As you already know, the R/3 System contains a large number of modules. These combine and interact to handle the business management tasks of an organization.
The modules are grouped into three main areas: Logistics, Accounting and Human Resources. So, for example, the Materials Management module is within the Logistics group and Controlling is a module within Accounting.
The modules are all linked. So, as a user enters or updates data on-line using one module, the information is immediately accessible to all modules.
The result is that up to date information is available to all parts of the company, regardless of any organizational limitations which may exist.
For example, the accounting department can access information from the sales and purchasing departments. Similarly, accounting information is available to the production planning department. The R/3 System works in this way because the designers observed the way that business organizations actually work in practice.
Let's look at an example. An order is keyed into the system. Any new information which this order contains is written to a database. The R/3 System recognizes that this information is required by several different modules to carry out the business process.
Modules within Logistics need the information to produce goods to meet the order. Accounting modules will handle the payment for materials and the issue of invoices and Human Resources modules need the information to provide workforce planning.
As a company grows, it develops its own specific procedures for organization, control and planning. R/3 has been designed so that it is adaptable to the continuous changes occurring in all modern organizations.
The R/3 System is adaptable in a range of ways. Modules can be customized to meet the specific technical requirements of a company.
R/3 modules can transfer data from a company's existing programs.
A company may install only the modules that it needs at the moment. Additional modules can be added when the business needs grow.
Terms used within R/3 can be modified to match the terminology used within the particular company.
The R/3 System has been designed with the user always in mind. Although the program has to be sufficiently complex to handle a wide range of management tasks, it remains user friendly.
Although R/3 contains a large number of modules, you will probably only need to use a smaller, easily controlled part of the system.
You will only have access to the parts of R/3 that you need. This is controlled through authorization profiles allocated by your system administrator. Access can be expanded or reduced as your needs change.
