Bonjour,

Implementing an ERP system is a risky endeavor for various reasons. Management and project managers often have to walk the tight rope. Continuing this series of blogs, we’ll explore some of those risks and discuss ways you can reduce or manage them.

One important risk-inducing factor in deployments comes from customizing your ERP solution, which also includes integrating with external systems. Perhaps you own a vertical solution you absolutely require to operate a particular area of your business. Maybe you need your CRM solution to communicate with your ERP software. Your business may have very unique requirements that set you apart from your competitors. This additional technical work adds complexity and can impact your timeline and budget.

You want to make sure that the customizations you include are unavoidable and necessary. There must be a significant positive return on investment attached to any adaptation or system interface you develop as it can be very hard to properly estimate the effort required for such a body of work. The bigger the modification, the more surprises you can expect. This is the nature of the beast. Like renovating your old home versus building a model home that has been constructed many times to the same specifications.

Too often, modifications are introduced to bring comfort, even to mimic the way the old system worked. Learning to use the system as is, accepting the fact that life will change and avoiding unnecessary modifications is key for the success of your project. Nowadays, ERP systems are mature solutions that rely on industry best practice. It is a good idea to adapt the business to the system whenever possible instead of adapting the system to the business.

Please don’t hesitate to write if you have questions or comments.

Cordially,

Sylvain.