Sage 500 ERP addresses our organizational substance issue of operating many teams all over the world (APAC, EMEA, America) at the same time without having to converge at an office and allows for multiple users coordinating efforts at the same time with either being at different ends of the world.
Pros
Cloud-based
Automatization
External add-on modules.
Cons
Better messaging system
Built in OCR
Some key features are not visible at first glance.
Likelihood to Recommend
I belive it is a Tech firm's ERP system, hands down. It may or may not be suitable if we are talking about a small firm but, for medium to large corporations it is a serious contender for ERP system of the world!
Sage 500 is being used by my organization in all departments. From field report entries to subcontractor management, to accounting. We utilize this program for all of our construction needs. All purchases and employees are being accounted for on this program. I personally utilize their change order management/change request management. It's being used on each project and from headquarters as well.
Pros
Sage is the one-stop-shop for all of our needs. We're able to control contracts, subcontracts, and field reports from the program.
Another strength is the ability to database all the information and export it to excel. This makes data-based investigations a breeze.
The ability for Timberscan to be imported to Sage is a huge help with invoice management. Prior to this it all had to be done manually and slowed the process to an essential halt as there are thousands of invoices per month.
Cons
Sage has a huge issue with User interface. The program itself is non-intuitive and I believe suffers from Paralysis by Analysis.
There are too many overlapping issues in the program. They use uncommon vernacular in their operations that leaves the user unsure about whether or not the changes they entered will stick.
Sage is extraordinarily cumbersome for a program that has such functionality. If they're able to simplify the language and the modules within the data entry, I will recommend it, but as of now it's sub-par for this industry.
Likelihood to Recommend
Sage is wonderful for payroll and employee management. Although it has the capabilities to be a one-stop-shop program, it seriously lacks the interface necessary for wide use. I've had to consult Sage professionals on numerous occasions to explain and walk me through the program as there are so many redundancies. This program has wonderful potential, but they need to update the software and user interface before I can recommend it to any colleague.
Sage 500 ERP is used throughout our organization for core accounting functions (Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Cash Management and General Ledger), distribution (Inventory, Purchasing and Sales) and Project Accounting. Sage 500 ERP provides quick and easy access to actionable data through standard reports and inquiries. The system is easy to use, with most tasks having drill-into, drill-down or drill-around to related tasks and data.
Pros
Multi-Company processing, including intercompany transactions within Accounts Payable, Purchasing and General Ledger.
Handles Multi-Currency transactions with ease.
Handles multiple business entities (warehouses, divisions, regions, locations, departments, etc.) with reporting at each level.
Inquiry screens (called Business Insights Explore/Analyzer tasks) are easy to personalize by the user, showing the data you want, in the order you want, with sorting, filtering and aggregation (Count, Average, sub-total, etc.) as you need. And all of the data from these tasks can be explorted to Excel if additional "slicing-and-dicing" is needed.
MANY options for importing data into the system, and the Customizer module allows you to personalize screens by adding/hiding fields, renaming fields, etc.
Cons
The application is very functional, but the interface is a little "stale" compared to more modern applications.
The underlying client software is written in an old version of Microsoft Visual Basic. I suppose SOME DAY, Microsoft will be discontinuing, although Microsoft has its own ERP software written in that same code.
Likelihood to Recommend
Sage 500 ERP is great for companies with core accounting needs, distributors, and discrete manufacturers. Some areas, such as process manufacturing, would require a companion product from an ISV for the software to be truly functional. Some areas, such as construction or retail apparel, may simply not be well-served.
VU
Verified User
Consultant in Information Technology (51-200 employees)
We currently use Sage 500 in purchasing and in the finance/accounting department.
Pros
Accounting uses the application for tracking all financial transactions and how it affects our general ledger. This is one of the strengths of the package.
Purchasing uses the software to create, issue and track purchase orders. Another area of strength of the application.
We will start using the tool to keep track of inventory quantities. i have used Sage 500 in a prior firm for this purpose and, I believe, it does an excellent job of this also.
Cons
The biggest concern/complaint of Sage 500 users is speed. Some of the screen take a while to load.
The user interface needs some refreshing. Screens need to be updated to take advantage of shortcuts and to be more intuitive.
Likelihood to Recommend
What specific functions would be done or would the ERP responsibility. The biggest mistake is to try to use the software to do things that it was not designed to do.
VU
Verified User
Manager in Information Technology (51-200 employees)
We have 3 users on the system with the general ledger, inventory, purchasing, payables, receivables, projects and cash management being used. We use the Sage 500 because of the ease of projects as well as the reporting capabilities it has. We have also customized reports with Crystal reports to get the reports we need for our end users.
Pros
Payables and receivables handled beautifully
Projects has the reporting capabilities we need
Cash management is easy to do
Cons
The upgrade price is outrageous
Likelihood to Recommend
The cost to get into this product is crazy expensive, we love the software but hate the price.
