The Traps

ERP Implementation - The Traps

While doing Business Reengineering, considerable amount of thinking and discussion is required with Management, Managers/Engineers, and Accounts/Finance people and definitely with BPR/ERP vendor and If possible, with the organisation who has already implemented BPR/ERP.

Because of the richness of functionality, the "toy box effect" can take over. Users see all the functionality available and suddenly they want it now. The scope can grow out of control.

Users need to become more computer literate. Many see this as personally challenging - even beyond their ability - and will not cope, or leave the company.

The word "Enterprise" in ERP means that whatever happens in one area has a ripple effect in other areas. Understanding the implications of actions of one area, on other areas of the company, is not something that happens overnight. Training tends to focus on how I do my job. It should also focus on what are the impacts of my job, in other areas?

Near enough is no longer good enough.  Data integrity becomes critical.  The computer cannot make human judgements.  If stock is moved, it is no good somebody remembering where they put it. The information needs to be put into the system or there will be a domino effect.  E.g. Stock is moved from location A to location B and the information is not put into the system.  The system will tell someone to get the material from A and when it is not there, they have to go looking.  At the same time it is telling someone else to put new material in B, but B is full.  The first person finds the original material in B and logs it into the system. We now have double the quantity in the system again and it doesn't re-order.  And so it goes on and everyone is blaming the system

ERP systems tend to replace old systems. As such it is a quantum leap for all areas of the company. It is replacing the trusty Ford with a high performance Ferrari. This happens at a Technical level as well as a Business Level.  New ways need to be learnt in a very short space of time.   Things have to be done consistently. No longer are we able to do something one way in one branch and another way in another branch.  The system is going to determine how we do things in all locations.