ERP, CRM or PSA: which system does a service business need?

ERP, CRM and PSA are all business software, but each answers a different question. An ERP asks what the company bought, keeps in stock and spent; a CRM asks who you are selling to and who takes the next step; a PSA asks who is working on what, what the project cost and whether the client has paid. So the useful question is not which one is best. It is where your company loses money and time.

An ERP usually includes accounting. A CRM does not. Some PSA tools include a general ledger; others leave the books to accounting software.

ERP (enterprise resource planning) is software that brings a company’s day-to-day operations into one database: accounting, purchasing, inventory, production, supply chain, payroll and HR. The point of an ERP is shared data. The same item carries one name and one code from the purchase order to the warehouse, from the warehouse to the sale, and from there to the accounts. If each department records it its own way, nobody can say what it cost the company over a year.

Who needs an ERP

• Manufacturers: raw materials, specifications, the shop floor and the cost of each product.
• Trading and distribution companies: stock across several warehouses, suppliers, orders and delivery.
• Groups of companies: several legal entities and consolidated reporting.

If nothing physical moves through the business and the main cost is people’s time, most of an ERP goes unused. For a 15-person agency, an ERP is usually more system than problem. The simpler split is accounting software for the books and PSA software for the work.

CRM (customer relationship management) is sales software. It records who you are talking to, which organization they work for, which deal you are working on, what stage it is at, and who takes the next step. Most of a CRM’s job happens before the contract is signed. Anyone who sells uses a CRM: a shop, a bank, an agency.

In a service firm, the CRM’s job ends where the work begins. A won deal becomes a project, and the project needs tasks, hours, expenses and invoices.

CRM vs ERP

An ERP looks inward, at money, stock and people. A CRM looks outward, at clients and sales. Some ERPs include a CRM module; elsewhere the CRM is a separate product.

PSA (professional services automation) software runs the business side of client work, from the agreement to the paid invoice. It is built for firms that sell expertise and time: agencies, studios, consulting, accounting and engineering practices. In a service firm, the stock is people’s time, so a PSA’s questions are about time: who is free, what the work cost, what can be invoiced, and whether the client has paid. A PSA follows each job the whole way:

1. Quote. Scope and price are agreed with the client.
2. Plan. The project gets a budget, tasks and dates.
3. Deliver. The team works and logs hours against tasks.
4. Review. A manager approves the hours, and the hours become cost.
5. Bill. The invoice goes out and unpaid invoices are followed up.
6. Learn. Hours and expenses are set against what the project earned.

PSA vs project management software

Project management software organizes tasks, deadlines and owners. Invoices, expenses and receivables live in another system. That is enough when you bill a fixed monthly fee and nobody needs a margin per project.

A PSA connects the same tasks to money. Hours are logged on the task, the hours become cost, and the cost is set against the project’s value while the work is still running. For named tools and prices, see PSA software compared.

A PSA runs client delivery; an ERP runs the whole company’s finance and operations. A PSA plans and records the work you sell: projects, people’s time, timesheet approval, invoices and the margin on each project. An ERP keeps the books and the company-wide processes: general ledger, purchasing, inventory, payroll and reporting across legal entities. A firm that sells hours or projects usually needs the PSA first and keeps its books in accounting software; an ERP becomes relevant when goods, warehouses or several legal entities appear. Firms that run both let the PSA hand invoices and hours to the ERP’s ledger.

The two meet at the invoice. The client invoice is created in the PSA and becomes a source document for the ledger, whether that sits in an ERP or in accounting software. PLYNTUM sits on the PSA side: projects, hours, invoices, expenses and receivables, with no general ledger, payroll calculation or inventory. It has no ERP or accounting integration today; invoices, payments and expenses export to CSV. For what a PSA covers area by area, see professional services automation; for named tools and prices, the best PSA software comparison.

Start with what you sell and where the money goes missing. Physical goods point to an ERP or to accounting software with stock control. Many prospects and a sale that takes weeks point to a CRM. Hours or fixed-fee projects, where you want the margin before the project closes, point to a PSA. In every case, tax returns, payroll taxes and VAT invoices stay with accounting software and your accountant.

Typical combinations

• Trading or distribution: an ERP, or accounting software with a warehouse module. Add a CRM if you have a sales team.
• Agency, studio or consultancy: a PSA for the work, invoices and receivables, and accounting software for the books. A CRM comes in when a person or team works on sales full time.
• Manufacturer or group of companies: an ERP, often alongside a CRM.

Five questions before you buy

1. What do you sell: goods or people’s time?
2. Where does money go missing: in the warehouse, in sales, or in hours that never reach an invoice? (See unbilled work.)
3. Who will fill the system in every day, and in which language do they read?
4. What stays with your accountant, and in which product?
5. Which data has to move between systems, and who will move it?

Once you have the answers, try the system on one real project or one real sale. Every product looks good in a demo; one real week tells you more.

In Georgia, several local accounting and record-keeping products are on the market, for example FINA, Oris and Balance. Accounting software handles bookkeeping entries, tax returns, payroll taxes and everything that ends up on rs.ge, the Revenue Service portal. Some of them go beyond accounting. FINA’s site lists trade, distribution and other industry products next to accounting, and Balance presents itself as an ERP platform. In the Georgian market, the line between accounting software and ERP is not always sharp.

Next to accounting software, the work splits like this:

• Accounting software: the books, taxes, payroll and VAT invoices on rs.ge.
• PSA: projects, hours, project expenses, client invoices and receivables.
• CRM: contacts and deals before the contract.

The boundary runs through the invoice. The client invoice is created in the PSA and is one of the accountant’s source documents. The accountant records it in their own system and, where required, issues the VAT invoice on rs.ge.

Data moves between the systems by export, import or manual entry, depending on what each product supports, so ask both vendors before you buy. PLYNTUM has no integration with FINA, Oris, Balance or rs.ge today. Invoices, payments and expenses export to CSV for your accountant, and PLYNTUM files nothing with the Revenue Service. More on the local picture: business management software for Georgian companies.

PLYNTUM is business management software for agencies and service companies of roughly 3 to 50 people that sell hours or fixed-fee projects. By category, it is a PSA. Projects, tasks, recorded time, invoices, expenses and receivables share one workspace, in Georgian and English, and the books stay in your accounting software.

What PLYNTUM covers

• Projects and tasks in list, board, calendar, week and timeline views.
• Time against tasks on every plan, with a start/stop timer or entered by hand; nothing is captured automatically. From Core, people submit their week, a manager approves or rejects it, and submitted and approved weeks lock. See time tracking.
• Invoices on every plan, with free-form lines in GEL, USD or EUR, shared by link or saved as PDF. From Core, an invoice can also be drafted from approved, billable time and edited before you issue it. Payments and receivables are recorded by hand; recurring invoices come with Core. See finance and costs.
• Project profitability from Core: every logged hour and the direct expenses set against the project value.
• CRM core from Launch for eligible roles: contacts, organizations, opportunities, a sales pipeline and manual follow-ups, within plan limits (Launch: 1,000 contacts, 100 open deals and 1 pipeline). Internal proposal drafts and won-deal handoff come with Core. See sales CRM.
• An English and Georgian interface.

What PLYNTUM is not

• Not an ERP. It has no general ledger, payroll calculation or inventory.
• Not accounting software. No bookkeeping entries, bank feeds or tax filing. It does not issue VAT invoices on rs.ge.
• Not inventory or warehouse software.
• No online payments. Clients cannot pay by card or payment link in PLYNTUM.
• Not an advanced sales CRM today. Inbox channels, lead capture, integrations and CRM reports have separate setup and rollout gates, and proposals are not emailed to clients.

Pricing is per workspace, with members included: Launch is $55 a month for up to 5 members ($44 a month billed annually), Core $150 for up to 10 ($120), Scale $450 for up to 25 ($360) and Intelligence $1,050 for up to 50 ($840). There is no free plan. The 7-day trial is on Launch only, with no card needed. See pricing.

PLYNTUM facts come from plyntum.com and the product, read on 24 October 2026. Third-party definitions and product descriptions:

• Oracle, “What Is ERP?” (accessed 24 October 2026): definition and modules of ERP.
• Salesforce, “What Is CRM?” (accessed 24 October 2026): definition of CRM.
• FINA (accessed 24 October 2026): product list, including accounting, trade and distribution.
• Oris (accessed 24 October 2026): Oris Accounting.
• Entrepreneur Georgia, partner article on Balance’s tenth year, 3 June 2026 (accessed 24 October 2026): Balance presents itself as an ERP platform.

• Professional services automation (PSA) software for client-work firms
• Sales CRM software for service businesses
• The work carries its context.
• What is business management software? Types, costs and how to choose (2026)