ERP - PRE AND POST IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES:

PRE IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES:-

●      Managers must conduct a feasibility study of the current situation to assess the organization’s needs by analyzing the availability of hardware, software, databases, and in-house computer expertise, and make the decision to implement ERP where integration is essential. They must also set goals for improvement and establish objectives for the implementation, and calculate the break-even points and benefits to be received from this expensive IT investment.

●      The second major activity involves educating and recruiting end users to be involved throughout the implementation process.

●      Managers form a project team or steering committee that consists of experts from all functional areas to lead the project.

POST IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES:-

●      After a decision is made to implement ERP, a team of system consultants will be hired to evaluate the appropriateness of implementing an ERP system, and to help select the best enterprise software provider and the best approach to implementing ERP. In most Situations, the consultant team also recommends the modules that are best suited to the company’s operations (manufacturing, financials, human resources, logistics, forecasting, etc.), system configurations, and Business-to-Business applications such as supply-chain management, customer relationship management, e-procurement, and e-marketplace.

●      Adequate employee and manager training must be provided to all business, stakeholders, including managers, end users, customers, and vendors, before the system is implemented. Such training are usually customized and can be provided by either internal or Outside trainers.

●      The system installation process will address issues such as software configuration, hardware acquisition, and software testing.

●      Data and information in the databases must be converted to the format used in the new ERP system and servers and networks need to be upgraded. A post implementation review is recommended to ensure that all business objectives established during the planning phase are achieved. Needed modifications are tackled during this phase too.

ERP: Post-Implementation

After an ERP implementation, organization should not sit back and relax. Depending on the scope of the ERP implementation exercises, several options can be explored to further maximize the gains.

The first thing that an organization should look forward to, after an ERP implementation, is improved morale of the workforce. Needless to say, it would have a cascade effect in terms of increased productivity and better customer response.

On the monetary side, depending on the level of success, ROI should also be on the way up. It is estimated that a well managed ERP project can have up to 200percent return on investment within a short period of time while a poorly managed ERP project can yield a return on investment as low as 25 percent.

During the phase of minimization, organizations move closer to best practices. Depending on the target environment design, which is governed by the ability to change, this effort could be a natural extension of the ERP implementation or it could be a separate project in itself. Process optimizations, and thus performance improvement, are a continuous exercise