business and its individual salespeople are capable of achieving. Most of the industry’s largest distributors have highly customized versions of established, off-the-shelf ERPs from companies that provide technology for many industries, such as Oracle NetSuite or Acumatica. Meanwhile, promo industry business service providers like Essent, commonsku, Facilisgroup, SAGE and others can provide the majority of what certain distributors need. When it comes to ERPs, it might not be about which distributorship has the best system but whether a firm has quality solutions for its unique problems. Building From Scratch If you want something to fit your needs, then perhaps the best route might be to build or customize it yourself. Increasingly, that is becoming the path taken by some of the industry’s largest distributors. It should be noted, however, that by and large, it is only those companies operating on a much bigger scale than the rest of the industry that are able to take on such a task. Building and customizing an ERP from the ground up could potentially cost a company hundreds of thousands, or potentially even millions, of dollars. Large distributors like Proforma, iPROMOTEu, Geiger and others have essentially created proprietary technology specifically for their companies’ needs, and customization is indeed the No. 1 reward. Each would argue that their system is the best for one reason or another. “The strongest attribute of our internal system is the flexibility and speed at which we can make changes and/or add functionality,” says Dave Kneram, iPROMOTEu’s vice president of technology. Proforma reaps the same benefits with their system. Others say likewise. “We built with the latest framework and the latest language,” Muzzillo says of Provision, which is supported by a Proforma technology team of nearly 80 people. “It’s all customizable. We can plug anything we want into it. We can build anything we want off of it. Everything that someone says is important to them, we can make it a part of it.” In the minds of these DIY companies, the “off-the-shelf” offerings available for purchase are outdated, and while that’s likely a less expensive option than building your own, it is still a significant expense for something that might not perfectly meet their needs. How well those available ERPs work for your company may change as you grow. “iPROMOTEu started with a thirdparty ERP product in 2002, which met our needs at the time,” Kneram says. “However, as our affiliate base grew, we increased our back-office support offerings and customized the product into our own ERP system that provided added features and ultimately a competitive advantage.” This is not just a matter of ambition for companies of this size. The reality is that they are operating on a very large scale and are designing ERPs for exactly that reason. “We built the platform from the ground up for the multimilliondollar distributor,” Muzzillo says. “We didn’t build it for the under-$1 million distributor. We figured if we built it for a multimillion-dollar distributor, then it would work for the smaller distributor.” A Mix-And-Match Approach If customization and flexibility is the ideal result of an ERP, then it What Does An ERP Do? • Workflow Planning • Data Analysis • Web Automation • Inventory Management • Financial Reporting • Customer Resource Management • Accounting • Human Resources • Production Processes Piyawat Nuchjumroon / Shutterstock.com Digital Transformation | FEATURE | NOVEMBER 2022 | 47
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