NetSuite is a powerful cloud-based business management suite that integrates essential business functions into a single, comprehensive system. It’s a versatile tool, capable of handling everything from your financials and customer relationship management to ecommerce and inventory control. But like any complex system, NetSuite requires regular maintenance to ensure it’s operating at peak efficiency.
For small businesses, conducting regular system reviews is essential. These checks help you identify potential issues before they become significant problems, ensure your system is aligned with your current business needs and maximise your return on investment.
A NetSuite healthcheck is a thorough examination of your system, designed to optimise its performance and align it more closely with your business goals. This blog runs through what’s involved in a NetSuite healthcheck.
Key stages of a NetSuite healthcheck
The first step in a NetSuite healthcheck is a series of consultation sessions. These typically involve spending a few hours with our subject matter experts for each module of your NetSuite system. You have the flexibility to conduct these sessions either on-site or through virtual meetings using platforms like Zoom or Microsoft Teams.
During these sessions, we’ll review your current business flow in detail. We’ll examine how you’re using NetSuite to manage various aspects of your operations. The goal is to gain a comprehensive understanding of your business processes and how they’re implemented within NetSuite.
As part of this review, we’ll identify any process gaps. These are areas where your current use of NetSuite might not be fully aligned with your business needs or best practices. Spotting these gaps early means you can take steps to address them and improve your overall efficiency.
System configuration check
Next, the healthcheck moves on to a thorough examination of your system’s configuration. This stage is crucial because even minor configuration issues can have a significant impact on your system’s performance and effectiveness.
We’ll scrutinise your system preferences, ensuring they’re set up in a way that best serves your business needs. We’ll also review the features you’re currently using, identifying any that might be underutilised or any that you’re not using but could benefit from.
Tax setup is another critical area that receives attention during this stage. Proper tax configuration is essential for regulatory compliance and accurate financial reporting. Our team will ensure your tax preferences are set and optimised for your specific business requirements.
Data evaluation
In the data evaluation stage, the focus shifts to the volume and management of your data. We’ll analyse the amount of data in your system in relation to the tier of NetSuite you’re currently using. This analysis is crucial for ensuring optimal performance and scalability.
If your data volume is approaching the limits of your current tier, it might be time to consider an upgrade. On the other hand, if you’re significantly underutilising your allocated capacity, there might be opportunities to optimise your subscription and potentially reduce costs.
Our experts will also look at how your data is structured and managed within the system. We’ll provide recommendations for data management practices that can improve system performance and make it easier for you to access and use your business information more effectively.
SuiteApps review
NetSuite’s functionality can be extended through SuiteApps – additional applications that integrate seamlessly with the core system. During the SuiteApps review, we’ll evaluate how you’re currently utilising these apps and whether they’re meeting your needs.
We’ll assess whether you’re getting the most out of your current SuiteApps and may recommend ways to use them more effectively. If there are gaps in your current setup, we might suggest additional apps that could enhance your functionality and streamline your processes.
This review isn’t just about adding more apps – it’s about ensuring you have the right tools to support your business processes. Sometimes, this might even involve removing underutilised apps to streamline your system and reduce complexity.
Performance assessment
The performance assessment is a crucial part of the Netsuite healthcheck. It involves conducting a thorough check to identify any issues that might be affecting your system’s efficiency.
Our experts will look at various performance metrics, such as page load times, report generation speed and system responsiveness during peak usage periods. They’ll identify any bottlenecks or areas where performance is suboptimal and provide recommendations for improvement.
These enhancements might involve adjusting your system configuration, changing your data management practices or upgrading your hardware or network infrastructure. The goal is to ensure your NetSuite system runs as smoothly and efficiently as possible, allowing you to work productively without frustrating delays or performance issues.
Customisation review
Many businesses customise their NetSuite implementation to meet their specific needs. While customisation can be powerful, it can also introduce complexity and potential performance issues if not appropriately managed.
During the customisation review, we’ll conduct an in-depth analysis of all your customisations, including any custom fields you might have added to capture specific data points unique to your business. We’ll evaluate whether these fields are being used effectively and if they’re impacting system performance.
We’ll also review any PDF templates you might use for invoices, purchase orders or other documents to ensure they’re optimised for performance and accurately reflect your brand and business needs.
Scripts and workflows, which automate various business processes within NetSuite, will also be scrutinised. The review will assess whether these are functioning efficiently and whether there are opportunities to streamline or improve them.
Finally, any integrations with other systems will be evaluated. This last step is to ensure that data flows smoothly between NetSuite and your other business applications, without introducing errors or inefficiencies.
Proposal of immediate actions
After the healthcheck, you’ll receive a detailed report outlining immediate actions for improvement. This report will provide a clear roadmap for optimising your NetSuite implementation, based on all the insights gathered during the previous stages.
The report will prioritise actions based on their potential impact and ease of implementation. Some might be quick wins that you can implement immediately for rapid improvements. Others might be longer-term projects that require more planning and resources.
The report will also include suggestions for future system enhancements. These might be more substantial changes or upgrades that could significantly improve your business processes or system performance in the long term.
Benefits for small businesses
A NetSuite healthcheck offers numerous benefits for small businesses. Perhaps most importantly, it leads to improved system efficiency. Optimising your configuration, streamlining your processes and addressing performance issues will enable you and your team to work more productively and get more value from your NetSuite investment.
The healthcheck also results in enhanced business processes. Identifying and addressing gaps in your current workflows allows you to streamline your operations and reduce manual work, helping to save time and reduce the risk of errors.
The healthcheck also ensures you’re making the most of the NetSuite features and capacity you’re paying for, potentially helping you avoid unnecessary costs.
Ensuring your system is optimised and aligned with best practices, you’ll be better positioned to handle growth and increased complexity as your business expands.
Finally, a NetSuite healthcheck provides you with better decision-making capabilities. With a more efficient system and more precise insights into your data, you’ll be better equipped to make informed decisions about your business.
How can SuiteSparkle help?
Regular maintenance is crucial for ensuring your NetSuite system continues to meet your business needs effectively. As your business evolves, so should your NetSuite implementation. A healthcheck helps ensure your system evolves in the right direction. It provides a clear picture of your current NetSuite implementation and a roadmap for optimisation and improvement.
Don’t wait for problems to arise. Book a NetSuite healthcheck today.