Automated enterprise management systems: technologies, program and functions

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Automated enterprise control systems - this is exactly what the current industry is in dire need of. Process automation can significantly increase the productivity and efficiency of organizations. In addition, this has become relevant also because at present there is a global computerization of almost all branches of human life.

General characteristics

The automated enterprise management system (AMS) is currently used in the Russian Federation according to the MRP and ERP methodology. Both of these directions are recognized all over the world.

As for the appearance of the first automation systems, these were material resource planning systems, they are also MRP. This direction was developed and first used in the United States in the 1960s. It is worth noting that ontoday it has not lost its relevance at all.

However, the automated enterprise management system (AMS) is the most common nowadays, it is often called informational. It was she who received the reduction in the form of ERP. As for the general information about the introduction of such technologies, then, as in the case of any other major change, it could not be painless. However, today it is fair to say that a certain number of problems have been formalized, well studied, and effective methods have been developed that will allow them to be solved without much damage to the enterprise itself. If you study the problems and take care of their solution even before you start implementing an automated enterprise management system, you can greatly facilitate this process.

General information about the automated control system

If we define an automated system, then it is a set of software, technical, information and several other complexes, as well as certain actions of specially trained personnel. The actions of employees are usually aimed at solving certain tasks of planning and managing various types of activities in the enterprise.

The use of an automated enterprise management system is intended to optimize and increase the efficiency of the management staff at the facility. In addition, the same rule applies to the work of some other personnel services that operate onenterprise. Experts in this field agree that the use of such a set of tools, which helps to more effectively manage any enterprise, significantly increases the already existing competitiveness, and can also, in principle, bring the object to an acceptable level so that it can compete with other companies.

Automated enterprise management systems play a very important role in the efficient work of managers. If you believe the statistics, then approximately 60% of the manager's working time is spent only on compiling reports and documentary tasks for the surrounding staff. The presence of an automated system will allow the employee to get quick access to the information he needs. In addition, an automated enterprise management information system can also be used in order to quickly calculate wages for each employee, based on many factors.

Classification by equipment

There are several groups of automated systems that are used to manage an enterprise, depending on their functional equipment:

• The first are multifunctional systems that are designed to perform the full range of tasks necessary for the complete and effective management of the facility.
• There are expert analysis systems. This complex is aimed at monitoring the main trends and directions of developmentbusinesses.
• Separately allocated systems that will allow you to calculate the wages of staff.
• Last in terms of functional features are programs that will allow you to manage personnel. They are designed to effectively solve any problems related specifically to employees. They can store all contact information for each individual employee, their work schedule, the date of hire and dismissal, salary paid and many other important information.

Tasks of automation systems

Here it is worth dwelling in more detail on the main task of the expert program. Its primary goal is to search and compare the most diverse characteristics of the applicant for the required position. The use of this automated enterprise management information system will allow you to easily find the most promising employees in the right department. However, it is worth noting here that the use of such expert programs is quite expensive, and therefore it would be advisable from an economic point of view to apply them to already fairly large facilities.

Another rather important fact. It is best to integrate automated systems only together with other programs that will be used for accounting and other activities of these employees, that is, accountants. This feature is due to the fact that the leader will be able to make objective decisions only if he has allup-to-date information about the state of the enterprise and its employees.

As it has already become clear, an automated control system as part of an enterprise system is a complex of many programs. However, they are not all the same and are divided into several more groups, depending on the nature of the production in which they are used. They can be continuous type, discrete, that is, single, small-scale or medium-scale production, as well as continuous-discrete type, that is, large-scale or in-line mass production.

Basic principles of creation

The automated control system as part of the enterprise system began to be actively used back in the 1970s. At the same time, its effectiveness has also been confirmed.

There are several basic principles for creating an automated control system for different classes:

• There is a so-called principle of new tasks. In other words, these are optimal tasks that can be solved using conventional computing technology.
• The second principle can be called complex. In this case, during the development of an automated control system, it is necessary to approach the solution of a complex of such tasks as technical, economic and organizational.
• Another principle can be called the principle of the first leader. In this case, it means that the development of programs for an automated enterprise management system should be carried out with the participation and under the control of the head of this facility. This is true for the development of a large-scale automated control system, whichwill manage the entire enterprise. If one of the subsystems of the automated control system is being developed, then the participation of not the head, but the head of the functional service, for which the complex is being developed, is allowed.
• Another principle is often referred to as continuous system development. In this case, it is assumed that the number of tasks to be solved will constantly increase, which means that the system will constantly develop. In addition, new tasks will not replace previously implemented ones.
• The next principle is modularity and typing. It consists in the fact that there will be a selection and development of separate and independent parts of the system that will be used in various kinds of subsystems.
• The last principle is quite simple, and it consists in automating the circulation of documents, as well as creating a single information base throughout the enterprise.

It is worth noting that most of the principles apply even to the creation of an automated management system for hotel enterprises. This is especially true of the last point, where the common database is a key element.

Main development problem

It is worth considering several main problems, as well as ways to solve them, which may arise during the formation of an automated control system, and it is worth starting with the main one.

The first common problem is the lack of a specific management task in the enterprise.

In the literature on the automated enterprise management system, this problem is given the most significantplace, as it is quite difficult to solve. In addition, it is often confused with another item, namely the reorganization of the enterprise structure. However, this problem is much more global, since it also includes philosophical and psychological aspects, in addition to management methodology. In more detail about the problem, it lies in the fact that many leaders manage their enterprises based only on their own experience, vision and needs. At the same time, they quite often use actually unstructured or poorly structured data on the dynamics of growth and development of their object.

If you turn to such a director and ask him to describe his structure of activities of any of the departments responsible to him, then most likely the matter will come to a standstill. It is for this reason that the competent setting of management tasks is the most important factor in the successful development and implementation of automated project management systems in an enterprise.

It is important to note here that correctly set tasks will positively influence not only the development of the object as a whole, but also the development of the automation process itself separately. As for the solution to this problem, everything is rather bad here for some reason. Firstly, on the territory of the Russian Federation, a special national approach to setting management tasks has not yet been fully developed. Therefore, the experience of Western management is used, but in many cases it is not adequate in relation to the situation in Russia. Secondly, the experience still appliesRussian-Soviet times in the formulation of these tasks. In this case, everything is somewhat better, and many principles are still in harmony with the realities of life, but at the same time they are less and less able to withstand general market competition.

Based on the foregoing, we can draw the following conclusion: before proceeding with the implementation of an automated enterprise resource management system, it is necessary to formalize as clearly as possible all those control loops that, in general, need to be automated. Most often, this requires the involvement of experienced consultants from outside, which will lead to unnecessary expenses. However, they will be significantly less than the money spent on a failed automation project.

Other problems

The second problem, which, as mentioned earlier, is somewhat similar to the first, but it is less global. This is the need for a partial reorganization of the structure, as well as the activities of the enterprise during the implementation of the automated control system.

Another frequently occurring problem is the need to change the approach to working with incoming information. In addition, it will be necessary to reconsider the principles of doing business as a whole. Many managers are unprepared for such a problem as the resistance of employees in the field to the introduction of an automated control system for an industrial enterprise. And this, in turn, can become quite a significant problem. Another difficulty, which is also related to employees, is the temporary increase in workload during the actual implementation process.

Among other things, we will have to solve such a problem as the formation of a specialized group that will not only competently integrate the system, but also accompany it. In addition, such a group will definitely need an experienced leader.

Solving problems with employees

Since many directors are often unprepared for this problem, it is worth considering it in more detail.

First is the local resistance. It is worth saying that this is encountered much more often, and the problem itself can either significantly delay the implementation process, or even completely disrupt it, which is unacceptable. Most often this is caused by several purely human factors.

Firstly, many people, oddly enough, are afraid of innovation and are more prone to conservatism. For example, someone who has worked in a paper-based warehouse for many years will find it quite painful to switch to a computerized system. Secondly, many will begin to worry that they may lose their jobs, as they can be replaced by a machine, although before that they were considered indispensable in this enterprise. In addition, the implementation of such a system can increase accountability for any actions that employees take in the field, which can also put a lot of pressure on them.

In order to minimize the damage from the occurrence of such a problem, or even reduce it to nothing, the leader needs to contribute as much as possible to the group that will be engaged in the development of automated control systems. In addition, it is necessary to carry out high-quality explanatory work with personnel andsolve a few more problems:

• Give everyone in the enterprise the understanding that system integration is inevitable.
• The head of the implementation team must have sufficient authority, since even subconscious resistance of high-ranking employees (for example, top managers) is possible.

Solving the problem of workload

Next, it is worth understanding that integrated automated enterprise management systems at the stage of their installation will significantly increase the burden on employees. Naturally, this is due to the fact that, in addition to performing their daily duties, employees also have to master new equipment, engage in self-education, etc. In addition, during the pilot implementation, as well as a certain amount of time after, employees will have to work as the old system as well as the new one. Because of this, the integration process can be delayed, as employees will say that they do not have enough time to learn new technologies, as they are always busy with their direct duties.

In such cases, a good leader should do the following:

• Firstly, it is worth introducing a temporary system of rewards and gratitude, which will increase the motivation of employees to master new technologies.
• Secondly, certain organizational measures should be taken that will reduce the time allotted for mastering new knowledge.

MRP and ERP technology

As mentioned earlier, there are two directionsAPCS, which are currently used around the world. However, these systems are not without drawbacks.

If we talk about MRP, then the main disadvantage of the system is that when calculating the need for materials, the production capacity of the enterprise, the loading of these capacities, the cost of labor, and so on, are not taken into account. This was the impetus for the development of MRP II, designed for production resource planning. Over time, systems for accounting for other costs of the enterprise were added to it. Thus, in the future, an automated enterprise management system was formed, the function of which is to take into account all those industries that the first MRP did not calculate. It was this automated control system that later became known as the ERP-system for automated enterprise management.

To sum up all of the above, we can say with confidence that automated systems have come a long way and are now an effective means of managing an enterprise, but at the same time they need to be very competently implemented and managed. Of course, there is room for improvement in the systems themselves.