ERP Future? 4

[SgtPepps]

I'm not sure if this is the best forum for my question but does anyone know of any UK based Indpendant ERP Consultants? We are looking for opinions on the future of the ERP market, obviously i'd like to know any opinions you may have on the subject too.

Read this for more Info

http://www.techweb.com/wire/story/TWB20030618S0012

Regards

Mike

Hold the Wheel and drive

 

[byteofram]

I'm curious Cajun how many ERP's you've implemented? Sounds like you have a lot of experience and if it isn't from implementations then is your knowledge word of mouth, read somewhere, etc? I don't agree with all you've said, but some is very true.
HOWEVER....jsteph above quoted me and then said you'd have to spend thousands on consultant costs. This statement is very untrue with our implementation. We didn't spend money on consultants...if you're IT department is good, you can do it without outside help. I've helped another company come up with their plan of action for implementation too (for free as a favor for a friend) and theirs was a success too because of the initial planning and having a clear understanding of the paperwork, business, etc.
I think where you find companies getting into trouble and losing tons of money is when they try to fit the ERP package to their business, customizing it to no end. Your costs are so much greater. Did we have to change a couple things, sure...but they were MINOR in the scope of things and now no one even thinks about it. Sometimes change isn't a bad thing.
I think smythe was so correct, if you management doesn't have a clear understanding, you are doomed. We also used the formula, get every aspect of the business involved...from management down to the guy working the widget on the line. We had someone from financial, management, customer service, production, maintenance, shipping, IT, etc...some depts had multiple people on the team.
It can be done and you can do it without it costing a fortune. And I can say that with proof. Those that are knocking ERP, can you back up what you say with proof on an implementation done properly?

 

[CajunCenturion]

Personally, I've had involvement with two ERP installations, both using SAP. My role was adjunct in that I developed some integration routines between various modules, along with some data conversion utilities and the like. Both of these projects had huge cost and time overruns, and I can assure you, that it was not a management problem, either from lack of vision, direction, involvement, or input. In fact it was the exact opposite. The inflexibility in the software hindered management's ability to fully realize the business model that was at the heart of the success in building these two multi-million dollar companies.

Secondly, as a result of a corporate merger, our company and an SAP company became one and direct face to face conversations with some of the SAP consultants also contributed to, and reinforced, my position. We also had some JDE consultants on the payroll, and off the record, they too echoed the same sentiments, and if you wish to write that off as heresay (which is really is), I certainly couldn't blame you or disagree with that.

That being said, I am well aware of the fact that some ERP installations have gone fairly smoothly. The over-riding parameter seems to be in how closely the existing business model matches up with the model being dictated by the ERP system. The closer the two are at the start, the higher the probability of success, and perhaps your case, as evidenced by the fact that your changes were minor, lends some credence to that.

I think you illustrate what I feel is at the crux of the issue by your statement -- "I think where you find companies getting into trouble and losing tons of money is when they try to fit the ERP package to their business, customizing it to no end." Why on earth would you buy a piece of software that you would not try to fit into your business? The alternative is the fit the business into the ERP package, because, ultimately, the two have to be in synch. But isn't that backwards? Unfortunately, the EPR systems generally do not have the flexibility to be easily adapted to the existing business model. IMHO, the software should not dictate the business model.

Good Luck
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As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[dgillz]

As someone who implements ERP for a living, I must chime in on the "flexibility" aspect of ERP. The product I represent, and its competitors are all very, very flexible. It is the management of my customers that are not flexible and what to do things a certain way that usually prevents them from taking full advantage of the flexibility of the software.

having said all that, I am in the "middle market" and have little experience with SAP, PeopleSoft, Baan, JDE etc. These are the big guys in ERP.

When you think about it, an ERP package has to try to be all thing to all people, to make its product attractive to multiple industries and business environments. This fact, and my ownpersonal experience, does not reconcile well with the statements we have heard on this thread about ERP being inflexible.

Software Sales, Training, Implementation and Support for Exact Macola, eSynergy, and Crystal Reports

http://www.trianglepartners.com

 

[CajunCenturion]

-> "It is the management of my customers that are not flexible and want(?) to do things a certain way that usually prevents them from taking full advantage of the flexibility of the software".

Let me get this straight. The software is very very flexible, but the customer (management) cannot do it the way they want, because that would not allow them to take advantage of the software's flexibility?

Again, it is the customer that must change to utilize the software, not some flexible software that can be adapted to the customer.

If the software were truly flexible, wouldn't it be flexible enough to allow the customer to do it they way they want in the first place?

Good Luck
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As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[CajunCenturion]

As I drove into work this morning, it came to me that perhaps what we mean by flexibility is part of our misunderstanding. So in order to frame my comments -

Flexibility is not how many things you can do (that's utility). Flexibility is how may different ways, or how easily you can adapt to different ways of doing it.

I would agree complete with the statement:

"It is the management of my customers that are not flexible and want to do things a certain way that usually prevents them from taking full advantage of the utility of the software."

Good Luck
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As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein