Can ERP Help bridge the International Divide?

1.
November
2015
CAN
ERP
HELP
BRIDGE
THE
GENERATIONAL
DIVIDE?
ADDRESSING
THE
SKILLS
GAP
A
generational
divide
today
fuels
the
skills
gap
in
many
industries.
On
one
end
of
the
spectrum
we
see
highly
trained,
highly
skilled
baby
boomers
who
are
beginning
to
retire.
This
generation
entered
the
work
force
at
a
time
when
many
processes
were
still
very
manual,
requiring
a
greater
depth
of
knowledge
and
understanding.
When
faced
with
a
new
task
or
activity,
these
workers
also
faced
a
steep
learning
curve.
They
communicated
(or
not)
without
the
aid
of
cell
phones
and
the
Internet;
technology
played
a
relatively
minor
role
as
people
and
careers
matured.
On
the
other
end
of
the
spectrum
are
the
millennials
who
grew
up
with
technology.
They
don’t
know
life
without
the
Internet,
smart
phones
and
electronic
gadgets.
They
don’t
know
what
it
is
like
to
be
“disconnected.”
When
faced
with
a
new
task
or
activity
they
ask,
“Is
there
an
app
for
that?”
Since
the
answer
is
often
yes,
they
are
not
required
to
develop
the
same
level
of
understanding
possessed
by
those
who
may
soon
be
retiring.
While
baby
boomers
knew/know
the
business
and
perhaps
don’t
appreciate
the
extent
to
which
technology
can
help,
millennials
take
technology
for
granted
but
don’t
have
the
same
depth
of
business
knowledge.
Companies
are
increasingly
looking
for
ways
to
bridge
this
generational
divide.
Enterprise
Resource
Planning
(ERP)
and
other
complementary
systems
can
help,
but
only
with
a
new
generation
of
modern
applications.
By
automating
processes
and
making
the
user
experience
more
intuitive,
companies
can
not
only
attract
the
younger
generation
but
also
make
life
easier
for
older
workers,
drawing
them
into
the
technology
fold.
THE
ERP
CONNECTION
Those
running
outdated
ERP
applications
might
be
puzzled
by
the
assertion
that
such
a
solution
can
bridge
the
generation
gap
or
address
a
skill
deficit.
Early
ERP
solutions
created
the
need
for
lots
of
training.
Not
only
did
users
need
to
be
trained
in
how
to
navigate
menus
and
screens,
but
also
in
workflow
and
procedure.
Because
early
ERP
systems
didn’t
work
exactly
the
way
people
worked,
workers
first
had
to
learn
how
to
do
their
jobs,
and
then
separately
had
to
learn
how
to
enter
data
into
ERP,
and/or
how
to
extract
it.
Depending
on
how
closely
(or
not)
these
two
were
aligned,
the
same
ERP
that
was
supposed
to
make
life
easier,
sometimes
made
it
harder.
While
baby
boomers
Key Takeaways
ü While
baby
boomers
knew/know
the
business
and
perhaps
don’t
appreciate
the
extent
to
which
technology
can
help,
millennials
take
technology
for
granted
but
don’t
have
the
same
depth
of
business
knowledge
ü The
connectivity,
collaboration
capabilities
and
added
visibility
of
newer
ERP
solutions
hold
the
key
to
bridging
generational
and
skill
gaps
ü Older
and
younger
generations
will
be
drawn
to
new
user
experiences
for
different
reasons,
but
will
wind
up
in
the
same
place,
accessing
enterprise
data
in
real
time
ü New
“social”
capabilities
now
being
delivered
by
ERP
solution
providers
can
produce
a
synergistic
effect
and
help
close
the
skills
gap,
drawing
all
parties
into
the
conversation,
sharing
strengths
and
creating
synergy

2. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
2
of
11
might
not
claim
to
have
walked
five
miles
to
school
in
two
feet
of
snow
(uphill
both
ways?),
they
were
accustomed
to
“hard.”
They
didn’t
revolt.
They
adapted,
even
if
it
meant
working
around
the
system
instead
of
with
it.
But
on
a
personal
level
baby
boomers
also
wanted
“better”
and
“easier”
for
the
next
generation.
And
they
delivered
that,
providing
all
the
“modern
conveniences”
to
their
children
and
grandchildren.
And
of
course
the
electronics
of
today
were
a
natural
progression
for
these
next
generations.
They
took
to
Xbox
and
computer
games
like
fish
to
water.
And
games
led
to
computers
and
cell
phones
and
then
smart
phones,
and
then
tablets.
Computers
led
them
to
the
Internet.
Smart
phones
and
tablets
led
them
to
“apps.”
When
the
generation
that
grew
up
with
consumer
technology
entered
the
“real
world”
and
got
jobs,
they
couldn’t
understand
why
the
“apps”
they
used
at
work
weren’t
as
easy
to
use
as
the
ones
they
were
using
on
their
smart
phones
and
tablets.
Unlike
the
older
generation
that
knew
the
business
and
the
business
processes
inside
and
out,
and
therefore
knew
how
to
operate
outside
of
the
system,
the
younger
generation
had
become
dependent
upon
technology.
The
combination
of
these
forces
has
led
to
a
change
in
how
enterprise
software
like
ERP
is
evaluated.
For
many
years
“fit
and
functionality”
was,
by
far,
the
top
selection
criterion.
The
Mint
Jutras
2014
ERP
Solution
Study,
and
other
prior
year
studies
asked
participants
to
prioritize
individual
selection
criteria
(Table
1)
on
a
scale
of
1
to
5.
And
we
observed
a
change.
Table
1:
Selection
Criteria
Source: Mint Jutras 2014 ERP Solution Study
Selection Criteria
Ranking
Participants
were
asked
to
prioritize
13
different
selection
criteria
on
a
scale
of
1
to
5
as
follows:
5:
Must
Have/Most
Important
4:
Important
3:
Somewhat
Important
2:
Nice
to
Have
1:
Not
a
Consideration
The
actual
“mean”
shown
in
Table
1
is
less
important
than
the
relative
priority
of
the
different
evaluation
criteria.
Data Source
In
this
report,
Mint
Jutras
references
data
collected
from
its
2015
Enterprise
Solution
Study,
which
investigated
the
goals,
challenges
and
status
and
also
benchmarked
performance
of
implementations
of
software
used
to
run
the
business.
Almost
400
responses
were
collected
from
companies
across
a
broad
range
of
industries.
This
sample
included
responses
from
companies
of
all
sizes,
ranging
from
very
small
to
very
large
enterprises.
ü

3. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
3
of
11
While
fit
and
functionality
still
had
the
highest
percentage
of
participant
votes
for
“must
have/most
important,”
ease
of
use
took
the
top
spot
in
terms
of
overall
priority.
Having
all
the
functionality
in
the
world
is
meaningless
if
you
can’t
figure
out
how
to
use
it.
But
the
results
were
so
close
we
wondered
what
would
be
the
priority
if
respondents
had
to
choose.
So
in
2015
we
changed
the
format
of
the
question,
again
listing
the
different
criteria,
but
this
time
consolidating
to
10
criteria
and
forcing
the
participants
to
stack
rank
them
from
1
(least
important)
to
10
(most
important).
Given
the
preoccupation
of
industry
influencers
with
“user
experience”,
we
also
changed
“ease
of
use”
to
“user
experience”
and
substituted
some
of
the
prior
criteria
for
new
factors
which
had
risen
in
importance
in
our
research.
The
overall
results
are
clear.
The
top
three
criteria
are
all
related
to
features
and
functionality.
Table
2:
Selection
Criteria
Priorities
Stack
Ranked
from
1
to
10
Source: Mint Jutras 2015 Enterprise Solution Study
User
experience
is
still
in
the
top
half,
but
when
forced
to
choose,
it
fell
in
importance.
“Ease
of
use”
is
an
important
element
of
the
user
experience,
and
in
fact
is
often
viewed
as
synonomous.
But
“ease
of
use”
means
different
things
to
different
people,
particularly
across
generational
boundaries.
Mint
Jutras
suspected
this
was
very
much
the
case
in
terms
of
both
the
definition
of
ease
of
use,
as
well
as
the
prioritization
of
selection
criteria.
So
in
2015
we
also
captured
the
year
in
which
our
survey
respondents
were
born,
in
order
to
categorize
them
in
the
most
popular
vernacular
of
“generations.”
The
results
were
quite
interesting
(Table
3).
We
can
make
several
interesting
observations
from
this
comparison.
Not
only
do
the
priorities
of
baby
boomers
differ
quite
dramatically
from
those
of
millennials,
but
we
also
see
less
consensus
from
this
youngest
generation.
Selection Criteria
Priorities 2015
Survey
respondents
were
asked
to
stack
rank
the
different
selection
criteria
from
1
(least
important)
to
10
(most
important).
They
were
not
allowed
to
have
two
ranked
at
the
same
priority,
forcing
them
to
decide
on
the
order
of
importance.

4. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
4
of
11
Table
3:
Selection
Criteria
Priorities
Stack
Ranked
by
Generation
Source: Mint Jutras 2015 Enterprise Solution Study
Note: Top priority is shaded in light green
Note
the
differential
between
the
criteria
with
the
highest
and
the
lowest
scores
across
each
of
the
three
columns.
Fit
and
functionality
is
clearly
at
the
top
for
baby
boomers
(and
Gen
Xers)
and
“social”
capabilities
are
clearly
at
the
bottom,
with
a
difference
in
scores
of
4.3.
Surprisingly,
social
capabilites
were
also
at
the
bottom
for
millennials,
but
there
was
only
a
spread
of
1.5
between
the
bottom
and
the
top.
And
at
the
top
of
the
millennials’
list
was
the
quality
of
built-­‐in
reporting
and
analytics…
perhaps
because
without
this
built-­‐in
capability,
these
younger
workers
might
not
be
able
to
garner
real
meaning
from
the
enterprise
data.
But
what
some
might
find
most
surprising
is
that
millennials
seem
to
place
less
value
on
the
user
experience
than
both
of
the
older
generations.
While
on
the
surface
this
might
seem
puzzling,
since
these
are
the
workers
balking
at
the
green
screens
and
clumsy
interfaces
of
old.
But
this
is
far
less
surprising
when
you
realize
that
millennials
define
“ease
of
use”
differently
than
those
with
more
experience.
Survey
respondents
were
asked
to
select
the
top
three
most
important
aspects
of
“ease
of
use.”
While
baby
boomers
and
Gen
Xers
define
it
first
and
foremost
in
terms
of
efficiencies,
millennials
are
far
more
likely
to
simply
equate
it
to
the
visual
appeal
of
the
user
interface
(Figure
1).
While
baby
boomers
equate
efficiency
to
intuitive
navigation,
millennials
take
intuitive
navigation
for
granted.
They
have
never
used
software
that
required
a
user
manual.
To
them,
a
visually
appealing
user
interface,
which
was
at
the
very
bottom
of
the
priorities
for
baby
boomers
and
GenXers,
is
most
important.
Defining the
Generations
Survey
respondents
were
placed
in
the
following
groups
based
on
the
year
they
were
born:
üBaby
boomers:
born
between
1943
and
1964
ü
Generation
Xers:
1965
to
1981
üMillenial:
born
in
1982
or
after

5. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
5
of
11
Figure
1:
Defining
Ease
of
Use
by
Generation
(top
3
factors)
Source: Mint Jutras 2015 ERP Solution Study
There
is
an
important
lesson
to
be
learned
here.
Most
companies
have
representatives
of
all
generations
using
ERP.
For
it
to
be
most
effective
in
helping
you
bridge
the
generational
divide
and
fill
the
skills
gap,
you
can’t
settle
for
pleasing
some
of
the
audience
all
of
the
time,
or
all
of
the
audience
some
of
the
time.
You
need
to
please
(and
engage)
all
users
all
of
the
time.
“Beautiful
software”
and
simplicity,
functionality
and
efficiency
are
equally
important.
Navigation
throughout
must
be
intuitive
for
all
generations,
including
both
those
anxious
to
get
rid
of
old
cheat
sheets
and
guides,
as
well
as
the
younger
generation
that
takes
intuitive
navigation
for
granted.
Results
from
our
ease
of
use
question
tell
us
that
the
different
generations
appreciate
(or
not)
easy
access
to
ERP
any
time
from
anywhere
about
equally
(33%
to
38%
placed
it
in
their
top
three).
But
if
we
look
back
at
Table
3,
we
see
that
millenials
are
more
likely
to
connect
the
dots
between
the
cloud,
their
mobile
devices
and
this
instant
access…
especially
the
cloud.
“Cloud
options”
for
ERP
ranked
number
two
in
priority
(behind
quality
of
built-­‐in
reporting
and
analytics)
for
millennials,
while
cloud,
mobile
and
social
rounded
out
the
bottom
three
for
baby
boomers.
These
digital
factors
weigh
heavily
on
how
millennials
learn
today.
Back
when
the
baby
boomers
were
just
starting
out
(and
had
a
lot
to
learn),
they
were
surrounded
by
more
experienced
workers,
in
the
physical
sense.
But
today
we
often
work
in
a
virtual
world
of
telecommuting
and
distributed
environments.
We
find
80%
of
the
companies
participating
in
our
Solution
Study
operate
in
multiple
locations
(Figure
2),
and
this
doesn’t
even
reflect
the
workers
in
home
offices.
Even
smaller
companies
face
this
challenge.
These
less
experienced
To
be
most
effective,
you
can’t
settle
for
pleasing
some
of
the
audience
all
of
the
time,
or
all
of
the
audience
some
of
the
time.
You
need
to
please
(and
engage)
all
users
all
of
the
time.

6. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
6
of
11
workers
can’t
necessarily
walk
across
the
aisle
for
assistance.
Instead,
they
reach
out
electronically.
So
it
is
critical
that
those
with
more
experience
are
also
connected
to
that
virtual
network.
But
both
need
a
transportation
vehicle
to
support
communication
and
transmit
data
throughout
that
network.
This
is
where
ERP
comes
in.
Figure
2:
Environments
are
increasingly
distributed
Source: Mint Jutras 2015 ERP Solution Study
And
since
most
millennials
view
their
mobile
devices
as
a
lifeline
to
the
rest
of
the
world,
this
is
just
another
reason
why
the
ability
to
connect
to
ERP
through
a
mobile
device
is
even
more
important
than
many
realize.
Notice
that
for
all
but
millennials,
this
was
second
from
the
bottom
of
the
priority
list.
And
it
wasn’t
that
much
further
up
the
list
for
the
millennials.
This
is
a
clear
indication
that
participants
underestimate
the
role
ERP
can
and
should
play
in
communication,
collaboration
and
decision-­‐making.
ERP
can
provide
these
capabilities
but
not
by
just
dumping
old
ways
of
accessing
ERP
to
a
mobile
device.
Give
a
new
mobile
device
to
a
millennial
and
he
or
she
will
find
dozens
of
productive
ways
to
use
it.
To
get
this
“there’s
an
app
for
that”
generation
to
use
ERP
on
a
mobile
device,
it
has
to
look,
feel
and
behave
like
other
mobile
apps.
Give
someone
of
the
older
generation
the
same
new
device,
and
it
is
just
as
likely
to
sit
in
a
desk
drawer.
To
get
these
baby
boomers
to
use
ERP
on
a
mobile
device,
you
need
to
deliver
a
user
experience
purpose-­‐built
to
answer
their
questions
and
help
them
solve
their
The
ability
to
connect
to
ERP
through
a
mobile
device
is
even
more
important
than
many
realize….
This
is
a
clear
indication
that
survey
participants
under-­‐
estimate
the
role
ERP
can
and
should
play
in
communication,
collaboration
and
decision-­‐making.
Company Size
In
Figure
2
company
size
is
determined
by
annual
revenue.
üSmall:
annual
revenues
under
$25
million
üLower-­‐Mid:
$25
million
to
$250
million
üUpper-­‐Mid:
$250
million
to
$1
billion
üLarge:
revenues
over
$1
billion

7. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
7
of
11
most
pressing
problems.
Today’s
technology-­‐enabled
ERP
solutions
can,
and
in
doing
so
also
help
bridge
the
generational
divide.
Older
and
younger
generations
may
be
drawn
to
these
new
user
experiences
for
different
reasons,
but
they
will
wind
up
in
the
same
place,
accessing
enterprise
data
in
real
time
and
communicating
from
the
same
page.
The
conclusion?
User
experience
is
equally
as
important
to
both
younger
and
older
generations
of
workers.
WHAT
ABOUT
THE
SKILLS
GAP?
New
ways
of
engaging
with
ERP,
including
engaging
with
mobile
devices,
might
bring
the
older
and
younger
generation
together,
but
can
it
help
address
the
skills
gap
that
still
seems
to
pervade
the
workplace?
Indeed
the
connectivity,
collaboration
capabilities
and
added
visibility
of
newer
ERP
solutions
hold
the
key
to
bridging
this
gap.
The
trick
is
to
bring
these
two
generations
together
in
order
to
learn
from
each
other.
This
is
where
the
new
“social”
capabilities
now
being
delivered
by
ERP
solution
providers
can
produce
a
synergistic
effect
with
the
result
being
far
greater
than
the
sum
of
the
parts.
Of
course
the
term
“social”
has
different
connotations
to
the
older
and
younger
generations.
The
younger
generation
seems
to
operate
from
the
principle
of
communicate
early,
communicate
often.
And
this
communication
is
largely
electronic.
They
get
answers
from
the
Internet
instantly,
text
their
friends
and
colleagues
constantly
and
are
always
in
search
of
the
latest
in
techno-­‐gadgetry.
So
they
immediately
equate
the
term
“social”
to
engagement,
communication,
collaboration
and
transparency.
Mention
“social”
to
a
baby
boomer
and
you
get
a
far
different
reaction.
While
more
and
more
they
may
actively
engage
on
Facebook
to
share
pictures
of
grandchildren
and
communicate
with
relatives
and
friends
from
a
distance,
from
a
business
perspective
it
is
a
distraction,
something
that
should
be
done
on
employees’
personal
time.
For
the
traditional
businessperson
accustomed
to
traditional
means
of
communication,
“social”
has
an
unfortunate
connotation.
Yet
it
would
appear
that
baby
boomers
are
not
alone
in
missing
the
connection
between
“social”
and
ERP.
Social
capabilities
was
at
the
very
bottom
of
the
priorities
of
all
three
generations,
albeit
more
dramatically
so
with
the
more
mature
crowd.
And
yet
when
we
identify
what
some
of
these
capabilities
actually
are,
we
get
a
very
different
response.
Sure
enough,
all
the
social
capabilities
that
vendors
are
busy
adding
to
ERP
are
more
often
viewed
as
useful
or
“must
have”
than
just
“nice
to
have.”
And
10%
or
less
indicated
they
would
not
use
the
capability
if
available
(Table
4).
The
connectivity,
collaboration
capabilities
and
added
visibility
of
newer
ERP
solutions
hold
the
key
to
bridging
this
skills
gap.
The
new
“social”
capabilities
now
being
delivered
by
ERP
solution
providers
can
produce
a
synergistic
effect
with
the
result
being
far
greater
than
the
sum
of
the
parts.
Older
and
younger
generations
may
be
drawn
to
these
new
user
experiences
for
different
reasons,
but
they
will
wind
up
in
the
same
place,
accessing
enterprise
data
in
real
time
and
communicating
from
the
same
page.

8. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
8
of
11
Table
4:
Are
these
“social”
capabilities
useful?
Shhh…don’t
call
them
social
Source: Mint Jutras 2015 Enterprise Solution Study
You
might
be
wondering
if
this
too
varies
by
generation.
The
answer:
Not
as
much
as
you
might
think.
The
only
capability
that
was
valued
significantly
more
highly
by
millennials
was
the
ability
to
capture
a
conversation
and
associate
it
with
a
business
object
(e.g.
a
customer,
an
order,
etc.)
But
remember,
millennials
are
very
accustomed
to
carrying
on
a
conversation
electronically,
so
making
the
mental
leap
to
capturing
the
conversational
trail
is
not
a
very
big
leap.
For
a
baby
boomer
it
may
well
entail
redefining
what
is
meant
by
a
“conversation.”
YES,
ERP
CAN
HELP.
BUT
NOT
JUST
ANY
ERP
By
now,
you
are
probably
thinking,
that
perhaps
ERP
can
in
fact
help
bridge
the
generational
divide
and
fill
some
of
the
skills
gaps
we
experience
today.
But
not
every
ERP
will
be
able
to
help.
It
takes
a
certain
level
of
feature
functionality,
coupled
with
enabling
technology.
Below
you
will
find
some
of
the
next
generation
capabilities
required,
including
those
that
might
be
called
“social.”
ENTERPRISE
SEARCH:
It
is
not
clear
exactly
when
“Google”
became
a
verb,
but
that
is
exactly
how
many
people
use
the
term
today.
Looking
for
information,
or
an
answer
to
a
question?
Just
“Google”
it.
Wouldn’t
it
be
great
if
you
could
do
the
same
with
your
enterprise
data
within
ERP?
Next
generation
ERP
solutions
with
social
capabilities
do
this
by
incorporating
a
simple
(to
use)
enterprise
search
capability.
Don’t
know
exactly
what
you
are
looking
for?
Don’t
know
exactly
where
to
look?
What
do
you
do?
In
the
real
world,
you
start
searching
and
perhaps
as
you
start
to
retrieve
information,
you
refine
that
search.
Why
not
apply
the
same
principle
to
accessing
data
in
enterprise
applications?
Search
by
customer,
order,
supplier,
part
or
product,

9. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
9
of
11
perhaps
combining
data
residing
in
your
enterprise
applications
with
unstructured
data
available
on
the
Internet.
Without
this
level
of
search
capability
in
ERP,
users
need
to
know
where
and
how
different
data
elements
and
business
objects
are
stored
and
this
knowledge
is
dependent
on
technology
skills.
Adding
an
enterprise
search
function
bridges
that
skills
gap
and
allows
users
to
work,
discover
and
learn
more
naturally.
CONFIGURABLE
USER
INTERFACES:
Over
the
years
ERP
has
progressed
from
hierarchical
menus
and
tabbing
through
“forms”
to
point
and
click
and
drag
and
drop.
Now
as
we
also
begin
to
bring
these
applications
to
mobile
devices,
touch
screen
technology
is
emerging.
Those
ERP
solution
providers
that
are
truly
providing
modern,
next
generation
ERP
are
employing
a
“mobile
first”
philosophy
of
design.
If
you
allow
individuals
to
choose
the
paradigm
they
are
most
comfortable
with
and
customize
it
to
their
individual
needs,
you
get
everyone
on
the
same
page.
Younger
workers
can
use
familiar
interfaces
and
devices
to
build
their
knowledge
of
how
the
enterprise
works
while
older
workers
are
introduced
to
the
ease
with
which
they
can
connect
to
the
business.
PERSONALIZED
WORKSPACES:
These
may
be
called
dashboards,
portals
or
even
workspaces.
Think
of
them
as
a
home
base
of
operations
from
which
you
can
easily
access
the
data
and
tools
you
need
and
use
every
day,
all
day.
The
power
of
a
well-­‐constructed
workspace
lies
in
blurring
the
boundaries
between
ERP
and
other
enterprise
applications,
desktop
tools
like
spreadsheets,
email,
instant
messaging,
alerts
and
more.
You
are
able
to
reach
out
and
touch
any
of
these
without
closing
down
or
minimizing
one
application
before
firing
up
another.
As
always,
a
picture
is
worth
a
thousand
words.
Click
on
a
chart
to
drill
down
into
further
detail.
The
need
to
learn
new
“navigational”
skills
disappears.
These
workspaces
are
also
a
convenient
place
to
insert
that
enterprise
search
button.
These
too
should
be
easily
configured
and
customized
by
role
or
by
individual.
PUSH
VERSUS
PULL:
While
all
of
these
new
consumer
grade
interfaces
can
be
very
valuable,
they
only
deliver
answers
when
interrogated.
Younger,
less
experienced
workers
won’t
even
know
what
to
look
for.
Older
workers,
aware
of
potential
danger,
may
not
know
where
to
look.
Why
not
have
ERP
deliver
data
to
you
without
having
to
ask
for
it?
In
its
most
simple
form,
this
could
simply
be
in
the
format
of
an
alert.
Event
management,
which
is
the
underlying
technology
that
triggers
an
alert,
is
hardly
new,
but
still
not
widely
used.
An
event
manager
can
be
constantly
Without
“Google-­‐like”
search
capability
in
ERP,
users
needed
to
know
where
and
how
different
data
elements
and
business
objects
are
stored
and
this
knowledge
is
dependent
on
technology
skills.
Adding
an
enterprise
search
function
bridges
that
skills
gap
and
allows
users
to
work,
discover
and
learn
more
naturally.
Younger,
less
experienced
workers
won’t
even
know
what
to
look
for.
Older
workers,
aware
of
potential
danger,
may
not
know
where
to
look.
Why
not
have
ERP
deliver
data
to
you
without
having
to
ask
for
it?

10. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
10
of
11
searching
for
conditions
or
events
that
occur
(e.g.
a
big
order
comes
in)
or
fail
to
occur
(e.g.
payment
of
a
large
invoice
does
not)
while
you
go
about
your
business.
Alerts
can
be
delivered
in
any
number
of
ways,
but
the
most
common
today
is
still
via
email.
While
the
exception
management
facilitated
by
these
alerts
is
certainly
a
plus,
executives
and
line
managers
can
still
be
blind-­‐sided
by
a
notification
that
seemingly
comes
out
of
the
blue.
Of
course
in
some
cases
the
sensitivity
level
can
be
increased
to
give
a
warning,
but
think
how
much
more
valuable
it
would
be
to
have
the
ability
to
monitor
a
stream
of
activity
surrounding
that
big
order
or
the
efforts
made
to
collect
payment
from
that
delinquent
account.
In
order
to
do
that,
you
need
to
be
“following”
the
account.
THE
CONCEPT
OF
“FOLLOWING”
If
you
aren’t
already
a
fan
of
“social”,
the
concept
of
“following”
someone
or
something
might
not
seem
immediately
familiar
to
you.
But
chances
are,
you
are
already
following
someone
or
something
either
in
your
professional
or
personal
life.
Perhaps
you
follow
the
stock
price
of
specific
companies,
or
you
watch
a
stock
exchange
like
NASDAQ
or
the
Nikkei.
Or
maybe
you
follow
the
stats
of
your
favorite
sports
teams.
Maybe
you
do
that
through
newspapers,
online
or
using
an
app
on
your
mobile
device.
Perhaps
newsfeeds
are
delivered
to
you
through
email.
Regardless
of
the
delivery
method,
the
objective
is
to
stay
informed.
What
if
you
could
easily
apply
that
same
concept
to
your
customers,
orders
or
prospects?
Let’s
look
at
that
big
deal
you
are
expecting
to
close.
The
sales
rep
has
it
on
his
forecast
and
his
manager
also
feels
confident.
But
if
you
really
want
to
get
a
feel
for
the
timing
and
the
likelihood
of
closing
the
deal,
today
you
probably
pick
up
the
phone
and
talk
to
the
rep
or
his
manager.
But
do
you
get
the
full
picture?
Wouldn’t
it
also
be
helpful
to
follow
the
trail
of
activity
that
has
already
occurred
during
the
sales
cycle?
What
if
you
could
see
the
conversations
or
chatter
between
sales
rep
and
manager?
What
documents
have
been
delivered
to
the
prospect?
And
what
if
this
potential
deal
is
with
an
existing
customer?
Wouldn’t
you
like
to
be
able
to
scroll
through
the
support
activity
over
the
past
few
months,
including
the
calls,
issues
and
resolutions?
Has
the
customer
experienced
any
quality
or
delivery
issues?
Have
they
been
consistently
paying
their
bills
on
time
or
is
the
outstanding
balance
over
90
days?
Think
what
could
be
learned,
potentially
filling
more
of
those
information
gaps
that
are
only
aggravated
when
you
have
a
skills
gap.
COLLABORATION
Simply
aggregating
all
this
activity
and
data
and
making
it
available
to
all
interested
and
involved
parties
provides
an
environment
conducive
to
collaboration.
These
tools
can
easily
draw
all
parties
into
the
conversation,
Social
capabilities
can
easily
draw
all
parties
into
the
conversation,
sharing
strengths
and
creating
synergy.
Younger
workers
are
drawn
into
real
business
conversations
and
more
mature
workers
can
be
guided
through
using
these
electronic
means
of
engaging,
sharing
and
collaborating.

11. Can
ERP
Help
Bridge
the
Generational
Divide?
Page
11
of
11
sharing
strengths
and
creating
synergy.
Younger
workers
are
drawn
into
real
business
conversations
and
more
mature
workers
can
be
guided
through
using
these
electronic
means
of
engaging,
sharing
and
collaborating.
We
are
already
seeing
increased
engagement
with
ERP
at
higher
executive
levels
of
the
organization.
The
majority
of
companies
surveyed
(81%)
claim
all
executives
have
direct
access
to
ERP.
But
do
they
engage
on
a
regular
basis
and
are
they
engaging
collaboratively?
Although
the
younger
generation
intuitively
works
collaboratively
because
they
are
always
connected,
baby
boomer
executives
are
more
likely
to
simply
make
“an
executive
decision.”
While
we
have
made
significant
progress
in
top-­‐level
executives
simply
gaining
access
to
ERP,
we
still
have
a
long
way
to
go
before
they
are
well
equipped
for
collaborative
decision-­‐making.
We
need
to
give
them
access
directly
from
the
mobile
devices
(which
they
all
carry
these
days)
and
apply
these
social
concepts
in
order
to
draw
them
into
the
real-­‐time
communication
of
the
digital
world.
SUMMARY
AND
KEY
TAKE-­‐AWAYS
Can
new
ways
of
engaging
with
ERP
teach
the
younger
generation
the
business
while
awakening
the
more
mature
crowd
to
the
potential
for
new
technology?
The
answer
is
a
definitive
“Yes!”
Not
only
has
ERP
itself
matured
to
better
reflect
and
adapt
to
the
changing
business
world,
but
new
ways
of
engaging
with
modern,
next
generation
solutions
are
emerging.
Need
to
access
data
from
anywhere,
any
time?
There’s
an
app
for
that.
Need
to
access
it
from
your
mobile
device?
Yes,
there’s
an
app
for
that.
Need
to
communicate
throughout
the
chain
of
command,
across
the
generational
divide?
Yes,
there’s
an
app
for
that.
The
app
is
ERP.
About
the
author:
Cindy
Jutras
is
a
widely
recognized
expert
in
analyzing
the
impact
of
enterprise
applications
on
business
performance.
Utilizing
over
40
years
of
corporate
experience
and
specific
expertise
in
manufacturing,
supply
chain,
customer
service
and
business
performance
management,
Cindy
has
spent
the
past
10
years
benchmarking
the
performance
of
software
solutions
in
the
context
of
the
business
benefits
of
technology.
In
2011
Cindy
founded
Mint
Jutras
LLC
(www.mintjutras.com),
specializing
in
analyzing
and
communicating
the
business
value
enterprise
applications
bring
to
the
enterprise.