MTN, SA's second mobile operator and Africa's biggest, has launched - has entered the enterprise resource planning (ERP) space as part of its ongoing convergence strategy.
This comes about seven months after the operator announced it would escalate its business operations in a bid to secure market dominance, starting with a focus on the SME sector.
This morning MTN Business announced a strategic partnership with SAP channel and services partner Britehouse. "Through this partnership, MTN Business becomes one of the first telecommunications providers of the SAP Business One Cloud solution in SA."
The solution, aimed at the local SME market, will be branded MTN Business ERP, and is the first product offering within the MTN Business ERP portfolio. The company says more solutions will be added in the future.
Flow of functions
Chief enterprise business officer at MTN, Kanagaratnam Lambotharan, says MTN Business ERP is a cloud based, integrated business management solution designed for small businesses or subsidiaries of large enterprises.
The solution, he says, integrates all core business functions across a company, including financials, sales, customer relationship management, inventory and operations.
"The purpose of ERP is to facilitate the flow of information between all business functions inside the boundaries of an organisation, as well as to manage outside stakeholders."
Access to MTN's ERP solution is done via an online portal or through an application on a mobile device. Lambotharan says mobility is key in SA, and Africa, where connectivity is 85% mobile. "You have to provide solutions that speak to the mobility factor."
SAP Business One is used in over 120 countries globally, with localised versions offered in certain countries, including the US, UK, Brazil, China - and now SA.
Emerging needs
Lambotharan says there is an increasing need for SAP solutions in SA - and the continent at large - particularly among smaller enterprises.
Simon Carpenter, chief customer officer at SAP, says cloud solutions make the most sense for the SME market. "As an SME, you want to run your business - not IT - and you don't have as many resources as the larger corporates. The SME market is a strong focus for SAP."
Emerging economies like SA, says Carpenter, are where growth is happening - and SMEs are the driving force. "The large incumbents are not the ones making the waves; it is the smaller entrepreneurial companies that are bringing change and progress to the market."
The solution will initially be available only in SA, with other African markets being included "as the partnership tracks forward", he says.
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