Sample: five first steps of an ERP implementation

This is a sample article. It only shows how articles look on the site. Replace it with your own content.

Many ERP projects fail not because of the software, but because of poor preparation. These five steps help to start in the right way.

1. Describe the current processes

Write down how orders, purchases, stock and payments really work today, including the workarounds people use. You cannot improve a process that nobody has described.

2. Define the goals

Choose three to five measurable goals, for example “close the month in five days instead of fifteen”. Goals help to decide which requirements are important and which can wait.

3. Appoint an owner on the business side

An ERP project needs a person from the business who can make decisions. The IT side alone cannot decide how sales or purchasing should work.

4. Prepare the data

Clean up the customer, supplier and product lists before they are moved to the new system. Duplicates and old records are cheaper to remove now than later.

5. Start small

Begin with one or two key processes and a pilot group of users. Extend the system step by step after the first results are stable.

A clear plan and an engaged business owner matter more than the choice of a particular product.