ERP Implementation

Systematizing Inefficient Processes Simply Entrenches the Inefficiencies

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is a fancy name for the software that drives your business. I’ve been at the center of implementing more than a couple of said systems over the years as I’ve led ERP projects from the technology perspective as well as the business owner side of things. I’ve learned some lessons the hard way and experienced the transformative impact of a successful ERP project. 

Advice I always give folks about to embark on an ERP initiative is to get your house in order so you don’t institutionalize bad habits.  This can be a great time to reexamine your processes and eliminate non-value activities. The reality is that you will entrench your processes, whether good or bad, when you build a system around them. Software changes are the breeding grounds for what becomes “I don’t know why, we’ve always done it that way.”  The quality of the data loaded in a new system will often determine its success. “Garbage in; garbage out” is never more true than when implementing an ERP system.

When I work with teams on these projects, I focus on business process. I’ve found that by focusing on current and future state process maps, not only do inefficiences in the current process quickly become apparent but the appropriate testing, training, and documentation does as well.