Looking for ERP Success? Here’s 3 Hacks to Help
Like spring and the return to school in autumn, the new year is a time for new beginnings. That means dusting off your plans for digital change, getting shelved projects back on track and finding trusted partners to help you meet your business goals.
For many businesses that is going to involve looking at the various ERP systems on the market along with their providers and then conducting an evaluation about which solution best meets your needs.
Preparing for ERP Success
But selecting a system isn’t the end of the story. No one can guarantee your ERP success but there are several things you can and should do to prepare the ground for implementation.
1. How ready are you?
Sadly projects often fail because organisations don’t plan how they are going to bring their people along with them.
It would greatly benefit you to carry out a survey asking: What are the cultural and people issues we are likely to come up against? What are the strengths and weaknesses of our culture? How ready are we for change and what can we do to make us more prepared?
Organizational readiness assessments cost very little and deliver a great deal of value.
2. How will things change?
Fear of the unknown can paralyze staff and make them unproductive. Information is the key here. When staff know what changes to expect – down to the granular detail of how it will effect their dailywork, they are far more receptive to change and much more relaxed about it.
Making an assessment of the coming change and then communicating it, will not be a wasted effort.
3. What does your training & aftercare look like?
Moving up to ERP means the expectation that certain business benefits will ensue. But in order to guarantee that this happens you must get your staff on board for success. Solid groundwork and preparation are both vital – but tip number 3 is about what comes next.
When you hit the button on Go Live you want your team to be as comfortable with the new system as possible. But there will be glitches – let’s not pretend. People will forget how to do basic things – new issues will arrive as the year moves on and new staff members will join.
So be sure to know what training and aftercare is available to you. A care package that allows you to call up a dedicated support person who knows your business, will save you a lot of time. You can find out more about what a support package looks like here.
Conclusion
With an ERP system in place you can really begin to grow and expand your business, meeting business goals for the year ahead. But if you fail to prepare your staff for change all you are getting is unused software. Don’t waste this chance for effective ERP success. If you would like to find out more about change management, ERP aftercare, systems selection, or our own personal choice of ERP for growing business SAP Business ByDesign, then don’t hesitate to get in touch.
[email protected] or talk to Caroline; [email protected]
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