When you've finally decided to implement an ERP in your company, it's time to choose which type you need: vertical or horizontal. The answer isn't simple; you'll only know which one to choose when you read the distinctions between the two. Are you ready to learn the differences and advantages of each? Join us!

ERP systems are software solutions that automate most business management processes, helping to improve internal communication across all departments. Ultimately, implementing an ERP saves you time and money.

Horizontal ERP

Advantages:

Horizontal or general-purpose ERPs are management programs that cover the standard management functions of most companies, primarily sales and accounting management. Therefore, they are an absolutely essential tool for any company, regardless of its size.

Horizontal ERPs are more affordable and easier and faster to implement. They also offer a high level of regular updates, are frequently updated by their developers, and are generally scalable, meaning they can adapt as your business grows.

Disadvantages:

If the business needs to address specific and complex processes, the horizontal system most likely won't be able to handle them. This means we'll have to invest more money to fix them.

Vertical ERP

Advantages:

It's an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution tailored to a specific niche. One of the advantages of a vertical ERP is its greater adaptability when addressing specific processes not found in other horizontal ERP software. Updates will be tailored to the evolving needs of the company's industry. It will also provide process tracking maps through projections, charts, and virtual diagrams for visualization . Furthermore, it's adaptable to other business management systems, whether a CRM or another ERP . The goal is clear: to increase efficiency.

Disadvantages:

Vertical ERP systems are more expensive the more specialized they are because they require significant development time. Since they are custom-built software, it can sometimes be difficult to find one that perfectly suits your company's needs. Vertical ERP systems also require substantial storage space, increasing maintenance costs, as servers must be installed or cloud infrastructure expanded to support them.

In short, the two main differences between horizontal and vertical ERP are that horizontal ERP offers solutions for any type of business, while vertical ERP only works on specific solutions for a specific sector. Furthermore, horizontal ERP has a low licensing cost, while vertical ERP has a higher licensing cost. Therefore, you'll need to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of both types of ERP to ensure you choose the best one for your company.

As we mentioned earlier, choosing an ERP that suits your company's needs isn't easy, so we wanted to give you some guidelines to help you choose the one that's right for you. Even so, if you're still unsure about choosing an ERP, we can help. Don't hesitate to contact us ; we'd be happy to assist you!