What is the difference between customization and configuration

Home Blog When it comes to making your ERP system your own, there are a lot of terms that can get thrown around, including customization and configuration. Requires deep product knowledge Configurations could be carried out identically on any instance of the same ERP software Setup existing features to meet requirements ERP Customization and Configuration Examples Here are some examples of the more specific ERP implementation activities, and how they line up to configuration and customization.

Personalization — Mostly Configuration Change field labels utilizing internal nomenclature Creation of roles specific to the organization Creation of business intelligence specific to the organization Tailoring — Mostly Configuration Modification of existing reports to reflect the business requirements Enhancement of existing interfaces to reflect the business requirement e.

Hiding of fields, change in flow of field entry that does not impact the business logic Addition of business specific fields or tables for the collection of essential business information that does not impact processing of transactions or calculations Automation — Some Configuration, Some Customization Development of workflow or Business Process Automation BPM Modification of solution process to remove or add steps as per the business requirements Addition of fields or tables to be utilized in performing calculations or automation of processes Integration — Some Configuration, Some Customization Development of integration points for importing data Development of data exports Extending — Mostly Customization Development of new functionality within existing modules Development of new solution functionality for specific business requirements outside of existing modules Ready for a Cloud ERP?

Get eGuide. Some would argue that customizable solutions offer greater flexibility in regard to integration as well. However, configurable solutions are often easier to integrate, especially if the software provider offers application programming interfaces APIs. With standard APIs, customers could write their own integrations, but more often, software vendors create an ecosystem of partners willing to create API-based integrations to upstream or downstream systems like enterprise resource planning ERP , computer-aided design CAD , and customer relationship management CRM systems.

So, configurable solutions with APIs offer the simplest and easiest way to support business processes that span more than a single system. And, the use of APIs ensures that future releases will be designed so integrations will work as the primary software solution evolves.

With a customized solution, there is no guarantee that the solution will easily upgrade or that integrations based on customized code will work going forward. Both on-premises and cloud-based solutions can offer customizable or configurable approaches. But true multi-tenant cloud solutions offer shared infrastructure to scale and provide lower costs.

These multi-tenant solutions are architected from the ground up to maximize the consumer experience and ensure easy upgrades and greater scalability with configuration built into the model. So, back to customization considerations Competitive Advantage: Your unique solution has features that your competitor may not, which could give you a leg up.

Insightful Reporting: Customized reports or tables can reveal new perspectives on your data. Upgrade Concerns: Customized software can sometimes break or misbehave after a software update, which can mean potential downtime for your team. Add-Ons vs. Customization Weighing the benefits and risks of customization is something you should do with your software consultant and your management team.

So, in conclusion, what did we learn here? Configuration uses the capabilities already in your system to set up security protocols, plugins, and other necessary features. It does not require coding. Customizations are optional, but often highly sought after for businesses that wish to build on the out-of-the-box features of their existing solution.

While it can add to your initial investment, it also can also be extremely beneficial to your teams and how they work. It is what you do to have the system be able to execute your business processes the way you want to be configures the system to meet the needs of your business by using the existing data. It includes the physical layout, interconnections and functional characteristics of the system.