All posts by Nurul Hidayah

A post-pandemic world thrown into further disarray by geopolitical uncertainties has combined to create a perfect storm of challenges for chief financial officers (CFOs). AI and Blockchain has become a game changer for the CFOs to manage their businesses.

CFOs have had to play the cards they’ve been dealt, pulling financial and operational levers like never before to ensure their organisations survive and thrive.

However, the emergence of technologies such as blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI) serve as new artillery for businesses to equip themselves and help CFOs focus on mission-critical tasks.

Below, we give a brief introduction to what artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain are, how they accentuate the features of cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and the changes these will bring to the role of CFOs.

The Emergence of Blockchain Technologies and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

What are AI and Blockchain?

AI refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines, enabling them to perform tasks that would otherwise require human intelligence, such as learning, problem-solving, and decision-making. AI encompasses a range of technologies that include machine learning, natural language processing, and computer vision.

Blockchain is a decentralised and secure digital ledger technology that records transactions across a network of computers. It ensures transparency and immutability by storing data in blocks linked together, making it resistant to tempering. This technology has applications in finance and accounting process management, supply chain management, and a variety of other fields.

How AI and Blockchain Can Help Your Finance and Accounting Process Management

Through AI, you will be able to spot patterns and anomalies and derive insights that can improve decision-making. AI brings the capability to analyse large volumes of financial data and can also help automate tedious, manually managed finance processes such as invoicing, expense report auditing, and revenue forecasting.

Blockchain technology enhances financial processes by offering a transparent, decentralised record-keeping system that accelerates transaction validation, eliminates reconciliation, and reduces settlement times, leading to improved customer satisfaction and reduced capital requirements.

AI-Powered ERP vs Traditional ERP

An AI-powered cloud ERP system such as Oracle NetSuite incorporates predictive analytics and machine learning to uncover insights from financial data. This enables continuous monitoring of KPIs and adaptive forecasting capabilities beyond traditional ERP.

Traditional ERPs lack predictive abilities and rely on static reporting, limiting the analytical insights finance teams can derive from data.

Blockchain-Powered ERP vs. Traditional ERP

A blockchain-powered cloud ERP system establishes a shared ledger across parties, enabling transparent and validated transitions without the need for reconciliation. An industry-leading cloud ERP system such as Oracle NetSuite incorporates blockchain to settle transactions faster and reduce capital needs. 

On the other hand, the widely available, non-true-cloud, traditional ERP systems rely on a centralised database and batched processing, lacking the transaction visibility that blockchain provides between trading partners.

Blockchain also inherently incorporates cryptographic hashing, which is automatically integrated and is the feature responsible for the immutability of the blockchain ledger. 

How CFOs Benefit from AI-Powered and Blockchain-Powered Cloud ERP Systems

Continuous Closing

Thanks to cloud ERP systems, the monthly financial close is now a continuous process with real-time visibility into financial data. This allows CFOs to spot issues quickly and correct them immediately. Automated revenue recognition also simplifies compliance.

Harnessing AI

Artificial intelligence and machine learning will provide CFOs with enhanced data analysis capabilities to spot patterns and derive insights. Cloud ERP systems are starting to incorporate these technologies to recommend actions based on financial data.

Leveraging Blockchain

Blockchain offers simplified transaction validation between parties and can eliminate reconciliations. It provides a single source of truth for accounting data. CFOs can leverage blockchain to settle transactions faster and reduce capital needs.

In a NutSell

Groundbreaking technologies like AI and blockchain enhance productivity, produce critical insights, and automate tedious manual tasks while ensuring security, transparency, and efficiency. Threats from data tampering, fraud, and cyberattacks can be negated using these technologies. 

A cloud ERP system like Oracle NetSuite offers flexibility and scalability that empower CFOs to manage evolving business demands and reduce errors with the help of AI-driven insights. 

Moreover, Oracle NetSuite’s commitment to governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) ensures audit-ready financial solutions, fostering transparency while adhering to regulatory requirements. For fast-growing businesses expanding to external markets, Oracle NetSuite facilitates the management of multi-currency and multilingual operations, ensuring efficient subsidiary growth.

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) initiatives have become essential for companies looking to thrive in a socially conscious and environmentally responsible world. ESG considerations are no longer just about meeting regulatory requirements; they are increasingly seen as a source of competitive advantage, risk mitigation, and long-term sustainability.

Cloud solutions like an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system can help businesses navigate the complex realm of ESG, providing the tools needed to excel in these areas and drive sustainable growth.

Understanding ESG

ESG is a framework that assesses a company’s performance in three key areas:

Environmental 

This dimension evaluates a company’s impact on the environment, including its carbon footprint, resource consumption, and efforts to mitigate environmental risks.

Social

The social aspect looks at how a company manages relationships with its employees, customers, suppliers, and the communities it operates in. This includes diversity and inclusion, labour practices, and community engagement.

Governance 

Governance measures the company’s leadership, ethics, and transparency. It encompasses corporate governance practices, executive compensation, and adherence to ethical standards.

ESG Benefits for Businesses

Investing in ESG initiatives brings several benefits to businesses:

Enhanced Reputation

Companies with strong ESG practices are often viewed more favourably by customers, investors, and the public, which can enhance their brand reputation.

Reduced Risk

ESG-focused companies are better equipped to identify and mitigate potential risks, such as regulatory fines, supply chain disruptions, and reputational damage.

Attracting Investment

ESG-conscious investors are increasingly seeking opportunities to invest in companies committed to sustainability, potentially lowering the cost of capital.

Long-term Sustainability

ESG initiatives can drive long-term business sustainability by fostering innovation, reducing operational costs, and creating a positive corporate culture.

Leveraging a Cloud ERP System Like Oracle NetSuite to Propel ESG Efforts

Oracle NetSuite is a robust ERP system that can support businesses in their ESG journey through various means:

Data Management

Oracle NetSuite helps collect, manage, and analyse data related to ESG metrics. This enables businesses to track and report on their environmental impact, social responsibility efforts, and governance practices accurately.

Supply Chain Visibility

The system offers real-time visibility into supply chain operations, helping companies identify areas for improvement in sustainability, such as reducing waste, optimising logistics, and sourcing ethically.

Financial Efficiency

Oracle NetSuite streamlines financial processes, allowing businesses to allocate resources efficiently to support ESG initiatives and make data-driven decisions that minimise costs.

Compliance and Reporting

Oracle NetSuite’s reporting capabilities enable businesses to comply with ESG reporting standards and regulations while ensuring transparency and accuracy in disclosures.

Risk Mitigation 

By providing real-time data and analytics, Oracle NetSuite helps companies identify and mitigate ESG-related risks, protecting both their reputation and financial stability.

In a Nutshell

Incorporating ESG principles into your business strategy is no longer optional; it’s a necessity for long-term success.  Oracle NetSuite serves as a valuable tool for businesses looking to excel in their ESG initiatives. 

By efficiently managing data, optimising operations, and fostering transparency, Oracle NetSuite empowers organisations to build a sustainable and socially responsible future while reaping the benefits of enhanced reputation, reduced risk, and increased investment opportunities. 

Vietnam is the second-largest pharmaceutical market in Southeast Asia, and Vimedimex is one of the largest players in the nation. Founded in 1984, Vimedimex has grown from strength to strength as a pharmaceutical drug maker, wholesale distributor and medical supplier in Vietnam, with an annual turnover of US$800 million.

Vimedimex’s wholesale and medical supplying arm serves 80,000 pharmacies scattered across 700 cities and 63 provinces in Vietnam, serving 10,000 communes and wards. To meet the increasing market demands of its customers, Vimedimex needed a system that would adhere to high industry standards for the traceability and storage of drugs during distribution.

Vimedimex also needed a solution that would deliver real-time data regarding its pharmaceutical products’ transport and storage conditions. Vimedimex needed a solution with a robust application programming interface (API) that would enable it to integrate with devices and smart sensors, in addition to being able to analyse and give immediate warnings to manage drug quality well. In short, Bravo, the solution that it was using before was just not able to scale to accommodate the growth Vimedimex was experiencing. 

With technology innovation, digital technology application, and customer experience at the heart of its digital transformation initiative, Vimedimex chose the Oracle NetSuite cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and worked with SuiteCloud Vietnam (PointStar Consulting Vietnam) as its implementation consultant.

Vimedimex’s commitment towards digitalising its business and priming itself for growth was underlined by its decision to bring its entire operations under Oracle NetSuite through the implementation of a comprehensive set of modules that included order-to-cash, procure-to-pay, financial management, warehouse management, fixed asset management, multi-company management, and business analytics.

The proof is in the pudding, and for Vimedimex, the sheer numbers illustrate the success of its large-scale implementation of Oracle NetSuite. It has experienced a 99% reduction in human errors from manual entry of data while achieving 100% accuracy in inventory and real-time data. There has been a 30% reduction in inventory turnover time and a staggering 95% reduction in accounting errors. 

Other observations represented by huge numbers since Vimedimex implemented Oracle NetSuite include a 65% reduction in the financial close time, a 52% reduction in goods returned, an 89% reduction in time spent preparing management reports, and a 60% time reduction for sales order processing.

Oracle NetSuite has helped Vimedimex with a multi-channel customer information management system, in addition to providing integration for its transport management system, electronic invoice system, and with Salesforce. Oracle NetSuite has also helped integrate Vimedimex’s e-commerce platform, CEVPharma.

The success of a digital transformation project, such as the implementation of Oracle NetSuite is also highly contingent on the consultants or vendors that a business chooses to work with. Vimedimex has been richly rewarded for its decision to work with a leading regional financial digital transformation consultancy such as SuiteCloud Vietnam (PointStar Consulting Vietnam).

“Partnering with SuiteCloud (PointStar Vietnam) was a key factor in the successful implementation of automation initiatives at Vimedimex, while Oracle NetSuite has helped us automate labour-intensive, manual tasks and helped streamline our business processes, reduce costs, and improve our bottom line,” says Le Xuan Tung, General Director, of Vimedimex. The company has also revealed plans to implement Oracle NetSuite in its factory by the end of this year.

Extraordinary macroeconomic transformations have introduced novel risks to the business landscape. As a response to the situation, finance teams must improve their risk assessment and risk management practices by capitalising on data from all areas of the company and involve data from beyond the business in risk management.

By combining internal and external data sources, your business can effectively reduce blind spots and minimise uncertainties. This enhanced visibility will provide a solid foundation for making informed and strategic decisions. While the integration of external data sources will offer valuable insights into the conditions of partners, suppliers, competitors, customers, and other market dynamics.

Now is the time to refine your risk management process, leveraging the power of data consolidation and the integration of external data sources. By doing so, your business can mitigate blind spots, supercharge decision-making, and position itself to sustainable growth and success in the current business landscape.

Optimising Risk Management Efforts Through the Adoption of a Cloud Data Warehouse

In today’s business landscape, recognising the value of utilising both internal and external data for decision-making is crucial. However, transforming this recognition into a reality can be challenging. Many businesses have data scattered across various systems that lack connectivity, such as ERPs, ecommerce platforms, project management systems, and spreadsheets. Moreover, even when these systems are connected, it is often not specifically for risk management purposes.

To address these challenges, CFOs are taking on the role of technology champions and collaborating with the rest of the C-suite. Among the arsenal of tools at their disposal, a cloud data warehouse is one of them.

A cloud data warehouse serves as a central repository that consolidates data from different areas of the business. It goes beyond internal data by incorporating external data sources, and it can also preserve data from legacy systems, giving businesses the flexibility to retire them when needed. By integrating data from multiple systems, such as financial, operational, and customer data, risk managers gain a comprehensive view of the companies’ risk landscape. This integrated data approach enables better risk identification, assessment, and monitoring.

By adopting a cloud data warehouse, businesses can optimise their risk management efforts and proactively identify, assess, and mitigate risks, which ultimately enhances their ability to navigate the ever-changing business landscape with confidence.

The Role of Cloud Data Warehouse in Mitigating Business Risks

Role #1: Overcoming Cost Challenges from Disconnected Subsidiaries

Disconnected subsidiaries can pose a significant risk to business operations, especially when it comes to managing costs effectively. In many cases, organisations struggle to obtain a comprehensive view of financial performance across subsidiaries, leading to inefficient and manual processes for data aggregation and analysis. This lack of visibility hampers decision-making and planning efforts, while also incurring substantial costs to maintain disparate systems.

However, by leveraging the role of a cloud data warehouse, businesses can mitigate this risk and achieve better cost control. For instance, once there was a manufacturer that faced similar challenges with 15 independently operating subsidiaries. To address the issue, they consolidated their data in Oracle NetSuite Analytics Warehouse, eliminating the need for manual data manipulation in spreadsheets and BI tools.

This consolidation enabled the manufacturer to gain a holistic view of financial and operational performance across subsidiaries, providing valuable insights for planning and decision-making. Moreover, by sunsetting their old infrastructure and relying on the cloud data warehouse, they significantly reduced costs by 66%. The entire team now had access to visualisations of each subsidiary’s financial and operational performance, enabling them to identify cost-saving opportunities and streamline their overall financial management.

Role #2: Improving Sales Performance through Enhanced Channel Visibility

Achieving sales targets is a critical objective for businesses, but inadequate visibility into sales channels can significantly hinder this goal. In one case, an accessories retailer faced challenges in forecasting sales across multiple channels. Their existing business intelligence (BI) tool struggled to aggregate and analyse data from various sources such as multiple Shopify instances, Google Analytics, Google Ads, and more.

To overcome this challenge and mitigate the risk of missed sales targets, the retailer transitioned to Oracle NetSuite Analytics Warehouse, which proved instrumental in improving their channel visibility. With the cloud data warehouse, they gained the capability to effortlessly integrate and analyse data from each of these diverse sources. 

By leveraging a cloud data warehouse solution like Oracle NetSuite Analytics Warehouse, businesses can seamlessly integrate data from multiple sources, apply advanced analytics capabilities, and enhance their forecasting accuracy. The result is improved visibility into sales channels, optimised inventory management, and increased sales performance, ultimately mitigating the risk of falling short of sales targets.

Role #3 Enhancing Customer Satisfaction by Streamlining Inventory Visibility

In today’s fast-paced business environment, the accuracy and timeliness of inventory data are crucial to meet customer demands. However, relying on outdated inventory data poses a significant risk for businesses. One example comes from Oracle NetSuite’s customer, a drinkware wholesaler, that struggled to respond effectively to changes in customer demand due to manual processes. Their team would manually export data from their ERP and ecommerce systems into spreadsheets to track inventory levels, leading to delays and the use of stale data. Recognising the potential impact on customer satisfaction and retention, the wholesaler sought a solution.

By leveraging the power of Oracle NetSuite Analytics Warehouse, the wholesaler overcame the challenges associated with outdated inventory data. The cloud data warehouse enabled the integration of data from the ERP system with Google Analytics, providing a comprehensive view of inventory activity. With the solution’s automated capabilities, the wholesaler now receives daily inventory scorecards and SKU-level forecasts. This empowers the team to anticipate and respond to customer demand more effectively, resulting in improved customer retention, cost reduction, and the ability to seize opportunities in a rapidly changing market.

By replacing manual processes and spreadsheets with a cloud data warehouse like Oracle NetSuite Analytics Warehouse, businesses can blend data from different sources, automate reporting and forecasting, and gain real-time insights into inventory levels.

Final Thoughts

In a highly volatile environment where business success is largely driven by cutting-edge technology, the ability to make the most out of available data makes a huge difference.

Data from disparate sources that are not integrated can be rendered useless. Finding robust analytical solutions to make the most out of your data is critical.

Even more critical is your choice when choosing which cloud solutions provider to work with. While working directly with a solutions provider has its allure, it is worth noting that a solutions partner like PointStar Consulting provides a comprehensive suite of solutions that cater to your business needs. Solutions providers like PointStar Consulting have the technical expertise, regional presence, and a keen understanding of different business pain points to offer organisations a highly customised suite of solutions addressing each business’s needs.

As the business landscape becomes increasingly complex, cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are no longer a luxury but a necessity for companies looking to stay competitive. 

Today’s cloud ERP systems are advanced software solutions that are designed to integrate and automate essential financial and operational functions within a company. They provide a centralised database that allows for easy access to critical business data, including general ledger (GL), accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, and financial reporting.

Modern cloud ERP systems go beyond just financial management. They also provide functionality for inventory management, order management, and supply chain management, as well as procurement, production, distribution, and fulfilment. This allows businesses to manage their operations more effectively and efficiently.

In order to fully leverage the power of cloud ERP systems, companies should have a good understanding of the 12 core cloud ERP features. 

1. Integration 

Integration is a critical component of a cloud ERP system. The primary benefit of cloud ERP is its ability to integrate different solutions in your organisation to provide you with a centralised view of essential financial, operational, and business data in near-real-time. By integrating different data, cloud ERP systems eliminate data silos and provide a single source of truth for the organisation. It will ensure that everyone has access to the same up-to-date information and share the data accurately and efficiently across the company.

2. Automation 

Cloud ERP systems provide companies with the ability to automate repetitive business tasks, such as: payroll, order processing, invoicing, reporting, and more. By automating these tasks, cloud ERP systems can minimise the time spent on manual data entry, reduce errors, and enable employees to focus on more value-added tasks.

Cloud ERP systems also provide the ability to automate complex workflows, which can involve multiple departments and processes. For example, an inventory tracking module could automatically trigger a shipment and invoice when a certain SKU becomes available. This not only reduces the time required to complete the task but also ensures that all departments are working together and sharing the same data.

3. Data Analysis

Cloud ERP systems collect and store vast amounts of data from various functions, such as finance, procurement, inventory, sales, and marketing. This data can be used to generate meaningful insights that can help businesses make better decisions and improve their operations.

According to Brainyard’s Winter 2020 survey, CFOs and business leaders have long recognised the power of data analysis, as it enables them to identify new business opportunities, optimise current operations, reduce costs, detect fraudulent activities, and improve customer satisfaction. With cloud ERP systems, data analysis can be performed in real-time, enabling businesses to stay on top of trends and respond quickly to changing market conditions.

4. Reporting

Reporting is another important role of cloud ERP systems. Cloud ERP systems provide businesses with a wealth of data from various sources, and reporting tools allow businesses to turn that data into actionable insights. Reports generated by the cloud ERP system can help businesses identify problem areas before they become major issues. It can also help businesses optimise their processes and identify opportunities for improvement.

With better reporting capabilities, executives and managers can make more informed decisions based on the data presented in the reports. The ability to quickly generate reports also means that information is more readily available and can be acted upon in a timely manner.

5. Tracking and Visibility

Tracking and visibility are key features of cloud ERP platforms that enable companies to monitor, analyse, and optimise their business operations.

Tracking refers to the ability to monitor and record various aspects of business operations, such as sales orders, purchase orders, inventory levels, production schedules, and delivery timelines. By tracking these metrics in real-time, companies can quickly identify potential issues and take corrective actions to minimise any disruptions to their operations. This also enables companies to make informed decisions based on accurate and up-to-date data, which can ultimately lead to improved efficiency, reduced costs, and increased profitability.

Visibility, on the other hand, refers to the ability to surface and understand business metrics by providing real-time access to data across the organisation. By breaking down information silos and offering reporting and analysis for every aspect of business operations, cloud ERP platforms enable companies to gain a holistic view of their business performance. This allows them to identify trends, patterns, and opportunities for improvement, which can be leveraged to optimise operations and increase revenue.

6. Accounting

Accounting is a critical component of a cloud ERP system that enables organisations to track, store, and analyse financial data. Cloud ERP accounting features typically include capabilities such as accounts payable (AP), accounts receivable (AR), general ledger (GL), budgets, and forecasting. Additionally, many cloud ERP systems may offer more advanced features such as tax management, fixed assets management, revenue recognition, and multi-currency reconciliation.

One of the key benefits of cloud ERP accounting functionality is the ability to decrease the time it takes to reconcile and close monthly financial statements. Month-end closes can be a time-consuming process that involves reconciling various accounts, reviewing transactions, and generating financial statements. Cloud ERP accounting features can help automate and streamline many of these tasks, reducing the time and effort required to complete them.

7. Financial Management

Cloud ERP systems play a significant role in financial management by providing a centralised platform for tracking and managing financial data across a company. As financial management is a critical task for businesses that involves planning, organising, and utilising funds to achieve the company’s objectives, a cloud ERP system can assist finance teams in managing these complex tasks.

8. Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) refers to the strategies, processes, and technologies that companies use to manage and analyse customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle. Integrated CRM features in a cloud ERP system allow organisations to incorporate customer relationship data into their operations, expanding their business view and enhancing customer service.

9. Sales and Marketing

Cloud ERP systems with integrated CRM features can help organisations improve their sales and marketing efforts by providing better insights, automating processes, and enhancing collaboration between teams. With integrated CRM features, cloud ERP systems can provide real-time insights into sales trends, customer behaviour, and also can provide a more personalised and tailored experience to customers. This can lead to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty, as well as increased sales revenue.

10. Human Resource (HR)

The Human Resources (HR) component of a cloud ERP system is designed to manage all aspects of employee management, from recruitment and hiring to payroll and benefits administration. With an integrated HR module, organisations can streamline their HR processes and reduce manual workloads. Therefore, automating HR processes with a cloud ERP system can save time, and reduce the risk of costly errors. This frees up HR staff to focus on more strategic tasks, and help companies to improve the employee experience.

11. Supply Chain Management (SCM)

Supply Chain Management (SCM) refers to the planning and management of all activities involved in the production and distribution of a product or service. A cloud ERP system with SCM functionality enables businesses to streamline and optimise their supply chain operations by tracking and analysing data related to demand, inventory, manufacturing processes, logistics, and distribution.

12. Manufacturing

Cloud ERP systems have long played an important role in manufacturing, providing businesses with a centralised platform to manage various aspects of their production processes. With cloud ERP, manufacturers can streamline product planning, monitor production, and forecast demand. The system can also assist with sourcing raw materials and managing the assembly process.

Maximising Efficiency and Growth with Oracle NetSuite Cloud ERP’s All-In-One Platform

Oracle NetSuite is a cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system that brings together multiple business functions in one unified platform. This cloud-based software is designed for enterprises across various industries. It offers real-time insights, streamlined customer service, and reduced supply chain costs through the integration and automation of essential financial and operational functions. These functions include inventory management, order and supply chain management, procurement, production, distribution, and fulfilment.

With Oracle NetSuite cloud ERP, businesses can benefit from a centralised platform that eliminates data silos, reduces manual errors, and enhances overall efficiency. The system allows for greater visibility and control over all aspects of the business, from finance to HR to sales and marketing. This integration helps businesses make better-informed decisions by providing real-time data insights and reports.

The direct vs partner riddle is one that most companies encounter when implementing a cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

At the outset, the choice may seem simple. Why work with a partner like PointStar Consulting when a solutions provider, like Oracle NetSuite, is the maker of the software, right? Well, not that simple.

Businesses in the digital age operate using a variety of best-in-class solutions to address the different pain points they face. Meanwhile, direct sellers may not often offer solutions for all your pain points, beyond their realm of speciality.

In an age where high-growth businesses have stacks of solutions to fuel their operations, there is no single “silver-bullet” solution that can resolve the different challenges businesses face. This is when the variety of specialised solutions and services offered by a partner like PointStar Consulting shines through.

1. Financial Digital Transformation Consultancy

Oracle NetSuite provides you with the world’s No. 1 cloud ERP system to manage critical financial processes such as financial planning and budgeting. Oracle NetSuite has been the flag bearer when it comes to financial processes management. It operates fully on the cloud, offers a robust financial management solution for high volumes of transactions, and automates tedious processes.

Meanwhile, PointStar Consulting provides businesses on a high-growth trajectory with a comprehensive suite of specialised financial cloud solutions that complement Oracle NetSuite. These include solutions such as BlackLine that help accommodate high-value, high-volume transactions by automating bank reconciliations and accelerating the financial close process. 

PointStar Consulting also has strong partnerships with a variety of cloud solutions providers that specialise in other accounting and financial processes management, such as PyanGo, which provides automated budgetary control for users of the Oracle NetSuite cloud ERP system, and Netgain, which is a built-for-Oracle Netsuite native regulatory compliance software that helps companies, especially those in the leasing business to adhere to standards such as IFRS 16, ASC 842, and GASB 87.

2. Presence cutting across different countries and regions

One of the primary benefits of working with a partner is that they have a presence in the region that you are based in, if not the country. PointStar Consulting, for instance, has a presence in Singapore, where it is headquartered, but also in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, South Korea, China, and Taiwan. While the direct software maker may be available in many regions, partners still carry out the implementation. The competence, experience, and reputation of the partner implementing the Oracle NetSuite cloud ERP system is extremely important as it is a complex and costly undertaking with far-reaching benefits.

The key takeaway here is that when you engage in the services of a stellar local partner, you often experience the intimacy of being served by a team of consultants whom you can always rely on when you need help. Partners like PointStar Consulting also have extensive experience and regional understanding that is decisive as they understand the problems that businesses face that may be unique to the region or country that they are operating in.

3. Comprehensive Set of Solutions Bundled Together to Address Your Different Pain Points

When working directly with a software developer, you will quickly realise that their expertise, while impressive, is limited to the products that they sell. Whereas, for a partner like PointStar Consulting – with 14 years of experience in various countries – the breadth and depth of solutions offered are wide and deep.  

PointStar Consulting offers a variety of cloud systems that, when bundled together, offer you a comprehensive solution to address your different pain points. Our partnership with Workato enables businesses to integrate their stack and unleash automation at scale. Workato’s low-code, no-code platform enables businesses to integrate the different solutions critical to the operations of their business with very little technical expertise required. 

Meanwhile, our partnership with BlackLine helps us deliver a cloud accounting solution that builds on Oracle NetSuite’s robust financial features to automate reconciliations and significantly reduce financial close time.

4. Extensive Experience

The experience of serving customers in Asia for over 14 years has also allowed PointStar Consulting to develop a keen understanding of the common business challenges in the region, and the shortcomings and strengths of different systems. This allows PointStar Consulting to seek partners whose solutions complement Oracle NetSuite and identify gaps to offer a comprehensive solution that addresses a company’s different pain points. 

While it continues to provide stellar services to its Oracle NetSuite customers as evidenced through its dedicated customer success division, PointStar Consulting has also solidified its position as the one-stop consultancy that businesses go to when they undertake their financial digital transformation. 

Our presence at the local level also allows us to hire highly skilled locally-based consultants, who understand your unique needs.

For all their use of modern technology to deliver ease of use to consumers, many fintech businesses still find themselves manually managing their back office processes. These processes are riddled with human errors and data duplications. 

The cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is one that is at the forefront of technologies that are helping businesses automate manual processes and introduce operational efficiencies.

Automation of key financial processes – The manual management of data through spreadsheets result in human errors and data duplication. Mistakes like this can delay financial close time, and affect the financial standing of fintechs, in addition to resulting in costly fines by regulatory authorities. This puts the onus on fintechs to equip themselves with the best that cloud technology has to offer. 

Cloud ERP systems help businesses automate key processes such as bank reconciliations, helping fintechs accelerate their close times. Endeavours such initial public offering (IPO) require businesses to rigorously report their finances. Cloud ERPs deliver robust financial reporting functionalities that ensure fintechs are well prepared for an IPO.

Multi-company Financial Consolidation – Fintechs need cloud solutions that can help deliver a consolidated and global view of all their businesses and subsidiaries in different countries. Cloud ERP systems are equipped with global financial management tools that deliver visibility, and are also preconfigured to cater to different currencies, and languages.

Hardly a day goes by without regulatory authorities mulling the imposition of new regulations on fintech businesses. Cloud ERP systems are also preconfigured to enable financial reporting according to global regulatory requirements, ensuring fintechs seamlessly manage their finance on one platform serving as a single source of truth.

Scalability – Fintech businesses operate in an industry that is presently primed for growth. Unfortunately, legacy systems and other small scale solutions do not have the ability to accomodate the often meteoric growth prospects of fintech.

Fintechs will quickly realise that a system that is built to handle 50 users may never be able to handle 500 users. Cloud ERP systems, due to the virtue of their architecture, cloud ERP systems allow fintechs to scale in parallel to their growth. You can often add users and customise the system in line with the growth of your business.

360-degree, real-time visibility – The financial markets that fintech businesses operate in can often be highly disruptive and volatile. The suite of different, best-in-class solutions that fintechs use can sometimes resemble a mountainous stack. Oftentimes these systems are not integrated, do not talk to each other, and end up in silos, greatly diminishing the value of data.

Cloud ERP systems offer robust integration functionalities that can help the different solutions that fintech businesses use, giving business owners a 360-degree, real-time view of their business processes and customers. This can significantly aid fintech businesses in unlocking key insights that can fuel their growth.

When facing mounting challenges posed by an increasingly disruptive marketplace, and also a volatile global business environment, there is little time to stop and think of ways to resolve problems, or innovate.

Cloud solutions such as an ERP system are equipped with robust forecasting tools that enable businesses to plan for their future. A cloud ERP solution also unifies data and provides fintechs with key insights for business growth. The real-time nature of the data you receive with cloud ERP solutions enables you to have your finger on the pulse and respond quickly to changing market or consumer trends.

In an age where remote working and work-from-home (WFH) have spawned their own jargon, it may sound a little out of place to accentuate the crucial role that the physical presence of people can have on businesses. 

Yet, Oracle NetSuite partners had learned long ago that theirs is an industry where direct, face-to-face, physical interaction with customers goes a long way towards delivering top-notch services to clients.

An Oracle NetSuite partner that serves various countries will always find itself in good stead. The experience of serving different markets, and helping customers implement the Oracle NetSuite cloud ERP system strengthens a partner’s knowledge of its customers locally. It also allows Oracle NetSuite partners to identify gaps in the solution they provide and venture into partnerships to fill these gaps and offer comprehensive solutions.

To ensure a successful venture to a market abroad, successful Oracle NetSuite partners often invest heavily in hiring local talent who provide intimacy and can relate to their clients’ needs.

Michelle Alphonso, CEO of PointStar Consulting, says knowing a product well enough alone is no guarantee of success. 

“We have learned that it is not enough just to know the product well, but it is important to have a local team,” said Michelle at the Oracle Netsuite Asia Conference 2022 recently.

“You do need to invest when you go out into different countries and encounter different cultures and languages. This will not just help you succeed in closing sales, but also ensure successful implementation of projects.”

Meanwhile, at the same event, PointStar Consulting bagged Oracle NetSuite’s Asia Solutions Provider Partner of the Year FY22, Asean New Logo Rockstar Award FY22, and Asean Top ARR Award FY22 honours.

Michelle paid tribute to the PointStar Consulting staff for their efforts, and added that Oracle NetSuite is an extension of the PointStar Consulting team as both have been working together for 11 years now.

“This award came about because of the hard work of the entire PointStar Consulting team. This is a team that has grown quite big over the years. So this award is really from all the hardwork from the guys in PointStar Consulting covering Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Shearwater for Japan, China, South Korea and Taiwan markets,” she said.

“PointStar Consulting was one of the first partners of Oracle NetSuite in the region, and we grew up together with Oracle NetSuite. I see the Oracle NetSuite family as an extension of us because we have been working together for so long.” 

Startups operate in a highly competitive and disruptive business environment. The quantum leap in technology has made disruption the norm, creating a “survival of the fittest” business environment where agile companies that can quickly respond to change, survive and thrive.

At the heart of most successful startups lie cloud solutions that facilitate automation of critical processes, and simplify workflows, enabling business owners to focus on growing their businesses. In a digital age business world that has taken further beatings from the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, companies have the privilege of being blessed with a variety of cloud solutions to choose from that can introduce operational efficiencies. 

The cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is a leading solution that helps businesses automate manual processes, integrate data from disparate sources to provide a single source of truth. 

Below we look at some of the challenges that startups face and how a cloud ERP system helps these startups overcome them.

1. Address Financial Reporting Issues Before IPO 

Hardly a day goes by without regulatory authorities around the world pondering on imposing new requirements on how companies report their finances. As businesses come under heavy scrutiny from regulatory authorities, manually handling tedious financial processes can result in costly fines if errors are found. 

Initial public offerings (IPO) are the sort of endeavours that require stringent oversight of the financial reporting processes. A cloud ERP system helps businesses automate these processes and ensure businesses are IPO-ready through its robust financial reporting standards that include compliance with IFRS, and GAAP, to name a few.

2. Data Silos Due to Lack of Integration

It is common for most startups to have a stack consisting of different best-in-class solutions to address different pain points. However, as your business grows, you will quickly realise that having data from multiple sources strips away the power of data. To make well-informed decisions and unlock critical insights, you need a solution that integrates the different solutions in your operations, and offer you a 360-degree, unified view of all your business processes. 

A cloud ERP system is equipped with solid API capabilities that allow you to integrate other solutions, have one single source of truth, and also prevent you from having data silos. What’s more, cloud ERP systems also provide startup businesses with a real-time view of all their customers and business processes. This ensures business owners have their fingers on the pulse, to respond swiftly to changing market conditions and consumer demands.

3. Unable to Get a Consolidated View of Subsidiaries

Companies who expand and have a presence in other countries often find it difficult to standardise business processes, in addition to manually managing data from subsidiaries. This process causes data duplication and human errors.

Intercompany financial consolidation is a crucial element of managing companies with subsidiaries. Having a unified view of the business processes and financial health of your various subsidiaries helps you make well-informed decisions. A cloud ERP system offers robust intercompany consolidation functions that not just help you run your company effectively, but also help you unlock critical insights to aid your strategic decision-making.

4. Unable to Scale When Workforce Grows 

Startups on a high-growth trajectory often realise the difference between accommodating a workforce of 10 staff and a workforce of 100 staff quickly. As your headcount increases, ensuring all your staff comply with your business processes becomes increasingly tedious. 

By virtue of its architecture, cloud ERPs are built for growth as they are highly scalable and allow you to quickly accommodate your increasing workforce while ensuring total compliance with your time-honoured business processes.

Conclusion

Startups today operate in volatile times. Being agile allows startups to respond quickly to changing market demands. Integration helps startups unlock new insights. Automation of manual accounting processes and robust financial reporting solutions ensure startups are more than adequately prepared for an IPO. 

Predictive analytics has emerged as one of the key components of efficient management of the supply chain. If you are a startup involved in retail, or other areas that require warehousing, chances are you may have experienced a deeply troubled time of late. 

A cloud ERP system is one that caters to a wide-array of industries. It is now more important than ever for startup businesses on the high-growth trajectory to implement a robust business management solution such as a cloud ERP system.

There is plenty to admire in the longevity and vitality of the manufacturing industry as one of the most enduring and vibrant sectors in propelling economic growth. One of the key drivers behind the success of this industry is its continuous evolution, growing in parallel with the quantum leap in technology.

The nascent manufacturing industry was characterised by workers slogging away to meet manufacturing demand, which in turn was driven by consumer demand for certain products. However, the turn of the 21st century ushered in a period of significant advancement which saw manufacturing shed its image as a heavy-duty, cheap-labour, product-churning juggernaut, to become an industry driven by cutting-edge technology, providing high-income jobs, catering to an endless stream of new demand brought about by the various by-products of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0), such as the Internet of Things (IoT), automation, and artificial intelligence (AI).

In Singapore, the manufacturing industry makes up between 20% and 25% of the island nation’s GDP. The Singapore government has signalled its intention to get fully onboard the advanced manufacturing sector by setting a target to grow this industry by 50% over the next 10 years. 

“Beyond the 50% increase in value, we want to see a greater proportion of our manufacturing going into advanced manufacturing, where the competition is not based on cost but based on the intellectual property that we can generate, the quality of the products and the precision that we can provide for the sector,” said Singapore’s Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing, earlier this year.

The Hitachi Solutions’ research titled 11 Trends That Will Dominate Manufacturing in 2021 predicts IoT to become one of the dominant technologies in the manufacturing sector, driven by its ability to enable factories to make informed decisions using real-time data. A third of production mechanisms incorporate smart devices, with 34% of manufacturers indicating their intentions to incorporate IoT into their processes and 32% of companies planning to embed it into their products. 

The production of semiconductor devices is expected to further fuel the growth of the manufacturing industry. This is largely driven by digital-age necessities such as the prevalence of semiconductors in everything we use in our daily lives such as mobile phones and computers. In addition to this, manufacturers are also increasingly becoming cognizant of their responsibilities towards the environment, as exemplified by the increased importance placed on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices.

As manufacturers transition from a labour-intensive environment to a high-skilled working environment, there is plenty that cloud solutions have to offer to optimise their workforce and operate efficiently. Manufacturers are increasingly finding themselves operating in a highly competitive environment where early adopters of technology are reaping the full benefits of the digital revolution. The emphasis on ESG also requires manufacturers to make full use of technology in order to operate in an environmentally sustainable manner. 

Below we look at how cloud technology in its present form can help manufacturers compete on an international level and carve out a niche for themselves.

Total Visibility and Single Source of Truth

The Deloitte 2022 Manufacturing Industry Outlook underlines visibility as an imperative capability for manufacturers in the post-Covid-19 world. As illustrated by the recent supply chain bottlenecks, having best in class technologies such as a cloud ERP system can help businesses deal with the uncertainties unleashed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Cloud systems offer manufacturers unprecedented visibility over their business and act as a single source of truth. 

Easy Low-Code/No-Code Integrations

Manufacturing businesses often deal with various stakeholders such as distributors, vendors, and suppliers who use different business solutions. Having a dedicated IT team to deal with each and every system that a factory encounters can be a tedious, costly and heavily time-consuming process. Systems integration solutions provide manufacturing businesses with easy low-code/no-code integrations that in turn enable workflow automation.

CRM

Cloud solutions offer manufacturers a real-time, 360-degree view of their customers. They also offer solutions that provide manufacturing businesses with a seamless flow of information cutting across the entire customer lifecycle, from lead through opportunity, sales order, fulfilment, renewal, upsell, cross-sell and support.

Product Data Management

Product-based cloud solutions come equipped with robust functionalities to help manufacturers create and manage master data critical in the running of manufacturing, entailing items, customers, partners, and vendors.

Order Management

In a fast-paced, digital business environment, manufacturers need solutions that can help them respond swiftly to consumer demands. Solutions such as intelligent order management systems help businesses automate order processing, allocation, orchestration, and execution processes that are critical when operating in a global business environment. 

Planning and Scheduling

Planning and scheduling is now a pivotal component for all manufacturing businesses. Planning and scheduling help companies to correctly estimate the allocation of resources, operations and processes required in order to create goods and services. Cloud manufacturing software can help manufacturers perform real-time scheduling, which helps their companies operate efficiently. 

Procurement

For product-based manufacturing businesses, it is of vital importance that key components in the production process are in adequate supply. The recent pandemic only further highlighted the importance of manufacturing companies to equip themselves with the best that cloud solutions can offer. These solutions ensure that manufacturers are equipped with the right materials, at the right time and at the right place.

Production Control

With manufacturers’ wide array of systems, businesses can create, release, update, and monitor work orders throughout their production process. Best in class solutions for manufacturing give businesses the flexibility to manage their production process exactly the way they want and ensure the production process fits their facilities and data requirements.

Supply Chain Management

Hardly a day goes by without news of supply chain bottlenecks causing mayhem in different parts of the world and creating massive inconveniences for customers. In an increasingly uncertain world where Covid-19 is an endemic disease, businesses do not have a choice but to deploy best in class technology that will help them navigate through choppy waters. Cloud technology for the manufacturing industry ensures that the concept of where your product is manufactured and who it is manufactured by becomes irrelevant. These solutions give businesses a global view of all their inventory, regardless of where it is or who it is being consumed by.

Shop Floor Control

Shop floor control (SFC) is a set of software that helps manufacturing companies track, schedule, and report on the progress of work in a manufacturing plant.  The selection of cloud solutions available in the market will help manufacturing businesses easily gather real-time information from the manufacturing process through user-configurable tablet applications that allow users to optimise the system on the fly. 

Quality Management

Delivering products of the highest quality to customers is often the purpose of any business, and this requires the combination of company-wide commitment to the cause and the usage of top-notch technologies. Quality management systems come with features that help businesses define and maintain inspection plans and deliver high-quality products with minimal overhead.