Updated 22 September 2026
A company can have several capable business systems and still spend hours copying information, searching for documents and checking who should act next. Before choosing another tool, follow one actual order through the entire process.
Find where the work slows down
Choose a recently completed order. Identify who received it, which information each person needed, where it came from and what caused delays. Do not rely only on the documented process. Look at the emails, spreadsheets, messages and informal workarounds people actually use.
Illustrative example: A customer changes the delivery date. Sales records the request, production planning must update the schedule and dispatch needs to assess transport. If no one owns the handoff, each department may be working from a different date.
The cause might be a missing connection, unclear responsibility, poor software configuration or a genuine feature gap. Real cases help you identify which problem matters most.
Measure the work, not just the delay
Record total processing time, time spent actively working, waiting time, repeated data entry, corrections and manual handoffs. Also measure how often the process occurs. Ten minutes wasted once a month has a very different cost from ten minutes wasted on every order.
Compare the possible fixes
Sometimes the solution is a clearer rule or a function already included in your ERP. Sometimes it is system integration, automation or new software. Compare implementation and ongoing costs with the expected operational benefit.
New software can still be justified by security, reliability or better records, even if it does not remove a manual task. The important thing is to define why you are investing and verify the result afterward.
Three questions before deciding
- Which specific problem are we solving?
- Who is responsible for the full process, across departments?
- What would demonstrate an improvement, and when will we measure it?
Related: What We Improve · Results · Discuss a process with ENTER