Keeping pace with the latest ERP
The average lifespan for an ERP is five to seven years, when a refresh or upgrade is needed to keep pace with technology advances and realign the system with the business. Even the best can be made better and this is a bold, brave step for the business, but one that will pay dividends in the long-run. But in the short-term, potentially not so much!
Even an upgrade can be as disruptive as installing a new ERP system with all the pain and discomfort that implies and hence why many companies cling on resolutely to their old ERP solution until parting from it is not just sweet sorry, but an absolute necessity. At which point the key imperative is to build a plan, gather the appropriate resources and manage expectations.
The first expectation to set is that this is not purely an IT project that will not affect the rest of the business. Secondly, the expectation of improvement can only be met when accompanied by extensive business process adjustment and even the re-engineering of some parts of the business. This will have significant effect on some people in the business and be catatonic for others.
However, an ERP upgrade is an opportunity to improve both the ERP system as well as the functional processes in the business. It is a rule of thumb that the changes made in the processes will have a similar magnitude of change in the benefits received. This is not change for change sake.
New ERP systems or even system upgrades have improved, streamlined and become more feature-rich, as well as more intuitive and easier to use. This dictates a re-examination of the business with this new order as add-ons and ancillary systems may no longer be required.
There have also been some significant improvements in the assessment and audit of business process mapping, with some easy and thorough online tools which ensure each element is properly analysed, allocated a resource and mapped to any documents and procedures. Use of these tools alongside an ERP upgrade can smooth out the kinks and ensure nothing falls through the cracks but is on the project time-line with resources properly allocated.
Alongside process mapping, ERP functionality and system audits, there will be major impact and influence upon the people in the business. Communication amongst the team and beyond is essential. One of the key road-blocks can be a lack of interaction with the team who need to understand why a change is being made, so they can understand the meaning of any adjustments they need to make.
One way to ensure that all of these essential elements are catered for is using an outsource company who do upgrades and ERP implementations time and again, year in, year out. Their experience is invaluable as they not only understand the system and technology but also the effect this can have on the business.
When managed correctly an ERP upgrade can be a positive experience as well as delivering a positive outcome, but it requires effort and efficiency.
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Reinforce Technology are experts in providing professional consultants for Infor ERP projects of all kinds for their range of solutions including Baan and BPCS as well as later solutions of LN and LX. For more information please see www.reinforcetech.co.uk or contact info@reinforcetech.co.uk