By Luivir Rangel
It doesn’t matter if this is your first job or you’re an experienced consultant looking for a change; interviews can be challenging. Good preparation will inevitably help, and this guide has been put together to help you nail your next ERP interview.
We’ve consulted the top recruiters and senior ERP consultants to discuss every aspect of the hiring process. Here’s what we’ll cover:
Working as a consultant requires more than just having technical knowledge, it also involves helping to improve performance by providing relevant business solutions which solve team pain points effectively. When it comes to NetSuite jobs, interviewers are looking for candidates that understand the system, have great people skills, and know the inner workings of business processes and operations.
Depending on the position you’re looking for, the prerequisites and certification requirements differ from role to role. Here is a summary of what is required to become a NetSuite Consultant:
If you are applying for an entry-level NetSuite Consultant role, the ideal requirements will include:
If you are applying for an experienced NetSuite Consultant role, the requirements could be:
We gathered the top questions and answers from recruiters, consultants and management. This is what they said.
ANSWER: Enterprise Resource Management is a system created to help companies manage their business transactions and operations.
ANSWER: Typically there are two types of systems; on-premise and SaaS/Cloud. NetSuite uses cloud computing and essentially invented the concept of cloud ERP systems.
ANSWER: SAP, JD Edwards, and NetSuite are all ERP. The main differences are in terms of functionalities, facilities, and the audience. Some will be geared to specific industries and businesses of different sizes, so while in theory they all offer the same technology solution, they aren’t necessarily competing with each other.
ANSWER: There are five different areas. These are:
– Financial accounting: streamline financial and accounting processes combining both functionalities into one software.
– Management accounting: a global view of business transactions, projects, and operational work.
– Human resources: takes care of the most valuable resource in the business, helping teams integrate with the system.
– Supply chain management: create custom flows to automate manual processes and detailed overviews of every step of the supply chain.
– Manufacturing: balance current supply with demand and review sales forecast to bring information enough to create an action plan.
ANSWER: They are:
– Transactional database: all business information is in one organized database.
– Management portal: easy to customize, allows to set up the right configurations for employees for access to enterprise-related functions.
– Human resources: create work roles, dashboards and establish KPIs to ensure your team’s best performance.
– Supply chain management: connects every operational aspect required from inventory to deliver.
– Workflow management: design, configure and edit business flows to automate processes.
– Customization report: export detail information about business performance, transactions or operational areas.
ANSWER: It depends on business requirements, but some key advantages are that it’s a cloud service, giving access to information everywhere, all the time. It’s user-friendly, and the software can even be adapted depending on your needs and preferences. You can also add or turn off modules as needed, meaning it’s a very adaptable solution.
ANSWER: This may seem like a tricky question, but as a Consultant, you need to be honest about your product without degrading its brand or functionality. A Consultant’s job is not to sell, but you must be able to convince clients that they have the best option available every time you meet them. The software can cost more than some other ERPs, and needs to be paid every year, but ultimately you get what you pay for—including a deep level of customization. The accounting rules may also be difficult to understand if you aren’t familiar with it.
ANSWER:
– Client scripts: light code that automates user-entered data and validates events. It helps to find data from an external source to a field.
– Workflow scripts: simple graphical interface, created to design process and custom actions.
– User event scripts: focus on user’s operational management, allows to create or edit custom records.
– Scheduled scripts: to keep track of operations, it automates operations and transaction setup, even when the software is down.
– Portlet scripts: allows custom dashboard widgets in a very simple and intuitive platform.
ANSWER: Yes it does. According to your user account, you will be able to display different dashboard configurations depending on the role selected.
ANSWER: It works on Oracle platform, combining ERP, CRM and ecommerce into one system. As it’s cloud-based, users are able to log in anywhere in the world and have access to real-time data.
As we have mentioned earlier, interpersonal skills are equally important to technical knowledge. This means competency-based questions are frequently used to see how candidates have handled previous situations. This is where being able to think logically will really come into its own.
There’s not necessarily a right or wrong answer, but to be prepared it’s key to think about some previous work examples you can adapt based on the questions asked. The job description and the requirements sought after will give you a good idea of likely competencies that will be asked.
A common method to help structure answers is the STAR method, which is a structured manner of responding to a competency-based interview question by discussing the specific situation, task, action, and result of the situation you are describing.
Here are some examples of questions, and things to think about with your answers.
ANSWER: Everyone appreciates things don’t always go to plan. The interviewer will value your honesty. However, in this question, they will be looking to see how you coped under pressure and what you have learned from this experience. They will be interested to hear how you have changed your approach to minimize the risk of this happening again. Remember to remain positive and do not criticize or blame individuals.
ANSWER: This question is looking at how you understand your client, from asking lots of questions and actively listening to their answers, to challenging their requests and reviewing the impact of changes you are suggesting. It’s also about mutually agreeing on success criteria and continuously communicating with your stakeholders about what changes to expect and determining realistic timeframes.
ANSWER: Within this question, the interviewer will be looking at you to identify why the existing practice was not effective, how you came to your proposed solution and what approach you took to implement it. Information about how you came to your decision and the project management skills you demonstrated will also be sought after. You should talk about how your solution was implemented and what steps you took to encourage adoption. Impact, outcomes, successes, and lesson learned should also be discussed.
ANSWER: Employers want team players who can work together collaboratively and harmoniously. In this answer, they want to hear how you actively work as part of a team and your role within that. Areas to consider are your communication style and judgment making ability. For example, you may need to demonstrate that you can compromise and support group decisions. Any changes you have made to improve team working and why should also be brought up in these questions as this demonstrates self-awareness and the willingness to adapt to enhance your performance.
ANSWER: Employers are looking for people who can effectively plan and organize projects to deliver them on time. They want to be able to assess that you can juggle multiple different projects, effectively manage your time and understand priorities and change course as needed. Explaining how you have coped in these scenarios and coming up with your rationale will give them confidence that you can.
ANSWER: Employers want team players who can work together collaboratively and harmoniously. In this answer, they want to hear how you actively work as part of a team and what role you specifically contributed to make the team successful. Areas to consider are your communication style with the team and judgement making ability. For example, you may need to demonstrate that you can compromise and support group decisions. Any changes you have made to improve team working and why should also be brought up here.
It may sound obvious, but you will be surprised. Whenever we are multitasking, our brain is on autopilot. This is great for physical tasks, but not for learning. If you are easily distracted, avoid using music in general and turn off devices such as mobile phones.
One idea is to set an alarm and study for short—but intense—periods of time. This is a more strategic approach and will also give you the opportunity to reply to your texts soon enough. If you get stuck on a module, leave it and continue with the next one. Go back and face the harder ones when you are refreshed.
Here’s an updated list of online paid and free training and courses.
Even though the platform is pretty friendly, that doesn’t mean that some modules or features won’t be hard to understand. Remember that the ERP software is huge and it has been designed to be used by specialized teams, different from a Consultant who needs to have a more general understanding of it.
Use the demo account to make mistakes rather than getting stressed about it. The demo account was created for users to experiment and discover. Once you finish your training, keep using it to try new things. When it comes to module updates, your demo account will prevent you from making mistakes on a client account.
Major updates are typically launched twice a year, which means you need to constantly update your knowledge. Once you finish your last certification, there will likely be some news about the next system update. Find specialized sources beyond official sites, and try to share with colleagues by assisting with official events or masterclasses.
There are all kinds of ERP jobs on the market, the key is to find the right one where you can develop your skills, improve your knowledge and generate new business relationships. The key advice for any Consultant is to find an agency that actually invests in their talent and is constantly in pursuit of better. Good luck!
Discover the latest hand-picked roles we have to offer for you
There’s plenty of awesome preparation material that go beyond this post to help you ace that interview and advance your career. Check the links below for further reading on everything from training and certification, to networking opportunities.
Luivir Rangel is a Digital Content Curator at Trajectory, Inc, responsible for client engagement and staff playtime at the office. Better known as “the girl with questions”, her favorite source of information is her audience; always testing campaigns, improving SEO, interviewing Trajectory’s in-house team and connecting clients with top NetSuite consultants.
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