Are your back office systems talking to your front office systems? Back office systems manage manufacturing functions as well as administrative functions such as quality management, accounts payable, and contract management. Examples of front office systems include customer relationship management (CRM) and help desk systems.

Unifying these two, often opposing, sides of the organization may seem simple enough. But the reality is it doesn’t happen often enough, and the result is a negative impact on productivity, profitability, and organizational advancement—not to mention quality. Lack of integration also creates information silos, which prevents manufacturers from gaining a clear, 360° view into all of their data.

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