Any small-to-midsize company looking for a supply chain management software solution that integrates with QuickBooks accounting software will want to take a look at Fishbowl Inventory. This inventory-centric solution can handle streamlining a company’s inventory control, shop floor control, manufacturing execution, and material requirements planning.

Its array of features includes asset management, barcoding, raw materials management, customized reporting, and cycle counting, as well as allowing for the automation of such processes as purchasing, ordering, and quoting. Nearly every industry has examples of companies using Fishbowl, typically with annual revenue of $100 million or less. Over the past 10 years Fishbowl has been honored with Intuit’s Gold Partner designation. Its training and support efforts include in-house specialists, training videos, and online tutorials.

Pros

Users who are largely satisfied with the Fishbowl solution (and they are relatively few in recent years) note that once the system is setup and running, it’s fairly simple, intuitive, and easy to use. But that’s as far as the praise goes among customers, which is worth noting.

Cons

It seems that the most frequently cited drawback to Fishbowl is that if your company is well-established, there are probably many policies and systems you have in place that may or may not be possible in Fishbowl. If customization is needed to meet those business requirements, you’ll pay extra for it, and it may very well become expensive. Many users have also noted that it can be very slow getting a response from Fishbowl support. Generally speaking, however, once you do reach them, they can usually solve your problem. Several users have noted that although Fishbowl has a 30-day money-back guarantee, it’s next to impossible to really get it up and running and try it out in that short amount of time, which means you’re stuck if you wind up not liking it. Another frustration cited is the integration with QuickBooks. Because Fishbowl staff are not trained in QuickBooks, they’re not very helpful in figuring out how the integration works. For many users, how things translate over to QuickBooks was a frustrating mystery. If you have the resources, much of the frustration experienced by many users in the setup process might have been alleviated with on-site Fishbowl support in the early stages. Users also note that less-than-optimal support is especially frustrating when you’re paying an annual fee for it. Perhaps the one criticism echoed by several users is that Fishbowl doesn’t seem to be a good solution of eCommerce companies, which is clearly a serious concern in today’s increasingly digital business environment.

What’s interesting about the Fishbowl customer reviews is that the ones praising the system seem to be older, while more recent reviews have been largely negative. That might be an indication that the company is not giving its software the proper attention to keep it moving in the right direction. Potential users would do well to make sure they clearly define their business requirements and arrange for Fishbowl to show in advance how it can meet those needs before committing substantial resources to taking it on. Just because a supply chain management solution is popular doesn’t mean it will work for your company.