue, so it is a mid-sized to Large Enterprise solution.

Having both solutions greatly strengthens PCG’s position as a premier Infor Partner that can handle small to large manufacturers without bias—so you get the right solution every time!

PCG leads the way with:

- Flagship discrete manufacturing solutions (CSI/SyteLine and CSIE/LN)
- Comprehensive support across Infor’s technology ecosystem, including ERP, BI/Analytics, MES, WMS, CPQ, InforOS, AI, and RPA
- True international support for both LN and Syteline solutions
- Value Engineering and Solution Advisory services to optimize Infor investments
- PCG-built solutions including SmartFactory (MES) and Actualize BI/Analytics across Infor’s flagship discrete and process manufacturing industries
- CloudSuite options tailored to future business needs rather than current or past implementations

Giving Back —

To that end, we have started a new “Video Library” project to give back to the Infor Cloudsuite Industrial Enterprise (LN), Infor LN, and Baan. Here’s an example of a training/demo video that we will offer. It’s a comprehensive “how to” one for using Workspaces and Dashboards with the new, modern user interface. For those of you using old Infor systems like Baan, Infor LN early versions or SyteLine, this will probably blow you away!

We’ll also have many “end-to-end process flow” videos which will go through some of the flows like “sales order to cash” or “procure to pay.”

If you want a free subscription to HUB, which already has over 300 videos, or you want to explore any of the services described, contact me on the link at the end of this article.

Conclusion —

At PCG, we are uniquely equipped – and ready – to be your business transformation partners. We pride ourselves on being a company that brings the “human touch” to all our projects. In other words, we are easy to do business with!

In addition to having a 20+ year history of doing ERP implementations for manufacturers and distributors, we’ve developed deep expertise in the whole Infor technology “value stack” and methodologies.

To learn how we can help you with your Infor CloudSuite LN, CSI or SyteLine project, explore more on this website and on our YouTube channel.

If you are interested in evaluating the Infor CloudSuites in your shortlist, then we can help with that. Although we are focused in North America, we support international manufacturers and distributors with Infor CloudSuite, Infor ERP LN, and Infor CSI implementations around the world.

SPECIAL OFFER: We offer a free Infor systems “health check” with up to 2 hours of consultation with a PCG team consisting of one of our manufacturing industry experts and a solution architect. In this session we focus on “readiness” and “Phase 0” of a potential project.

To set up a session or be in touch, contact me on the link at the end of the article. Thank you!

///

Dan Aldridge

Contact Dan Aldridge.

Work together with PCG for great Infor platform success. Contact us, and let’s get started!

Presenting third-party content does not represent an implied or explicit relationship with any third-party content owner.

More Information for You

More Downloadable Resources

Company

Solutions

Augmented Intelligence

BI/Analytics

Cloud Enterprise Platforms

Enterprise Resource Planning

Industry 5.0

Manufacturing Execution Systems

Regulatory Compliance

Services

Business & Technical Advisory

Platform Deployment

Platform & Edge Integration

Platform Optimization

Technical Training

Upgrade Testing & Validation

Validation & Compliance

Support

Platforms

Technology Partnerships

The post Why PCG Should Be Your Infor Consulting Partner appeared first on PCG.

What is NetSuite ERP?

PCG — Thu, 20 Mar 2025 16:12:45 +0000

Insights Blog

Why you need NetSuite in your Small and Mid-sized Business

Author: Dan Aldridge — PCG Director of Solutions Marketing

Introduction to NetSuite —

NetSuite was the original cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, starting in 1998. On-premise ERP systems like SAP ECC (it was R/3 in those days) and Oracle EBS were based on aging client/server architectures, and they had legacy user experiences, so NetSuite was a breath of fresh air in that respect.

Plus, NetSuite introduced many new concepts like role-based workspaces, dashboards, and “widgets” to the ERP’s graphical user interface (UI). Although these are common in most ERP systems today, NetSuite was the first in the market with them and (my opinion) is still the best.

Here’s a video that shows these features in action. After 25+ years, NetSuite still leads the market in this area. This video is intended for anyone shopping around for an ERP and looking at NetSuite as a potential option. It shows the basic look and feel of NetSuite, as well as some of its key functions and features.

With this beautiful UI, simple navigation, and embedded analytics, it’s no wonder NetSuite is the world’s most popular cloud-based ERP solution with – as of the beginning of 2025 – over 41,000 customers in 219 countries!

When and Why Oracle Bought NetSuite —

On July 28, 2016, Oracle announced its definitive agreement to acquire NetSuite, the first cloud company, for $9.3 billion. The acquisition closed on November 7, 2016. Oracle and NetSuite’s cloud applications were seen as complementary. Essentially, Oracle founder Larry Ellison had bet on NetSuite in the last century, which paid off big – and he wanted it back.

Oracle Fusion Cloud, which is Oracle’s flagship ERP system, is strictly an enterprise-level system for large to very large companies – and it has a price tag to match!

Buying NetSuite gave Oracle the ability to go down-market in the ERP space to compete for smaller and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) where the biggest ERP players are Microsoft Dynamics 365 (e.g., primarily Business Central and a bit of Finance & Operations), Sage, Infor (e.g., Infor CloudSuite), Epicor, and even Intuit QuickBooks (e.g., QuickBooks Enterprise).

For example, here is Nucleus Research’s SMB ERP Value Matrix for 2024 which rates NetSuite a clear #1.

Nucleus Research SMB ERP Value Matrix

Already in the #1 position when it was acquired, NetSuite has benefited mightily from Oracle adding marketing and sales muscle, R&D dollars, better add-on products, and Oracle hosting for the NetSuite multi-tenant cloud. Oracle’s backing has allowed NetSuite to compete more in the enterprise space, although it still shines brightest in the SMB world.

NetSuite ERP Market Positioning —

NetSuite positions itself as the leading cloud-based ERP platform primarily targeting small and mid-sized businesses across various industries. Because NetSuite offers a comprehensive suite of features for financial management, customer relationship management (CRM), inventory control, and more, it is often considered a top choice for businesses transitioning from smaller accounting software like Quickbooks as they scale up.

With strong backing from Oracle’s database and cloud infrastructure, NetSuite is particularly recognized for its robust cloud infrastructure and seamless integration capabilities across different business functions.

NetSuite also competes well in some manufacturing verticals, like pharma and medical devices, where NetSuite capabilities like revenue recognition are especially strong.

Key NetSuite Differentiators —

Cloud-native focus:
NetSuite is marketed as a “born in the cloud” ERP solution, differentiating it from traditional on-premise systems and highlighting its accessibility and flexibility.

Mid-market dominance:
While capable of supporting larger enterprises, NetSuite is generally positioned as the ideal ERP for mid-sized businesses experiencing rapid growth and requiring a unified system to manage operations.

Scalability and customization:
NetSuite emphasizes its ability to scale with a company’s needs and adapt to industry-specific requirements through customizable modules and features.

Integrated suite:
Unlike competitors offering separate modules for different business functions, NetSuite presents a unified platform with integrated CRM, accounting, inventory, and other functionality.

Strong user experience:
NetSuite aims to provide a user-friendly interface and intuitive navigation to facilitate adoption across different departments within a company.

What Can NetSuite Do for You? —

NetSuite provides a comprehensive suite of cloud ERP applications designed to manage business finances, operations, and customer relations. It integrates various functions like ERP, CRM, and e-commerce into a unified platform for streamlined operations.

This video “What is NetSuite? Introduction to NetSuite ERP for Small and Mid-Sized Businesses” by independent analyst Eric Kimberling, CEO of Third Stage Consulting Group, provides an overview of NetSuite ERP and its features.

NetSuite is a full business management software suite that helps companies manage their internal operations and interactions with customers, suppliers, and the supply chain.

NetSuite offers a variety of features, including:

Accounting: Manage accounting (general ledger, accounts payable, etc.), taxes, and generate detailed reports such as financial statements (e.g., balance sheet, P&L and cash flow)
Inventory management: Manage inventory and supply chain including receiving, shipping, cycle counting, transfers, etc.
Customer relationship management (CRM): Manage customer relationships including lead management, opportunities, sales quotations, customer dashboards, customer portals, etc.
E-commerce: Manage e-commerce including online ordering, item/parts masters, inventory checks, pricing, sales quotations, and sales orders
Human resources (HR): Manage HR, including employee management, payroll, time tracking, benefits, and compliance
Project management: Manage projects, including planning, tracking, execution, budgeting, costing, and collaboration
Global management: Manage multiple applications and sites (e.g., plants) across different countries, currencies, languages, and subsidiaries

For a mid-sized company, the fact that NetSuite has a good CRM embedded with the ERP and E-commerce without the need for a third-party application like Shopify or WooCommerce is a big selling point!

How Does NetSuite Work? —

This article by Oracle NetSuite does a great job explaining what NetSuite is and what it offers. For example, it describes how NetSuite ERP improves customer experience and order flow by automatically flowing payment and customer information into the ERP.

Article: “What is NetSuite ERP & How Does It Work” by NetSuite

Here is the “animated explainer” video from the article. Yes – it’s fluffy. Not to worry, though, because I have lots of “real” demo videos later in my article here and coming in another installment of this NetSuite series!

Video: “What is NetSuite ERP & How Does It Work?” Animated Explainer Video from NetSuite

Here’s another article called “What is Oracle NetSuite? Best Guide 2024”, written by a partner called eMerge Technologies. This detailed analysis goes beyond the NetSuite article by breaking down the modules and functionality, as well as explaining the advantages of NetSuite over competing ERPs.

Article: “What is NetSuite? Best Guide 2024” by eMerge Technologies

I liked the “NetSuite Benefits” in the eMerge article, so I paraphrased them in the next section.

NetSuite Benefits

All-in-one solution: NetSuite offers a wide range of business management capabilities in a single system, including accounting, CRM, e-commerce, inventory management, and more. With the browser-based system, you can log in from anywhere and without server maintenance. NetSuite is secure, reliable, and can grow with you.
Scalability: NetSuite can be easily scaled up or down to meet the changing needs of a business, making it a good choice for businesses that experience fluctuations in demand, are experiencing rapid growth, or are growing by acquisition. This is one of the main reasons that Private Equity (PE) firms love implementing NetSuite for firms in their investment portfolios.
Customizable: The platform has many development options and a community of third-party developers that build dozens of “bundles” available for NetSuite users.
Interoperable: NetSuite can connect to most other applications, databases, and public and private APIs.
User-friendly interface: NetSuite has a user-friendly interface that makes it easy for employees to navigate and use the system, reducing the learning curve and improving productivity while increasing user adoption.
Mobile accessibility: NetSuite can be accessed from mobile devices, allowing employees to stay connected and work remotely.
Advanced reporting and analytics: NetSuite provides advanced reporting and analytics capabilities that help businesses track KPIs, identify trends and patterns, and make more informed decisions.
Industry-specific functionality: NetSuite offers industry-specific functionality tailored to the needs of specific sectors, such as retail, manufacturing, and healthcare.
Dashboards: NetSuite’s easy dashboard setup spoils administrators by displaying critical information elegantly and optimally through visual displays.

“Suite” NetSuite Demo Videos —

Here are some popular NetSuite Demo Videos with links and a summary for each.

NetSuite 2024 – Everything You Need to Know

The explanation of the NetSuite concepts is great, and there are nice animations of the forms and some reports. It covers topics such as when to implement NetSuite, dashboards, purchasing and procurement, inventory management, invoicing customers, and reconciliation – all with Mats’ British accent. Nice.

NetSuite 2024 – Everything You Need to Know

I’m showing the full video embed for this video, but I’ve included only the link and the short description for the others to keep it shorter for you “super scrollers” out there (and you know who you are)!

NetSuite for Beginners

This video explains that NetSuite is a type of ERP, and that its main functionality is accounting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKUDBEdSAZc

NetSuite In Action: A Live Demo

This video provides a quick overview of NetSuite, including dashboards, user interface/navigation, and financial reporting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VJS-3mtsXw

Netsuite Overview and Demonstration

This video explains how ERP optimization can help manage business through dashboard views, automation, and real-time information.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZUzM8Jq8sU

NetSuite Manufacturing Walkthrough

NetSuite isn’t always regarded as a full manufacturing package, but it is! Here’s a great demo that shows off the manufacturing side of NetSuite.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2dj9g41qB4

NetSuite Demo Videos: Entire Playlist from NetSuite

There are over 100 demo videos on NetSuite’s YouTube channel, which are quite good and usually short (< 3 minutes).

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdSO4-qAjX-2CgbXFdOanedhCobp1j5Ty

PCG Insights Hub – NetSuite Demo Video Library

We also have over 100 PCG, NetSuite, and SmartFactory for NetSuite demo videos in our new “PCG Insights Hub” which will be launching in early 2025!

Here are some examples of the NetSuite Videos in the Hub.

NetSuite Financial Statements: https://share.vidyard.com/watch/1DU8pHgG4M7WvCqkBz4dnm
NetSuite for Manufacturing Sales Order Entry: https://share.vidyard.com/watch/Sz5yXSPfWznBH8eyui2Lcw?
NetSuite for Manufacturing Make-to-Order Production: https://share.vidyard.com/watch/2oCWnrwjgxposSFwguyp9g?
SmartFactory for NetSuite Manufacturing: https://share.vidyard.com/watch/X2em1ED2RNHNwzqE6okhAY?

In the meantime, if you have any requests for NetSuite demo videos for any module in the solution, you can DM on my LinkedIn profile or send me an email at daldridge@pcgservices.com.

Why PCG Must Be Your NetSuite Consulting Source —

PCG is one of the top Alliance Partners for NetSuite globally. We specialize in NetSuite Finance, Manufacturing, and Distribution. Here is an article that explains how we do business transformations including NetSuite implementations.

Article: “Why PCG Should Be Your Business Transformation and NetSuite ERP Implementation Partner” by the ERP Doctor

We also have built our SmartFactory for NetSuite platform, which is a leading Manufacturing Execution System (MES) that is fully integrated with NetSuite Manufacturing.

Here are some website links to learn more about how we implement NetSuite and SmartFactory:

PCG Website for our NetSuite Advisory and Implementation Services: https://pcgservices.com/business-sustainability-oracle-netsuite_new/
PCG Website for all our Services: https://pcgservices.com/
SmartFactory (MES Solution) Website for NetSuite: https://asmartfactory.com/
SmartFactory Demo Video Library: https://asmartfactory.com/demo-library/

If you’re evaluating cloud ERP systems in 2025, we can help you select and implement your system. We also specialize in business transformations, and we highly recommend migrating your legacy on-premises ERPs to the cloud as part of a transformation project.

We would love to help with your upgrade to NetSuite ERP in 2025. We have some of the best NetSuite consultants in the market on my team at PCG to help you grow your business.

To find out more, DM Dan Aldridge (aka, The ERP Doctor) on LinkedIn or email me at daldridge@pcgservices.com. You can also visit us on our PCG LinkedIn page and “ring the bell”.

Thanks for reading our article.

///

Dan Aldridge

Contributor to WorkTech.

Great NetSuite successes happen with PCG. Contact us, and let’s get started!

Presenting third-party content does not represent an implied or explicit relationship with any third-party content owner.

More Information for You

More Downloadable Resources

Company

Solutions

Augmented Intelligence

BI/Analytics

Cloud Enterprise Platforms

Enterprise Resource Planning

Industry 5.0

Manufacturing Execution Systems

Regulatory Compliance

Services

Business & Technical Advisory

Platform Deployment

Platform & Edge Integration

Platform Optimization

Technical Training

Upgrade Testing & Validation

Validation & Compliance

Support

Platforms

Technology Partnerships

The post What is NetSuite ERP? appeared first on PCG.

Upgrade Your Old ERP System without Dying

PCG — Mon, 24 Feb 2025 16:11:57 +0000

PCG Blog

How to Upgrade Your Old ERP Platform to the Cloud Without Dying

Author: Dan Aldridge — PCG Director of Solutions Marketing

Introduction —

If you have an old ERP system and you’re on the fence about moving to the cloud, you’re caught in a squeeze.

On the one hand, you have legacy server hardware, a relatively large IT staff focused on maintaining old on-prem applications, expensive customizations, and antiquated ERP software that can’t keep up with business demands.

On the other hand, you have your ERP vendor(s) saying you must upgrade your on-prem ERP to the latest cloud platform by a certain date (e.g., SAP ECC to S/4HANA by 2027), and you don’t necessarily want to go. But, if you have an old system, it will eventually be R.I.P. No pressure!

If your company is beyond a certain size, say $100 million in annual revenue and up, you almost certainly have multiple “end-of-life” clunky ERP systems. If you’re a manufacturer or distributor, I’ll bet you’re experiencing the following “near-death” symptoms:

Your users grumble about having to use the antiquated system, such as “old school” screens and too many clicks to get a process done.
You struggle to retain younger workers. What millennial or Gen Z wants to use that ugly monster? They’d rather die!
Older employees are retiring with the “Great Resignation”, taking their experience and “tribal knowledge” with them. Typically, they were the ones running the old ERP systems.
You can’t expand your business as your geezer wheezing system can’t effectively handle multi-site, multi-country, multi-language, etc.
You can’t take advantage of new Industry 4.0 and SmartFactory technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT), and your manufacturing plants remain stuck in the “last century.”
You struggle with not enough “human intelligence”, let alone artificial intelligence.
You’re drowning in old customizations, and most of the time, you don’t even know who wanted them in the first place.
Your user interface (UI/UX) is from 1999 when Prince was singing. Yes, the ‘90s called, and they want their ERP system back!
After COVID, your supply chain is riddled with disruptions, and you can’t get materials in time. Even worse, you can’t see the shocks coming until it’s too late!
You’ve been taken over by a Private Equity (PE) firm or VC, and they are acquiring companies that are bringing in many more old ERP systems. They arrive like zombies (the ERPs, not the PE folks).

Do any of these “pain points” exist at your company? If they do, then the ERP Doctor (yours truly) might have just the remedy to heal you!

In this article, I will explain how my company does business transformation and a cloud ERP upgrade project in general – including the implementation methodology we use. Then, I will explain how you can upgrade your old manufacturing ERP system to one of the market leaders.

ERP software selection and digital transformation firm Panorama Consulting Group coined the phrase “ERP Titans” for the top 4 Tier 1 ERP vendors: Infor, Microsoft, Oracle, and SAP. All of these vendors have thousands of customers (yes, like you) with aging ERP systems stuck on various versions, either on-prem or older “hosted” solutions that are not up to date. Many of these ERP systems are like the “Walking Dead”, either end-of-life (i.e., sunset) or near death!

Some of the Titans are forcing customers to migrate to the latest cloud version in a relatively short time frame, such as the SAP ECC to S/4HANA, by the 2027 mandate, or they will lose support. Because the cloud versions are all new products, though, upgrading to the latest cloud version with the same vendor (e.g., Oracle EBS to Oracle Fusion ERP Cloud) will often be a “reimplementation” anyway. No matter what the vendor or systems integrator (SI) tells you!

Justifying the Move to the Cloud —

The big ERP vendors and SI’s have generally used a carrot and stick approach to get customers to move to the cloud, but it’s been mostly stick and not a lot of carrot. For example, SAP has established several uncomfortably tight deadlines for moving: 1) Upgrade all previous versions of SAP ECC to version EHP 6 by 2025, and 2) Upgrade SAP ECC all versions to S/4HANA by 2027.

Basically, the message is to move to S/4HANA NOW or risk losing your health insurance (maintenance and support)! Maybe a carrot approach would have been better. For example, here are some good reasons why you should move to the cloud courtesy of Oracle NetSuite.

I get it. You have other priorities than a cloud ERP upgrade. But consider this. If any of your old codgers die, as in it shuts down your operations, then you’re in a world of hurt. So, bottom line: you want to root out those geriatrics while you still can!

Who is PCG and How We Upgrade Companies to the Cloud —

Business Transformation is an opportunity to take your business to the next level, and in my opinion, no ERP upgrade to the cloud should be undertaken without a transformation. While a technical migration, sometimes called “lift and shift” or “brownfield”, is possible, to me it’s a wasted opportunity because you’re not reengineering old business processes or cleaning up dirty data.

It’s like changing your surroundings and recreating the same problems in a new environment. Hardly a recipe for a healthy cloud ERP! Instead, I’m a fan of business transformation in a measured or hybrid fashion, sometimes called “bluefield”.

Contrary to popular belief, “reimplementation” is not necessarily a dirty word. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel (ha, see what I did there?). It’s simply taking a fresh look and reimagining a system that could be 5, 10, or even 20 years old. Believe me, you don’t want to recreate the process and system mistakes of the past. Instead, you want to:

Thoroughly assess the readiness of your culture for the project. We have automated tools for this.
Secure executive and key user sponsorship for the project. This is #1 on McKinsey’s list of key success factors for a transformation project.
Develop an organizational change management (OCM) plan and perform the assessments throughout the upgrade project. Many projects fail here because customers devalue this step.
Rethink Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to align with business metrics you want to measure in the future, and then set them up in the new system using Birst Analytics, Microsoft Power BI, or Tableau with our Actualize methodology.
Do a gap analysis against the new system’s functionality. This is designed to identify areas where customizations and integrations will still be needed with the new system. Our experience with 25+ years of ERP consulting is that we can typically eliminate over 50 percent of them!
Use Business Process Management (BPM) to develop “to be” processes in the ERP system itself, rationalize customizations, and produce a “core business model” that will make it much easier to speed up the rollout of the upgrade to new sites.

PCG uses a Cloud ERP upgrade project methodology, which was built using the Infor Deployment Method and enhanced by us with many new templates and best practices. This is described in the following sections.

The Cloud Upgrade Project —

At PCG we’ve made transitioning to the cloud easier than ever with VELOCITY — starting with the Infor Deployment Method and then enhancing many of its templates to make it faster, more accurate, and less expensive for you.

Although VELOCITY was built with Infor CloudSuite and Oracle NetSuite in mind, it works for upgrading your end-of-life or near-death solutions from other ERP vendors! We don’t want any zombies roaming around in your “back office”.

Here’s the graphic explaining VELOCITY. Each phase of the project is explained in the sections below.

The milestones and components on the graphic are pretty self-explanatory, and not all of them are needed in an upgrade project, but I wanted to highlight a few that we believe are most important in upgrade projects vs greenfield (start from scratch) projects. I also identify symptoms of troubled projects and make recommendations to avoid failure (aka, death).

These are the ERP Doctor’s orders, and I’ve got a PhD from the school of hard knocks!

Project Initiation & Planning —

In our methodology, the first phase is called “Engage,” but I often hear it called “Phase 0.” Here, we assess readiness for the upgrade project, including cultural fit and the all-important executive sponsorship.

Not shown in the graphic is the identification of the business metrics that the client wants to measure and the alignment to the Key Performance Indicators that can be set up in the new ERP. Some examples of KPIs are a reduction in inventory value, an increase in inventory turns, and a reduction in Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) in Accounts Receivable.

Here is a description of our patented PCG Actualize module. It has preset KPIs that you can choose from, and you can create as many as you like to fit your business.
Actualize is very versatile because it works with Birst Analytics (Infor), Microsoft Power BI, and Tableau.
Deliverables of this phase:

Strategic Plan
Statement of Work (SOW)
Multi-site deployment plan, including systems to be replaced and locations
High-level enterprise architecture (ERP and edge applications

Inception —

After the SOW is completed and released from Engage, it’s crucial to secure the best people possible on the project team from the customer side (yes, that’s you) to ensure commitment and key stakeholder support for working with the consultants (that’s us) and the consulting firm PM.

The project plan must fit to the SOW, the project team (key users) schedules and the strategic plan. We generally use MS Projects but can use other online tools as well (ask us).

Deliverables of this phase:

Project plan and schedule. This is the detailed plan with the phases and milestones clearly laid out.
Resources and staffing plan. Who are the key stakeholders, key users, and end-users at each plant or location? This helps ensure the best people can be backfilled from their “real jobs.”
Define an Organizational Change Management (OCM) plan. OCM is perhaps the most important step in the People part of the project and perhaps the most frequently undervalued. The readiness for change of the people working on the project and the organization, in general, should be measured at each stage of the project. That’s why the development of OCM is in this Inception phase, and then Performing OCM is listed under every phase after.

Here’s a diagram that shows the major parts and details under each for OCM courtesy of projectplanexcel.net.

Review High-Level Requirements — This is a “50,000-foot” review of the main business processes. It is a survey of the “as is” business processes and the business’s desires/needs that aren’t being met by the current ERPs. This should include a listing of the customizations because many may be eliminated, but some may have to be recreated.
Define Key Business Data Structure — This is an assessment of the data that’s in the old ERP systems plus any production “edge” systems. Before the start of the data conversion, there should be an attempt to clean it up and to normalize bad master data that the transactions will use. For example, there could be duplicate business partners (e.g., customers and suppliers that were entered because of slightly different spellings or addresses that are really the same.

Elaboration —

Review Business Process Models — This is where we use business process management (BPM). It can be aided with Infor Process Catalogs (IPCs) that start at the highest Business Control Model level 1. Some examples are (Sales) Order to Cash or (Purchasing) Procure to Pay. Then we drill down all the way through the levels, using the Dynamic Enterprise Modeler (DEM), to do a complete development of the “to be” business processes.
Develop and Validate Prototype (CRP 1) — The prototype typically involves a day-long conference room pilot (CRP) presentation by the key users to the stakeholders and maybe end users. It uses sample test data from the client’s existing data and the level 3 (main) and level 4 (more detailed) process flows to run through the actual entry of orders and transactions.
Perform Gap Analysis — This is an analysis of “as is” processes, integrations, reports, etc. that are missing from the “to be” core model. If a gap is identified it needs to be not just put on the list, it needs to be followed up on regularly until it’s filled.
Data Migration — Here is a great slide which shows an overview of the proven data migration process that we use at PCG. Essentially, we can take ANY legacy ERP system, including on-prem, old single tenant or hosted cloud ERPs, and convert the data/system to the CE multi-tenant cloud on AWS – in an automated way.

Perform System Testing (CRP 2) — CRP 2 should be done after the initial data conversion with cleaned-up master data has been done. It should be done in the production-configured Company, and the “to be” process flows should be done in the DEM. Sometimes, companies don’t do all the exception processes in CRP 1.
Prepare Documentation and End User Training — Documentation can be a lot of things, including online help, module descriptions, different presentations, and the business model itself. A huge help with documentation is that Infor has put all its documentation online in this amazing resource!

Transition —

Prepare Final Production Environment — This is the final system with all the companies, modules activated, master data, data sharing set up, operating service (OS) installed, workflows defined, business process flows for all processes defined, all applications installed (e.g., Birst Analytics), KPI’s running and approved customizations built. It’s ready for final data conversion.
Train End Users — We generally use a “train the trainer” approach, where the key users train the end-users, but that doesn’t always suffice. If the step of end-user training has been done well, which typically means help from the consultants at that stage, then the end-users should be able to follow the “work instructions.”
Perform User Acceptance Testing (UAT) — We have templates for the UAT scripts (documents) and the UAT list for monitoring how it’s going.
Final Data Conversion — This is the proof the data is solid and that it’s been cleansed of impurities like duplicate records. We recommend migrating only master data, open orders (sales orders, purchase orders, production orders) and open transactions such as open Accounts Payable (AP) and Accounts Receivable.

NOTE: Migrating history weighs down the new system and there tends to be many referential integrity errors caused by dirty data. If you start to use AI, dirty data is also going to cause “hallucinations” and maybe even bad decisions if you allow AI to make decisions in workflows that include it. Scary!

Optimization —

I used to say to clients, “The optimization of your systems is never over.” It’s a continuing, virtuous cycle that leads to efficient processes, happy employees, accurate data as the “source of truth”, and ever-improving business metrics. Basically, your systems can stay healthy and ready to rock!

Conclusion —

If you have old on-premise ERP systems, then you’re already at risk. They may not be dead, but they are dying. Fortunately, the forecast is for a cloudy future – and that’s a good thing! If you follow the ERP Doctor’s guidance that I’ve provided here, then you will be able to upgrade your old ERP system to the cloud – without dying.

Once the system is upgraded, clients can have all the benefits of the multi-tenant cloud, such as:

Automatic upgrades twice a year, including all code fixes and product enhancements
iPaaS to connect the ERP to other systems and ERPs via REST APIs
Low-code/no-code customization development tools
Infor Generative AI
Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
Business process automation of workflows (ION)
Infor Document Management (IDM)
And much more…..

And a bonus: Here are the Doctor’s tips and tricks for keeping your new cloud system healthy:

Continue to practice and monitor OCM even after you are live and during rollouts. It’s like having a therapist do a periodic “check-up from the neck up.”
Keep a “clean core.” Customizations have a way of becoming addictive, like smoking, and they can lead to expensive lung surgery when the system is upgraded automatically and all the customizations have to be retrofitted.
Perform audits of your data frequently and install procedures to keep the data pure. Let’s call this “blood work” where you’re making sure you have a “single source of the truth”. An example is having business partner records entered centrally (i.e., in a shared service center) to make sure you don’t get duplicates. Bad data = bad blood; and bad blood can kill you.
Install a “continuous learning” program and invest in upskilling. Make the older users the teachers and the young ones the “med students”. This will keep both from leaving prematurely and it will keep your system clean and running smoothly.

If you want to speak to me about how PCG can help you upgrade your old ERP systems without dying, contact me on LinkedIn or email me. Visit our website. And yes – we make house calls!!

///

Dan Aldridge

Contributor to WorkTech.

Great cloud transitions happen with PCG. Contact us, and let’s get started!

Presenting third-party content does not represent an implied or explicit relationship with any third-party content owner.

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PCG + NetSuite for Food and Beverage

PCG — Mon, 11 Apr 2022 18:42:46 +0000

PCG Blog

Helping Food and Beverage Manufacturers
Adapt and Grow.

Author: PCG NetSuite Team and Oracle | NetSuite Team

PCG and NetSuite teamed up to highlight industry-leading solutions to accelerate food and beverage manufacturing growth. See how your food and beverage company can do the same.

Four Reasons Food and Beverage Companies are Upgrading to the Cloud—

Supply chain issues, labor shortages, inflation and resource constraints are just some of the top challenges that food and beverage manufacturers are currently facing. As they explore new markets, introduce new products and respond to changing consumer demands, these organizations need robust business systems that help them tackle current problems and plan for the future.

However, many manufacturers rely on legacy systems, spreadsheets and manual processes to run their operations. And even when they discover an application that’s particularly good at managing one aspect of their business (e.g. payroll, inventory management, etc.), that solution often operates  in a silo, outside of the company’s other business systems.

For help resolving these and other technology issues, many food and beverage manufacturers are turning to cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) that incorporates industry-specific capabilities to extend the platform’s native functionalities.

Here are four more reasons why food and beverage manufacturers are upgrading to cloud ERP with the help of Providence Consulting Group (PCG), a NetSuite Alliance Partner:

1. Get to market faster. Food and beverage manufacturing is extremely competitive right now and the company that gets to market fastest often holds the advantage. With the right business systems in place, food and beverage manufacturers can more quickly get products to customers and distributors, improve operational efficiency and better manage their labor.

2. Move past the “disconnected enterprise”. Regardless of their size, all food and beverage companies want to be able to leverage the data that’s captured by their current systems for better decision-making. When they’re running on disparate systems and spreadsheets, unlocking these insights takes extensive manual intervention. With NetSuite and PCG SmartFactory, manufacturers can readily integrate their manufacturing execution systems (MES) and ERP software to eliminate those data silos and make more informed decisions.

3. Managing industry regulations. With an increased focus being placed on quality, compliance and accountability in the food and beverage sector, manufacturers need systems that can track, trace and report on their end-to- end operations. Paper- and spreadsheet-based approaches simply don’t cut it for growing organizations. With NetSuite and SmartFactory, companies have the data they need to adhere to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), SQF (Safe Quality Food) and other mandates.

4. Find and keep talent. With national unemployment hovering at a low 4% and skilled labor becoming more difficult to find and retain, food and beverage manufacturers are increasingly turning to automation for help working through these issues.1 “The more systems and processes that a manufacturer can automate, the better it can create operational reliability that bridges the gap between operations and finance, enabling a holistic view of the enterprise,” said Alan Goeke, VP of Sales at PCG. “This higher level of visibility also drives better collaboration and performance across departments, teams and individual employees.”

What’s Next?

Working with a partner like PCG, who knows NetSuite and food and beverage manufacturing, will speed evaluation, adoption, deployment and optimization of your manufacturing operation.

Consider PCG + NetSuite for your business technology initiatives to help your organization to adopt a new way of thinking, a new way of operating and continue to be an industry leader that expands the gap between you and your competitors.

Contact PCG and let’s get started!

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