Develop Your ERP Selection Team
If your Small to Medium Sized Business (SMB) is drowning in paperwork and bad information from disparate systems, it might be ready to implement an ERP System. You may be overwhelmed by not only the choices, but the best practices in choosing a new ERP system.In this blog series entitled, “Selecting ERP for Your Small to Medium Sized Business,” we’ll outline the six steps you should take to ensure a successful selection and implementation. From assembling your cross-functional ERP team to finally selecting your ERP system, we’ll walk you through each step of the process. In the first blog, “Develop Your ERP System Selection and Implementation Team,” we’ll cover what you need to know to make your first step the right one.
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If your Small to Medium Sized Business (SMB) is drowning in paperwork and bad information from disparate systems, it might be ready to implement an ERP System. You may be overwhelmed by not only the choices, but the best practices in choosing a new ERP system. And contrary to what you may have been told, ERP is not only for large organizations. As SMB operations become more complex, it is essential for the software solutions to evolve and also become more complex, making the adoption of a comprehensive ERP system a necessity. There are several affordable choices out there for the SMB market, which we will cover in a later blog series.
There are many benefits to ERP - probably the most important is the ability to get real-time information across the company from one system. No more out-of-date spreadsheets from various departments that take hours to dissect. Another great benefit, especially for high-volume organizations, is the capability to improve on-time deliveries and greater inventory control and visibility. And improved efficiencies across the organization help your company become lean operations that can better compete in an ever-growing global marketplace.
In this blog series entitled, “Selecting ERP for Your Small to Medium Sized Business,” we’ll outline the six steps you should take to ensure a successful selection and implementation. From assembling your cross-functional ERP team to finally selecting your ERP system, we’ll walk you through each step of the process.
In the first blog, “Develop Your ERP System Selection and Implementation Team,” we’ll cover what you need to know to make your first step the right one.
Assemble Your Cross-Functional Team of Experts
Many companies believe an ERP project should start with the IT team. While you certainly need IT’s input and support, especially as it relates to network and hardware issues, it’s really a cross-functional process. Key stakeholders from areas such as accounting, purchasing and inventory, operations, IT and all other instrumental areas of your business should be tapped, as well as a member of the Executive Management to keep the project focused, on task and on budget.
The team will be responsible for a number of important tasks:
- Researching, evaluating and selecting the ERP system
- Setting specific goals and objectives
- Communicating the need for ERP and its benefits throughout the company
- Collaborating with the ERP vendor to create and execute the implementation plan
Keep the team to 5-8 members. Each team member should be responsible for getting feedback from others in their business units and providing it to the team. And remember, the team members don’t have to be the managers – but they should be well-respected, effective communicators with a good understanding of how the current processes feed into the overall company goals. Be sure not to discount less experienced or junior team members. Employees with limited or outside background can give valuable input into a process or system based on experience with the systems or processes they have recently learned, or with systems they have used at other organizations.
Once you establish your team, you are ready to move on to the next step, Assessing Your ERP Readiness, which we will cover in the next post.
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