Tips To Avoid Mistakes In ERP Implementation

ERP ImplementationImplementing an ERP system is the most exclusive, time-consuming and difficult tasks an IT department can take on. There are several posibility for delays & unexpected expenses around every corner. To avoid this common mistakes & becoming an ERP horror story take advise from ControlERP. To help ensure your ERP implementation is a success, or at least to minimize potential problems, ControlERP surveyed many ERP experts and Find some most common ERP mistakes and their fixes.

Poor Planning

"Planning is absolutely necessary if you want your ERP project to succeed."Many organizations do not do enough up-front planning before they begin an ERP software evaluation. This often leads to confusion down the road because they might not fully understand their current processes and how to evolve them to maximize business benefits & efficiencies.

To solve this problem, organizations should conduct an internal audit of all of their processes and policies before choosing an ERP system. If you feel you do not have the in-house capability to properly evaluate ERP systems, consider hiring an experienced third-party, who has experience implementing ERP solutions for your industry.

Not Properly Vetting ERP Vendors.

To solve this mistake, always ask for references. Request the names of at least three companies "who are in your business sector, who you can contact and discuss the software with, then call and discuss features, functionality, and challenges," If the vendor can't provide at least three names? "Walk away."Not Properly Vetting ERP Vendors.

Not Understanding Or Using Key Features.

There are only 46 percent of respondents having a good understanding of which features they were using in their ERP system. This is shocking for the companies which are invest millions in their ERP systems without knowing features. Companies miss opportunities to automate business processes, complete functions faster, and meet business objectives. In addition, upgrades, enhancements & maintenance are more costly, and less likely to succeed.

To solve this problem, You have to create a master list with all features, tracking usage, and periodically reviewing the list to determine which features are being used and which are the most helpful. Not Understanding Or Using Key Features.

Underestimating The Time & Resources Required.

All companies grossly underestimate the time and resources required to implement a new ERP system. How can you calculate the necessary time involved? The time involved can be estimated by dividing the cost of the software by 100. For example, $40,000 for software will take approximately 400 man-hours or ten weeks to implement using a certified consultant. Double that number if you plan to self-implement with minimal professional assistance.Underestimating The Time & Resources Required.

Not Having The Right People On The Team From The Start.

Not Having The Right People On The Team From The Start.Generally companies do not organize the right people from very start of an ERP implementation. ERP implementation is one of the biggest projects an organization can undertake therefore mistakes can be made & plans might get insane if the right resources are not involved in focus in every aspect of the decision-making process. Many companies focus on getting executive approval, instead of gathering prople from across the organization, from finance, operations, manufacturing, purchasing, warehouse & IT.

Not Setting Priorities.

Not Setting Priorities.People work much slower when they are juggling multiple tasks and constantly switching gears. Therefore, creating a priority system should be a top priority for IT managers. The priority system should not only indicate when to do which tasks, but should also provide managers with the issues they need to resolve per priority. In addition, "ERP implementation managers need to implement a rigorous issue resolution process to act upon those signals and remove issues immediately in order to avoid delays.

Not Investing In Training & Change Management.

Not Investing In Training & Change Management.A lack of proper training is one of the most common reasons that ERP projects fail, and it can also result in employees resenting the new system because they don't understand it. Making sure employees have a chance to become comfortable with the new system before it goes live will do wonders for your chances at ERP success. If you don't make training and frequent communication with users a top priority, you will end up owning a very expensive version of Excel.

Underestimating The Importance of Accurate Data.

Underestimating The Importance of Accurate Data.If you want your ERP implementation to succeed, it is imperative that proper programming and procedural parameters are put in place to minimize the likelihood of errors. Your ERP system is only as good as the data that is in it.

Taking The Kitchen Sink Approach.

Taking The Kitchen Sink Approach.No matter how powerful or flexible an ERP system is, it will not be able to absorb all business logic. One of the most common mistakes made during ERP implementations is to assume that ERP can be used to run a business end to end. To avoid this costly mistake, companies should focus on implementing ERP to optimize value chain and to trace costs. Everything else should be a secondary goal.

Not Decommissioning Legacy Applications.

If companies do not actively work to decommission applications during the implementation, the end result is an ERP with all of the original legacy applications hanging off of it. The end result is another piece of software that you are paying maintenance and support on, paying for hardware and upgrades & paying for interfaces back into the core ERP. When the point of getting an ERP system was to streamline workflow and reduce costs and waste.Not Decommissioning Legacy Applications.

Not Having An Active Load Testing Environment.

Not Having An Active Load Testing Environment.You won't be able to see the true results of your changes based on a couple of test users. You must be able to simulate your user load in order to see the real-world effects of changes and avoid costly unplanned downtime.

Ignoring Third-Party Support Alternatives.

Ignoring Third-Party Support Alternatives.Many companies insist on premium vendor support, despite the fact that maintenance rates are at an all-time high and they can get the same level of service from a third-party support provider. Companies should explore all options for support, ranging from hybrid support providers that work directly with their vendor to deliver service, as well as providers that work independent of their vendor's partner program. A third-party support alternative can easily reduce support costs by 30 to 50 percent.

Not Having A Maintenance Strategy.

Customers not conducting preventative maintenance are not taking full advantage of their ERP investment and their maintenance dollars. By not applying maintenance, their systems will quickly become obsolete (from a technical perspective) as will their business processes. It is important to "keep the kernel up-to-date, with the right legal changes applied to prevent potential problems," and with improvements in installation technology, customers now experience only limited disruption when implementing support packs.Not Having A Maintenance Strategy.

Reference : http://www.cio.com/

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