Over the years there have been many headlines about ERP
projects going wrong and, paradoxically, fewer stories about the
much greater number of projects which have gone well - for example,
SAP currently has over 82,000 ERP customers across 120 different
countries most of whose ERP systems run smoothly,writes
Ian Anderson, director atDNAStream
.
However, there is no denying that implementing ERP software is a
major undertaking and needs to be recognised as such - with expert
project management and controls applied throughout.
So what are the main things that determine the relative success
or failure of an ERP project? It's impossible to be completely
prescriptive on this as no two projects are ever the same, but one
critical factor is the quality of the key members of the project
team.
Engage the best consultants for key roles
Although there are many thousands of ERP consultants in the
marketplace, there are significantly fewer best qualified to
deliver your specific project successfully.
It is wise to spend sufficient time to ensure that you get the
right people in key project roles in the project team. I call this
the project team "A-Team". The number of these A-Team positions
will depend on the size of the project but will include the project
manager, solution architect and technical architect.
In larger projects there may be a number of similar roles across
different work-streams and other positions, such as training
manager, testing manager and data migration manager, may be equally
important.
You should interview people for the A-Team roles, even if they
are being proposed as part of a consultancy team. Don't just engage
with the consulting firm; engage with these key individuals
directly to ensure that they are right for your requirement. Take
up references to verify that they have previously successfully
delivered similar projects to yours.
Once you have identified them, ensure, contractually if
possible, that the A- Team will remain in place for the whole
period required by the project. It is not uncommon for consulting
organisations to use their best people to help win the initial work
and then move them on shortly afterwards to win further business at
other customers.
In short, aim for the A-Team for these key positions and try to
keep them there. Experience has shown that a small select team of
experts can deliver significant value to ERP projects.
Use consultants with combined industry and system
knowledge
The A-Team should understand both your business and the ERP
solution to be implemented. This combination of business and
systems knowledge will ensure that they will develop and implement
the solution in the way which best suits your business
requirements.
ERP software can often be configured or developed in a number of
different ways to handle a single business process; a consultant
who understands your business will know the best approach for you,
rather than simply repeating the method he used at his previous
client.
The combination of business and solution skills can make a
significant difference to the success of the project by driving
through the IT processes which are ultimately going to enhance your
business.
The A-Team will direct the rest of the project team
Getting the A-Team will deliver significant benefits to the
project and make a successful delivery more likely. They will
ensure that the optimum IT approaches are taken for your business
and they will have the character and determination to drive these
through. They will manage the remainder of the (less experienced)
project team ensuring they properly carry out their specific tasks
to plan.
But that's not all folks...
While the project team is a critical factor in ERP projects,
there are also other important elements such as the software,
internal staff, support and future developments and these will be
covered in articles to follow in this series.