ERP Integration: Connecting Core Business Systems
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are the operational backbone of manufacturing, distribution, and enterprise organisations — managing inventory, production, procurement, finance, and fulfilment in one system. Integrating ERP with your digital channels (e-commerce, CRM, customer portals) enables real-time data flows and eliminates costly manual synchronisation.
Common ERP Integration Points
- Product catalogue: ERP is the system of record for products, SKUs, pricing, and stock levels — sync to e-commerce and customer portals
- Inventory: Real-time stock levels from ERP to sales channels — prevents overselling
- Order management: Orders from e-commerce and CRM flow to ERP for fulfilment processing
- Shipping and despatch: Despatch confirmation and tracking from ERP to customer-facing systems
- Invoicing: Sales orders in ERP trigger invoice creation in accounts receivable
- Customer accounts: Customer credit limits, account status, and balance from ERP to sales systems
Major ERP Platforms
- SAP S/4HANA: Enterprise scale — OData and REST APIs via SAP Integration Suite
- Microsoft Dynamics 365: Strong API ecosystem, good Microsoft stack integration
- Oracle NetSuite: Cloud ERP with REST and SuiteScript APIs — popular among mid-market
- Sage 200/Sage X3: UK-popular mid-market ERP with API access
- Unleashed, Cin7, Fishbowl: Inventory-focused ERP for e-commerce and manufacturing — generally better API access than legacy systems