Enterprise resource planning can help to protect sensitive data

12/13/2011 at 1:04 pm by The Sage ERP Team

One of the most significant difficulties that companies face comes from the time and effort they have to spend safeguarding sensitive information. Some organizations consider the metrics they use to calculate their yields and production rates important enough to protect while others simply use a lot of data that is private and belongs solely to their competitors. Either way, enterprises need to strike a balance between using this information fluidly and keeping it from prying eyes.

Unfortunately, many companies aren't doing a very good job with this. In fact, according to a Hewlett-Packard study, over half of businesses appear to place little to no restriction on which workers are able to see sensitive information. This is often done because planners believe it is too cumbersome and inefficient to significantly limit how many workers can see particular data. However, what most organizations don't understand is that enterprise resource planning can make it intuitive and easy to give appropriate access to different staff members.

The user experience
ERP systems are remarkable for their ability to transmit and translate information from one interface to another, effectively sharing as much data as is deemed necessary with whomever happens to need it at the moment. Different employees are able to log in and be given the information that they need in such a way that managers and supervisors can elect to either restrict what they have access to or at the very least can view logs to ascertain which pieces of information each worker viewed.

Intuitive access
What sets ERP suites of applications apart is that they are easy to use. Employers may be fearful that their workers won't understand how to get work done quickly and efficiently if a program stands between them and the data that they need to perform tasks. However, ERP software is easy to use on its own and can also be taught quite easily. Vendors generally offer some measure of training and education about the programs that they're implementing for enterprises, effectively ensuring that no worker will be lost and confused at work.

Less expertise
ERP systems can certainly benefit from the constant administration of IT professionals, but denying access to some and ensuring it for others won't require that organizations hire large IT staffs that are on hand at all times to solve problems and tend to snafus. When lay people can address concerns that arise, they can be trusted to operate ERP systems effectively.