Why Should Businesses Choose NetSuite Over SAP Business One?

As you are now acquainted with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions and the advantages of a real cloud ERP, you must be on the search for the most suitable one to suit your specific business requirements.  

As per the recent report from Panorama Consulting Solutions in the USA, 95% of businesses migrated a major part or their complete operations to ERP. Today, most businesses from small, medium to large enterprises including public, private, non-profit and distribution companies, are improving their processes through automation. 

And this trend is not expected to come to a close any time soon. Indeed, the ERP industry's market will touch almost $50 b by 2025, according to this report. So, if you still believe ERP deployment is yet another IT buzzword, think twice. Let’s read about this cloud-based solution and why it is hugely popular. 

What is an ERP Solution? 

In the current business scenario, being slow and steady will not make you win the race. One needs to make a dash while being attentive till the endgame. Look back to when you struggled with data loss, tracing invoices and lack of understanding of projects leading to disruption of processes. That was a time when your expenses peaked, and you wasted a lot of money because of the imprecise financial reports.    

All these pain points become your competitors' gain. But you can overcome these obstacles by adopting an ERP solution. This software helps businesses handle their processes more efficiently. It enables enterprises to smoothly manage daily activities, including accounting, purchasing, project management, risk reduction and compliance apart from supply chain processes.   

Its 3 distinct characteristics 

• Integrated platform

• Cloud-based 

• Provides a variety of features for business management 

Why Would You Require an ERP Software Provider 

If you are seeking a solution for your enterprise in...

• Managing and organizing data 

• Simplifying business processes and activities 

• Consolidating all processes in a single platform 

• Having Real-time access to the details and insights 

• Delivering an improved customer experience with better reporting 

…then it's high time to abandon your obsolete system and allow ERP to see its wonderful results.   

Implementing such a cloud-based solution in your organization enhances its productivity and saves time. Major modules in an ERP solution are:  

• Finances and budgeting

• Customer relationship management

• Order processing 

• Human resources 

• Supply chain handling 

• Data processing 

• Manufacturing 

While going through these modules you may think that, with these numerous capabilities available, will every ERP cater to the specific requirements of a business? According to a survey conducted by Ultra Consultants in 2019, 67% of manufacturers and suppliers are satisfied with their ERP implementation. Why did the rest of the implementations not provide the expected results?  

Choosing the appropriate ERP solution plays a vital role in the success of a business even if it's challenging and time-consuming. For successful implementation, every business requires an eminent implementation partner. Studies reveal that NetSuite and SAP Business One are two of the favored ERP solutions.   

As both solutions are leaders in the field, how can you pick the best?  

NetSuite is a cloud-based ERP software used by 32,000 rapidly expanding enterprises worldwide. This platform comprises a set of capabilities that helps businesses manage their operations, understand performance, and attain major efficiency gains and slash costs.  

SAP Business One is a unified and cost-effective Enterprise Resource Planning system to handle your complete operations, including accounting, inventory, storing, sales, customer relationships to analytics and reporting.

Difference between NetSuite and SAP Business One 

1. Implementation

It is all about the procedures, automated methods and activities employed to make software available and acquirable to the end-users. The ERP implementation method clearly details when, where and how you can utilize your chosen ERP.  

NetSuite Implementation

The software is a real cloud system. Additionally, the mobile application for IOS and Android in NetSuite allows you to undertake transactions and access reports in real-time.

SAP Business One Implementation

Initially, it was developed for on-premise use. It can be implemented in the cloud or through a hybrid configuration (cloud and on-prem). One can acquire SAP through mobile devices even though it depends on third-party solutions for mobile access.

2. Customization

At certain times, basic ERP functionality does not cater to every business requirement. In such cases, the software must be adaptable to satisfy a particular industry or usability needs.  

NetSuite Customization 

It is easier as it demands less coding. The platform employs APIs that ensure simple customization and scalability. Moreover, extensive NetSuite extensions extend the system by including non-native functionality to satisfy particular business requirements. They include editing, altering, and modifying records, tables, forms and so forth.

SAP B1 Customization

SAP’s dashboard can be customized as per the requirements of the customer. It enables them to view only those tables and fields required for their work.   

Yet, it is significantly difficult to adapt SAP B1’s native functionality as it needs a specific understanding of diverse APIs. Additionally, upgrades need relevant IT support and can be both costly and difficult to implement. 

3. Integration 

Enterprises regularly need to associate and bridge certain business solutions to do away with manual data entry and enhance efficiency. This is attained through system integration. The two ERP solutions have APIs that permit their systems to interact with others directly or via interface solutions.

NetSuite Integration 

Its best advantage is diverse add-on choices and the reality that it is developed with Application Programming Interfaces and an Integration Management System that simplifies integrations with other source systems. Integration via APIs is becoming a norm since it is impractical to have previously developed connectors for all obtainable systems.    

SAP B1 Integration

As SAP interfaces with SAP-certified applications, custom coding is unnecessary. Indeed, production, invoicing, manufacturing, sales, scheduling and shipping activities can be easily consolidated with other applications. SAP has unlimited add-ons than NetSuite and requires an open architecture for integration with third-party apps.  

4. Analytics and Reporting

Businesses require automated analytics and reporting to make knowledgeable choices and prepare well in advance. Other ERP platforms gather data without providing useful Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in exchange, while NetSuite ERP and SAP ERP do not. 

NetSuite

Its SuiteAnalytics provides handy reporting equipment for creating real-time reports and obtaining insight into functions and operations.

SAP B1 

The most effective real-time reporting, automatic computations, and tracking are offered by SAP Analytics. When compared with its competitor, it connects with High-performance Analytical Appliance (HANA) and includes an Excel tool for data analysis.  

Many SAP Analytics capabilities, however, need separate licenses, which might be prohibitively expensive for small enterprises.

5. Licensing

There are some differences in licensing for both solutions.

NetSuite 

There are several editions of the software, consisting of midsize, average, and premium. They can be purchased directly or through a partner or solution provider like Jobin & Jismi. Selecting the proper license might be a complicated process though.

SAP B1

License for SAP B1 can only be obtained through authorized resellers. 

6. System Updates

Technology is undergoing changes regularly, and so are ERP solutions.

NetSuite

Its updates are automatic since they are executed in a multi-tenant atmosphere. That is, whenever the solution executes an upgrade, every system gets updated simultaneously.   

In addition, these updates will not affect the customizations since they do not disturb custom code and integrations. 

SAP B1 

In this case, one can upgrade it as and when required because its upgrades do not happen in a multi-tenancy atmosphere. Even though the flexibility gained through this offers extra security, system updates should be handled thoughtfully with dedicated teams to prevent adversities to custom code and workflows.    

These are the major differences between both software. Leading advisory firm Technology Evaluation Centers helps evaluate and compare the best software solutions closely. They prepared an Oracle NetSuite ERP vs SAP Business One Discrete ERP Comparison Report. Evaluation was done based on parameters such as:

1. Financials

On the analysis of functions and features associated with financials delivered by both the software, NetSuite has a 100% support score whereas SAP B1 gains 86%. The former is advanced when it comes to the features that are backed by the extensions from partners.  

2. Human Resources 

In terms of human resources, NetSuite scores 97% and SAP B1 stands at 80% whereas their industry average is 81%. Both software have similar levels of support in this domain. 

3. Manufacturing Management 

In this domain, NetSuite obtains a 97% support score whereas SAP B1 gets only 71% while the industry average is 94%.  

4. Inventory Management 

Here, NetSuite is stronger as it scores 98% whereas the other software has a support score of 85%. 

5. Purchasing Management

Among the two solutions, NetSuite possesses powerful features for Purchasing Management. It scores 98%, while SAP B1 obtains 87%. 

6. Quality Management 

Again, NetSuite clinches the highest support score of 98% in quality management whereas SAP B1 gets 72%.

7. Sales Management 

In terms of sales management, each software has a comparable score. NetSuite has 95% and SAP B1 scores 87%. Their industry average is 94%.

8. Product Technology 

In this domain, NetSuite scores 89%, which is much higher than SAP B1, which has 71%.   

Considering all the facts detailed above, you will get an idea of the best and most appropriate software that suits your specific business requirements. The TEC report seems to imply that NetSuite has a significant advantage over its competitor because of significantly more ERP software capabilities and functions.  

Choose the best for your business by evaluating the above details. The team of professionals at Jobin & Jismi will guide you throughout.  

References 

1. Oracle NetSuite ERP vs SAP Business One Comparison. (n.d.). TEC. https://www3.technologyevaluation.com/selection-tools/comparison-reports/21832/sap-business-one-vs-netsuite-erp-comparison-report 

2. 2018 ERP Report. (2017). Panorama Consulting Solutions. Retrieved September 20, 2022, from https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/2184246/2018%20ERP%20Report.pdf