Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is a popular method for managing business operations, particularly those which involve financial management. Made up of an integrated suite of business applications, financial ERP modules offer a wide range of services from basic in-house accounting to calculating employee compensation.

The financial module of ERP software is designed to streamline all your business processes by first consolidating all your accounting data into one accessible location. This information, gathered from various departments, clients, vendors and suppliers, can then be reviewed or submitted into automated reports, providing you with more accurate data about your finances at all times.

Finance Module Features
The Best Benefits
Best ERP Finance Software Options

Features of ERP Financial Modules

ERP finance modules often have the following features for handling your financial services:

Accounting: Record all company revenues and expenses, from incoming sales to outgoing invoices, in a general ledger and balance sheet
Accounts payable (AP): Manage all business expenses owed by your organization to third-party creditors, vendors, suppliers, and others who have provided products or services
Accounts receivable (AR): Track all incoming payments from clients or customers to ensure balanced books and reduce lost revenue from missed payments
Budgeting and forecasting: Determine your corporate financial plans by estimating future revenues and expenses, then create and approve departmentalized budgets for better workforce planning
Billing and invoicing: Create quotes and send invoices for the products and services rendered by your company, then track outstanding bills and paid invoices for services rendered or products sold
Cash management: Keep tabs on all physical cash flow your company has, such as employee _per die_m or reimbursement funds; sometimes called treasury management
Multi-currency accounting: Record financial transactions in any base currency or convert between different currencies
Payroll tracking: Accurately track payroll during each pay period to ensure it reflects employee time, attendance, and other compensation factors
Wage compensation and benefits management: Determine employee wages, benefits, and other forms of compensation based on past performance, annual bonuses, and other factors
Profit tracking and analysis: Gather real-time data on your company's ROI to influence future decision making in increasing profitability
Fixed asset management: Continually calculate the value of depreciating fixed assets related to your business, ranging from office supplies to vehicles
Inventory management: Track on-hand inventory assets and associated costs for storage and transportation
Reports: Generate financial statements regarding different areas of your company with highly visualized data to easily communicate the effectiveness of business decisions

These are just the primary features included in ERP finance modules. There are often others available, either included or as an additional customization option. While finance and accounting are always the priority, it is common to have functions for risk management and even human resources (HR) from the larger ERP vendors.

The Benefits of ERP Finance Modules

There are many great benefits to turning all your accounting processes over to an ERP finance module:

Real-time Financial Data across Every Department

Financial management impacts every department of your company. In the absence of a modern ERP system, companies may depend on independent software in each department which can lead to miscommunication whenever two or more departments need to work together. An ERP finance module can help ease communication between each area of your business when dealing with shared financial matters.

Additionally, an ERP system is beneficial for coordinating business dealings with both internal departments and with third-party vendors. Cloud ERP systems are easily accessible from mobile devices, further increasing your company's ability to interact with customers and clients anywhere in the world.

More than Just Accounting

ERP software has many functions beyond just accounting. Along with financial features, ERP software includes modules for:

Business intelligence (BI)
Customer relationship management (CRM)
Human resources (HR)
Supply chain management

These different modules make it much easier to streamline all your operations into one system. And there are even industry-specific versions of ERP software include:

By offering ERP solutions based on your exact industry, you can always find the right software for your organization's needs.

Save on Training and Implementation

Integrating an ERP system with finance, BI, HR, and other modules into your company's back-end and front-office processes can greatly reduce the costs necessary to implement different software into your business. And it's far easier to train your employees on a single software than several dozen independent products. Save installation costs and training time by adding an all-in-one ERP software to your business operations.

Further, using an ERP finance module to handle your accounting can reduce human error caused by manual data entry. Without automated accounting software, a single transposed digit or duplicated number can throw your entire general ledger out of balance, leading to additional man hours spent tracking down the mistake.