CargoWise is a powerful system. It connects forwarding, customs, operations, and finance into a single workflow. But here’s the truth I see time and time again: many logistics companies still run another ERP alongside it — SAP, NetSuite, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, you name it.
So the question becomes: Do you integrate CargoWise with your ERP, or do you keep them separate?
The answer isn’t one-size-fits-all. It depends on master data governance, cost, risk, and strategic priorities.
Where CargoWise Finance Shines
CargoWise can handle much more than people give it credit for. When set up properly, it:
- Manages AR/AP tied directly to shipments.
- Automates accruals based on operational events.
- Produces margin visibility at the shipment, client, and branch level.
- Connects finance teams to operational reality in real time.
And the benefits go well beyond the finance department — they bring finance and operations together:
- Customer payments: Operations can instantly see when (or if) a customer has paid an invoice, right in the forwarding module. This is critical if shipments are being held pending payment — no need to reach out to AR.
- Vendor invoices: Instead of waiting on AP, operators can confirm if a vendor invoice has been paid and even generate a confirmation to send directly to the vendor. Vendors often contact ops first, and some are quick to put accounts on hold — CargoWise enables faster resolution.
- Credit control: If your organization believes in strict credit enforcement, CargoWise lets you set hard restrictions. You can prevent the printing of critical documents until invoices are paid. That’s powerful because ops often see credit limits as “suggestions,” while finance sees them as non-negotiable. CargoWise creates meaningful interventions: either block the shipment or trigger an approval workflow. This safeguard is especially vital for prepaid customers (one-and-done, higher risk) or customers with cash flow issues. With the right configuration, AR and collections become an integrated part of the freight forwarding process.
- Intercompany automation: For companies with multiple offices or countries, intercompany billing and disputes can be automated, reducing manual reconciliation and disputes.
For small to mid-sized forwarders, this functionality can be a complete solution — no second ERP needed.
Where ERPs Still Matter
Larger organizations often need more:
- Consolidated reporting: Multi-entity, multi-country rollups across business lines.
- Corporate finance: Treasury, tax, fixed assets, depreciation.
- Enterprise scope: HR, payroll, procurement, or other non-logistics functions.
That’s where SAP, NetSuite, Oracle, or Microsoft Dynamics shine. They aren’t freight-forwarding tools — they’re enterprise-wide platforms.
The Risks of “Doing Both”
Running CargoWise and a separate ERP without strong governance can cause significant challenges:
- Lost feedback loop: I’ve been in both environments — one using CargoWise Finance, and one where a forwarding tool was integrated into an ERP. In the ERP-first world, yes, the system was robust and had all the bells and whistles finance loves. But you break the feedback loop that gives operations visibility into invoice payments. Instead of seeing invoice status directly in CargoWise, ops has to email AR or AP for updates. That means more follow-ups, more emails, and slower response to customers and vendors.
- Audit requirements: Your integration must be reconciled and documented for auditors. They will want proof that revenue and cost of goods in the ERP ties exactly to the forwarding tool, since customer invoices are generated from CargoWise and vendor costs are logged there. This requires either custom reconciliation tools or manual processes — both resource-heavy.
- Split reporting: CargoWise captures revenue and cost of goods but not overhead. ERPs capture the full P&L but are shipment-agnostic. This creates misalignment:
- Ops sees profit per shipment in CargoWise but not full costs.
- Finance sees complete costs in the ERP but not operational detail.
- The result: mistrust between ops and finance, with each claiming the other’s numbers don’t tell the whole story. Many companies end up investing in a third reporting tool just to bridge the gap.
- Master data headaches: If you choose to run two systems, you must consider master data management. Master data has to be entered twice — once for the ERP and once for CargoWise — or you need an integration to feed both. That sounds manageable until you realize the two systems often have different master data requirements.
- I’ve seen contacts exist in CargoWise but not in the ERP, causing failed integrations.
- I’ve seen duplicates where the integration accidentally matched to the wrong contact, sending data into the wrong customer account in the ERP.
- Without robust, tightly governed processes, you invite trouble. Duplicate vendors, mismatched structures, or poorly aligned records can cascade into revenue leakage, bad reporting, and even audit findings.
So fair warning: if you go down this path, do it fully aware of the risks and with a master data solution that is both robust and tightly managed.
- Cultural divide: When finance and ops work in different systems, it fractures collaboration. In earlier articles, I emphasized how critical it is for finance to understand operations. When both teams work in CargoWise, they share the same data and the same language. When they’re split between ERP and ops systems, that common ground erodes, and it becomes harder to align strategy with execution.
When to Integrate vs. When to Separate
Integrate if:
- You need shipment-level margin data flowing into your corporate ERP.
- Auditors require consistency across systems.
- You want to automate reconciliation between ops and finance.
Separate if:
- CargoWise Finance is sufficient for your size and complexity.
- You don’t have governance in place to manage dual master data.
- Integration costs outweigh the benefits.
In other words: don’t integrate just because you can — integrate because the business case is clear.
The Leadership Lesson
Forwarders often underestimate how critical it is to decide who owns the truth. Is it CargoWise? Is it SAP? If you don’t answer that, you’ll spend more time reconciling than leading.
Master data governance, clarity of roles, and disciplined processes matter more than the technology. Technology is just the enabler.
And never forget: when finance and operations share the same system, they share the same language — which is often the difference between alignment and conflict.
Your Turn
👉 Are you running CargoWise alongside another ERP? How do you decide what lives where?
At ALL2S Consulting LLC, I help CFOs, controllers, and operations leaders design finance + operations systems that work together — whether that means maximizing CargoWise Finance or building smart bridges to enterprise ERPs.
đź“© Reach out at www.all2sconsultingllc.com or message me here on LinkedIn.
Because the goal isn’t CargoWise vs. ERP — it’s building a system where good data = good decisions.
ALL2S CONSULTING LLC 