Managing Risk During ERP Implementation
By Jackie Aldrich
Implementing a new ERP system is a huge undertaking. It usually requires a large upfront financial investment as well as the time of employees for training. Although the implementation process can be draining on the organization, if done successfully there is a huge reward waiting on the other side including increased efficiency and productivity. How can we reduce risk during an ERP project to ensure that our large investments in both dollars and man power don’t go to waste and that the project ends with success?
Ways to Manage Risk During an ERP project
Leadership
Get the executives leading your organization to “buy in” to the ERP project. Support from the top level is crucial for the following reasons:
- To understand the work that is required to implement in a new system.
- To provide support and resources during the implementation process.
- To spread organization-wide adoption of the new ERP system.
Budget
Come up with a realistic budget for your ERP project. Include everything from upfront license fees (or hosting fees) to implementation consulting costs to post go-live support. Don’t forget about hardware costs if you will be hosting on premise as well, as the cost of dedicating some of your team members to the training process can vary. There may be hiccups along the way too, but a realistic budget will help your project to run smoothly.
Scope
Set a reasonable scope and corresponding timeline for your project. Start by defining the functionality your business absolutely must have to run day-to-day. If you're on a tight timeline this can be “phase 1” of your ERP project. Phase 2 can be the time to implement the “would be nice to have” wish list items. If your must-have list is long and includes many customizations be sure to be realistic about the time that it will take to address each prioritized item.
Conclusion
These are just a few of the many ways to mitigate ERP project risk and to put you on the track to a successful implementation. Follow these suggestions above and look into other ways to reduce risk to ensure you get the biggest return on your ERP investment in the shortest amount of time. If you’re interested in utilizing Visibility ERP, please get in touch with us.
