Monday, May 13, 2013
ERP Malaysia - A step further
I have been few years not update this blog, mainly because of I am now more focus on web development and SEO services . However, i am still concern on the ERP industry in Malaysia especially one of my best friend - Frank Lee is still in this line. ( For who are interested to explore more about ERP Malaysia , please contact him at http://www.icontro.com/contact_us.shtml )
Last week, I visited one of my friend, who is the CEO of a public listed company that selling biometric products and solutions. Of course, not surprisingly, they have been using ERP for few years. From regular orders to stock checking , from custom made order to floor production, from goods delivery to customer feedback, everything is running smooth.
And of course, they are running the ERP in web-based (Online ERP), which is not really surprising me too because in the Internet Age the "mobility "feature is becoming popular too.
The thing that really surprising me is , the "Knowledge Base" they are trying to build.
What is Knowledge Base ? My friend explain to me :
1) They gradually digitalize all his products user manual, product FAQ , products troubleshooting information in digital format and store in his website. His dealer is assigned a user ID and password to access to the online knowledge base, when he can key-in the question, the system is able to find the best answers for him. For example, If the dealer is looking for "how to unlock the XYZ model " The answer could be in photo + detail text in PDF format, a patch file to download for him to unlock the system , or even a video to show him how to step-by-step to unlock the model.
2) He requests his primary workers to contribute a review on the major technology changes/ trends in the world every month, and put it in the internal newsletter (in email format) and distribute to all employees. For example, A review of comparison of Samsung S3 vs Iphone 5, What is HTML 5 and etc.. The topics could be anythings as long as the workers love it and it is technology related.
3) Web-based R &D . The design of the new models (before prototype come out) is put in web-based, where every member in the designer team is able to view, edit and comment on the design. Every changes of the design is archived, so that the designers know who is making changes.
This not only faster the designing process and sharing the information, but also could be a systematic tutorial and references for the new designer who participate the team in the future.
If you stop here and ask me : "what is the big deal ? just a web-based ERP and some fancy operation works" Well, it means that you cannot get what my friend want , and you don't know what the "knowledge base" means.
Ask yourself, what makes a company long-life and competitive ? the boss's capability ? The superior products ? The united employees ? No, the answer is "Knowledge".
With "knowledge", every employees has a chanced to be trained/educated and then contribute more wisdom, with "knowledge", every new products are the best outcome from the designers, with "knowledge", every dealers, or even the end users are able to find what are the products features, who to contact , and even know how to fix the problems.
So now you know how important to have a "knowledge base" ? :)
Last week, I visited one of my friend, who is the CEO of a public listed company that selling biometric products and solutions. Of course, not surprisingly, they have been using ERP for few years. From regular orders to stock checking , from custom made order to floor production, from goods delivery to customer feedback, everything is running smooth.
And of course, they are running the ERP in web-based (Online ERP), which is not really surprising me too because in the Internet Age the "mobility "feature is becoming popular too.
The thing that really surprising me is , the "Knowledge Base" they are trying to build.
What is Knowledge Base ? My friend explain to me :
1) They gradually digitalize all his products user manual, product FAQ , products troubleshooting information in digital format and store in his website. His dealer is assigned a user ID and password to access to the online knowledge base, when he can key-in the question, the system is able to find the best answers for him. For example, If the dealer is looking for "how to unlock the XYZ model " The answer could be in photo + detail text in PDF format, a patch file to download for him to unlock the system , or even a video to show him how to step-by-step to unlock the model.
2) He requests his primary workers to contribute a review on the major technology changes/ trends in the world every month, and put it in the internal newsletter (in email format) and distribute to all employees. For example, A review of comparison of Samsung S3 vs Iphone 5, What is HTML 5 and etc.. The topics could be anythings as long as the workers love it and it is technology related.
3) Web-based R &D . The design of the new models (before prototype come out) is put in web-based, where every member in the designer team is able to view, edit and comment on the design. Every changes of the design is archived, so that the designers know who is making changes.
This not only faster the designing process and sharing the information, but also could be a systematic tutorial and references for the new designer who participate the team in the future.
If you stop here and ask me : "what is the big deal ? just a web-based ERP and some fancy operation works" Well, it means that you cannot get what my friend want , and you don't know what the "knowledge base" means.
Ask yourself, what makes a company long-life and competitive ? the boss's capability ? The superior products ? The united employees ? No, the answer is "Knowledge".
With "knowledge", every employees has a chanced to be trained/educated and then contribute more wisdom, with "knowledge", every new products are the best outcome from the designers, with "knowledge", every dealers, or even the end users are able to find what are the products features, who to contact , and even know how to fix the problems.
So now you know how important to have a "knowledge base" ? :)
