An ERP system contains all the important data of your company or organization. Many companies choose - for this reason - to have the hosting of their ERP package in-house. Yet there are good arguments for choosing an ERP in the cloud. We discuss six of them.

In the world of ERP systems, you see that the vast majority of ERP systems run on large servers located and maintained internally at companies. This seems like the most secure option for storing important company data. But is it? That remains to be seen...

The disadvantages of on-premises

In fact, hosting an ERP system in-house also has some significant drawbacks. First of all, you need someone in your company with expertise. Someone capable of setting up and maintaining the ERP infrastructure. Try finding those in today's job market.

And once you have found someone, in many cases that person is the only one who knows "how it all works. That also makes it an immediate business risk. After all, if this person gets sick, drops out or leaves, you have an acute problem as an organization.

Finally, you must also have space and budget for your own server. Servers are generally big guys and must be located in a secure, cooled space. Their purchase price is high: so, in addition to the cost of ERP implementation, you need to have money available to make this big investment.

...and the benefits of being in the cloud

These are the main benefits of hosting your ERP system in the cloud.

1. Speed
   Setting up and setting up a cloud-based ERP system takes much less time than setting up and setting up an ERP system running on an in-house server. The speed of the ERP package in the cloud is not inferior to the speed of an in-house server and is constantly monitored by the external party. Do you need extra power? Then this can often be scaled flexibly.
2. Flexibility
   Speaking of flexibility ... an ERP system in the cloud is also generally more flexible than an on-premise installation. Where before, only your sales and service staff would work off-site; now almost everyone works from home sometimes.If you are using an on-premise system, they will have to log into your company data network via a VPN connection before they can access the ERP system. With a cloud-based ERP system, on the other hand, logging in via browser is commonplace: anywhere, anytime and low-threshold.
3. Scalability
   The natural course of many businesses is growth and scaling. That means today's ERP system must be ready for future expansion. Is your ERP system running in the cloud? If so, it's simple to use more space. If your system is running on its own server, expansion is often a lot more complicated.
4. Safety
   This argument needs some explanation. In fact, cloud-based systems have an image of being less secure than on-premise installations. However: this image has long since ceased to be true. Anno 2023, cloud-based ERP systems are just as secure as on-premise installations. Built-in security checks, firewalls, backups, periodic security audits and advanced user roles make it difficult (not to mention virtually impossible) for hackers to gain access to your critical business data.
5. Cost
   This argument is a no-brainer. The cost of a cloud-based ERP system often seems higher than an on-premises installation. Yet monthly costs are generally not that bad. And remember, however, that an on-premise installation incurs monthly costs in addition to acquisition costs. These include a higher utility bill, maintenance, replacement and the salary costs of the employee responsible for it.
6. No worries
   Perhaps the most important argument for an ERP system in the cloud is that you are completely unburdened. Keeping your ERP system 'running' is no longer your responsibility. You can outsource it completely and not worry about it. It doesn't get any easier than that, does it?