ERP Project Archives - Page 6 of 7 - Innovate. Integrate. Transform. Run.

CRM, ERP, BI, and IT Investment — Where Do You Find the Business Benefit?
CRM, ERP, BI, and IT Investment — Where Do You Find the Business Benefit?

CRM, ERP, BI, and IT Investment — Where Do You Find the Business Benefit?

By Bill Wood|September 19th, 2009|

Most companies want to use CRM applications to "supercharge" their sales forces. They want higher customer retention and acquisition than their competitors, managing the sales pipeline and having better market insight. But few companies realize these goals. After going through some of the academic studies and literature about CRM implementation, evidence suggests that some companies see limited benefit from their CRM implementations, but they are not happy overall. These anecdotal accoun [...]

ERP Failure: The Organization is More Than Partially To Blame
ERP Failure: The Organization is More Than Partially To Blame

ERP Failure: The Organization is More Than Partially To Blame

By Steve Phillips|September 15th, 2009|

You really have to wonder: Does any organization spend millions of dollars on SAP (or any other software) with the goal of failing? The scope of a typical ERP project impacts almost every aspect of the organization, and the implementation risks are real. Often, an actual project's timeline far exceeds the original schedule. The cost of consulting services alone can grow four to five times the cost of the ERP software (with even greater upside risk potential). However, we have all heard the horr [...]

Realizing SAP Business Benefit
Realizing SAP Business Benefit

Realizing SAP Business Benefit

By Bill Wood|August 26th, 2009|

When implementing or upgrading SAP, too often I encounter vendors and consultants who believe they are more qualified than they actually are. Think of backyard mechanics who changed the oil on someone's cars and checked the tire pressure a few times, then somehow think that qualifies them to do engine overhauls on Formula 1 race cars. Similarly, why do you expect old-style implementation vendors and consultants to transform your business into a competitive powerhouse by only addressing cost-foc [...]

Protecting the SAP Project’s Budget and Timeline
Protecting the SAP Project’s Budget and Timeline

Protecting the SAP Project’s Budget and Timeline

By Bill Wood|July 11th, 2009|

For years I have heard stories about blown SAP budgets and blown SAP project timelines. Personally, I have experienced a few project overruns [FN1], and a few where we came in under budget. However, I can’t say any of the projects were ever early. While I believe that coming in under budget is often possible, reducing the time frame is much more difficult because of the planning and coordination processes. You need to adjust all of the parallel work streams and get the coordination and [...]

Planning For a Smooth Go-Live: Part 3
Planning For a Smooth Go-Live: Part 3

Planning For a Smooth Go-Live: Part 3

By Bill Wood|October 24th, 2008|

3. ERP or SAP Process issues Let me start with a caveat to this section. No matter how good, thorough, experienced, or conscientious a consultant or a core team member is, a project will always experience a few process gaps, and an occasional completely missing process discovered at go-live. Now that the caveat is out of the way, process problems can occur for many reasons: inexperienced consultants, company employees who miss some of the process exceptions, inadequate training, insufficient in [...]

Reduce SAP Project Stress: Part 1
Reduce SAP Project Stress: Part 1

Reduce SAP Project Stress: Part 1

By Bill Wood|August 25th, 2008|

Expectation Setting As one of the most overlooked consulting and management skills, expectation setting can make the difference between a good job and a mess. Expectation setting is vital for both the person who is supposed to meet the expectation (the consultant or implementation vendor), as well as those setting expectations (the customer or project manager). During an SAP implementation, project-related expectation setting comes at many points and phases of the project. The team nee [...]