3 Tried and Tested Ways to Increase Revenue with Cloud ERP

Companies are pivoting to cloud ERP to transform their operations and capitalize on global opportunities that further transition them for success.

Last Updated: November 21, 2023

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Revenue is often referred to as the “top line” because it is usually the first line you see on an income statement, profit and loss statement, or corporate earnings report. It represents the total revenue generated by a company from its core operations without subtracting any costs. Investors like to see revenue growth because it signifies potential expansion, market leadership, and business strength.

Conversely, stagnant growth may indicate possible red flags, such as outdated product lines, operational inefficiencies, lack of innovation, or untapped opportunities. As the adage goes, in business, you’re either growing or dying.

Top 5 Challenges Companies Face

Aiming to boost the “top line” might seem straightforward, but numerous challenges can hinder the consistent achievement of that critical objective.

  • In mature markets saturated by fierce global competition, recognizing untapped opportunities and emerging customer segments becomes a daunting challenge.
  • While rapid technological advancements can drive growth, they might also hamper companies that struggle to innovate and adapt to these technological changes.
  • In today’s digital era, consumer preferences shift at unprecedented speeds, with products potentially skyrocketing to fame or plummeting into obscurity overnight.
  • The intricacies of complex global supply chains expose businesses to heightened risks, be it from disruptive events, geopolitical upheavals, or trading constraints.
  • Decision-making processes within large, complex organizations can fail to keep pace with the rapid pace of business today due to bureaucratic inefficiencies and a lack of insight into their market.

Growing a company’s revenue has never been easy, but it seems even more challenging today. The cornerstone to surmounting these hurdles lies in enhanced decision-making rooted in a deeper understanding of your organization, market, and customer base.

So, how does a company gain that level of insight? Rapidly expanding companies are pivoting to cloud ERP to transform their operations and capitalize on global opportunities that further transition them for future success as they reduce their dependence on legacy systems that fail to scale and keep pace with today’s digital world. According to Bloomberg, the public-cloud ERP market could reach $73 billion by 2026Opens a new window , up from $36 billion in 2021. That is an annual growth rate of 15%.

The cloud signifies scalability — one of the chief ways to grow revenue. Cloud ERP systems can easily scale to accommodate more users, more transactions, and more products as your company grows. It means that your business will never outgrow its systems or incur perpetual upgrade costs. However, scalability by itself is not enough, given the widespread shift towards cloud adoption for this very advantage. Companies need an established cloud-based ERP system to incorporate embedded AI to harvest vast amounts of data and integrated real-time analytics to uncover new revenue streams and untapped opportunities — making SAP S/4HANA Cloud the perfect choice. Below are three tried and true ways that SAP S/4HANA Cloud has helped businesses increase their top-line growth.

1. Boosting Compliance and Revenue Simultaneously

LetsGetChecked is a virtual healthcare company that offers at-home testing, telehealth services, and pharmacy capabilities. As a medical technology company, LetsGetChecked must operate under strict regulations, complying with laws like GDPR and HIPAA. Constrained by outdated finance and business management systems, the company needed a robust digital foundation to support its rapid growth and optimize manufacturing operations while accommodating the stringent regulatory requirements of its operational environment. After evaluating multiple solutions, they chose SAP S/4HANA Cloud.

This integration significantly improved their manufacturing output and streamlined management processes. The results were impressive: they achieved direct-to-consumer sales revenue in just three years and saw a 40% reduction in time for end-of-quarter closings. With these successes, LetsGetChecked is well-positioned for sustainable growth and meeting revenue targets while adhering to regulatory standards. The company’s leadership is now planning the next transformation phase, aiming to integrate more operations into their advanced ERP solution for further automation. You can read more about their story hereOpens a new window .

2. Navigating the Challenges of Global Trade

Perhaps there isn’t a better way to grow revenue than to expand your global reach. Once known as China’s “King of Socks,” Europe Xinxin is now the country’s leading clothing company and has managed to broaden both its international footprint and product offerings. Aiming to pivot from experience-based to data-driven operations, Xinxin recognized the need for real-time, high-quality data and a seamless integration of business and financial processes to continue its rapid growth pattern. Their solution? SAP S/4HANA® Cloud.

The company turned to SAP S/4HANA® Cloud to attain accurate, unified, real-time data to optimize inventory management and supply chain transparency and reduce management risks and costs. Not only was the company able to increase sales and profits thanks to insightful real-time data that accelerated sales and production planning, but it was also able to mitigate the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic by rapidly developing an online marketing system integrated with SAP S/4HANA Cloud.

Thanks to a custom inventory analysis they developed, Xinxin achieved a 30% reduction in inventory that culminated in significant indirect profit gains. In addition, one of their clothing lines witnessed a 31% growth rate in Poland within just a year. Thanks to SAP S/4HANA® Cloud, the transition towards an intelligent enterprise has been a total success. You can read more about their story hereOpens a new window .

3. Growing Revenues Along With Sustainability

As a company, SAP is emphasizing its own sustainable goals, and many of its customers are creating innovative solutions that are not only producing green solutions but increasing financial revenues as well. A case in point is Italy’s Alperia SpA, which is leading the charge in the global transition to renewable energy. Beyond its own sustainability initiatives, Alperia introduces innovative green energy offerings such as solar, hydrogen, and decarbonization services. Additionally, they provide intelligent rural and urban energy networks and e-mobility solutions.

The company is now leveraging its SAP suite of solutions to connect existing and future products and services to its customers to maximize customer efficiency, value, and empowerment. The deployment of SAP S/4HANA Cloud has transformed Alperia’s operational efficiency. Not only does it enable more streamlined, cost-effective operations across the group, but it also bolsters visibility and productivity and automates reporting and compliance mechanisms.

Alperia has reduced IT infrastructure maintenance from several weeks to just five days, all while improving uptime performance by 40%. By decommissioning its legacy datacenters alone, the company eliminated a significant capital expenditure. Using the cloud interface, the company now has a single dashboard view of the security status of its systems and can quickly adapt enterprise solutions to industry best standards. With Cloud ERP integration, the company is winning additional customers with new products, services, and business models. Along with a 30% faster time to market, revenues are increasing, and business and sustainability objectives are being met together. As revenues continue to grow, Alperia stands as a testament to the fact that businesses can harmoniously achieve both sustainability and financial objectives. You can read more about their story hereOpens a new window .

Conclusion

Companies face continuing challenges today when it comes to revenue growth, but some are managing to attain or even exceed business objectives by using cloud ERP to integrate their various businesses. The three companies highlighted in this article show how integrating Cloud ERP is more than just an operational decision but a strategic move that unlocks unparalleled growth potential and paves the way for accelerated revenues in the modern digital landscape.

Click here to learn more about SAP S/4HANA Cloud.Opens a new window

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Brad Rudisail
Brad Rudisail is a technical writer and a former IT manager specializing in delivering today’s complex technical subjects in a palatable format to tech-savvy business leaders. Brad has spent 20 years in the IT field as a network engineer, IT manager, instructor and technical writer. His portfolio includes a long assortment of white papers, articles and learning curriculum. He is an accomplished pianist and composer as well as the author of two inspirational books.
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