R3Now.com – ERP, SAP, and IT Solutions for IT Decision Makers

ERP Software: Are Modifications Always a Bad Idea?

Software modifications must be discouraged but sometimes they make perfect business sense. Remember, software exists to support the business, not the other way around. As an inexperienced project leader back in the 1980’s, I once informed an executive at a large aerospace manufacturer we were going vanilla with our enterprise software implementation. Absolutely NO software modifications or enhancements allowed I proclaimed! His response stayed with me and still rings true today... "Steve, ...

Define SAP

SAP Defined - What is SAP? There are two ways to define SAP.  The first SAP definition is related to the company itself and the next is the name of the application software.  What is SAP? SAP is defined in literal terms from a German translation of Systeme, Anwendungen und Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung as Systems, Applications, and Products in Data Processing.  The company's main product is "R/3" for "Realtime" and "3 tier" processing architecture consisting of application, databas...

ERP Failure: The Organization is More Than Partially To Blame

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. It is not unusual when actual project timelines exceed the original schedule by well over 100%. The cost of consulting services alone can grow to 4 - 5 times the cost of the ERP software (with even greater upside risk potential). Finally, ...