Empower your users to extend the capability of your Unit4 Cloud ERP system with the Unit4 Extension Kit

How does the Unit4 Extension Kit work?

In a recent webinar, we were joined by Suzanne Hickman, Product and Quality Manager, and Jim Durdin, Senior Technical Consultant, who are both part of the One Technical Team at Unit4 - they provided insight into how Cloud services can enable you to automate manual tasks and extend ERP capabilities.

Your back office will rely on the integration of external applications with your ERP system to make day-to-day operations comprehensive and easy.

For example, your ERP may need to interact with banking applications to pay employees and have accurate information about finances. Alternatively, your ERP may integrate with email applications to share company materials internally and communicate with customers.

The flow of data can be managed more easily in the Cloud’s digital systems through APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). APIs are the mediator that ensures one application can easily communicate with another, or in this case, it ensures Unit4 ERP can communicate with your external systems easily.

This is all part of ensuring data is accurate when integrated into the Cloud, enabled by what is called ‘flows’ within the Extension Kit. A flow ensures one ‘trigger’ and its multiple actions flow succinctly, as data from one system requires certain qualifications and keys for the alternate system to understand.

What’s more, Cloud customers can extend the capabilities of their ERP system by creating bespoke applications and solutions easily through low-code tools without any high-level knowledge of coding or data. The Unit4 Extension Kit uses generative AI to enable its users to use natural language commands to set up new processes. 

Unit4’s Extension Kit means internal teams can extend the capability of their ERP to suit their unique business operations and draw more value from their Cloud-based ERP solution. 

Extension Kit Use Cases

In the webinar you can see high-level demos of some simple use cases for the Extension Kit, to get an idea of how it works in practice. Some use cases of the Extension Kit are:

• Send a welcome email to a customer or new employee – This process would require integration with an external email application. In Unit4’s Extension Kit, this could be automated when a new customer or employee is logged, creating a much more efficient and timely process.
• Automatically import the latest exchange rates into ERPx – This can be key for PSOs with global customers, this simple flow of data ensures real-time updates of exchange rates, rather than having to manually gather this information, allowing teams to be more productive and ensuring they all have the same accurate data.

What is the value of the Unit4 Extension Kit?

• Ensures Data Accuracy – When data flows between multiple applications it can be mistranslated, corrupted, or even lost. The Unit4 Extension Kit is an intermediate that ensures data flows accurately and seamlessly between integrations so that day-to-day business operations aren’t disrupted.
• Reduces Manual Tasks - An on-premises system can require a lot of manual data keying, entry, and consolidation, to ensure that the flow of data between external applications and internal ERP systems is accurate and sustainable – doing this manually can take a lot of time, FTEs, and requires trained employees with coding and data skills.
• Cost Efficiencies – IT personnel costs are reduced greatly with Extension Kit as low code tools mean you don’t need professional coding skills to create bespoke integrations that can automate data tasks that would usually take a long time. Current IT talent can use this time on other projects.
• Productivity - Develop reusable solutions and flows, saving time and improving efficiency. Data is consolidated quickly allowing teams more time to focus on other tasks.
• Flexibility – The Extension Kit allows teams to react flexibly to changing data requirements as they occur. For example, as ESG reporting compliance changes, teams can easily create bespoke solutions to ensure new processes are created to meet compliance accurately.
• Security – In partnership with Microsoft Azure, we can encrypt data as it flows between systems. Our Cloud tools also ensures that external applications can’t access your internal database. Unit4 Identity Services ensures that only those granted access can use the Extension Kit.