New ERP software can bring great benefits to your organization. At the same time, it also has a huge impact on the organization and requires a major adjustment of all employees. "Implement" is the securing of processes in a software solution, processes are formed by (prescribed/handheld) practices and executed by your employees. Often these processes are formed from the past (this is how we have always done it) or dictated by the (un-)capabilities of your current software solution. The most difficult step in any implementation is to "break free" from these ways of working, to "look at" this from a distance to see how it can be done differently (better). So it is your people who are executing processes and will undergo a change.
This is where an outside party familiar with best practices can help tremendously and things can actually start to change within your company. The outcome of this process is secured in the software solution. If your software partner has already defined optimized processes for your industry, you go into an ERP implementation with a "head start."
This process only has a chance of success if it is well guided from both you as a customer (guiding the change/mindset of your employees) and from your supplier who can save you from pitfalls, in summary we often call this Change Management. It is important that you and your software partner give high priority to Change Management when implementing ERP Software.
Redefining business processes
New software affects your business processes. Choose a software partner who will guide you in improving current business processes. The consultants who come to your site should not only have knowledge of the software they are implementing, but they should also know your industry inside out. Only then can they serve you well in optimizing your processes. Also rely on best practice; an experienced software partner who knows your industry well has this knowledge and experience woven into the workflow of the software solution offered. As a result, business process reform in many cases leads to an improvement in efficiency, the achievement of your business goals and a solid foundation has been laid for future developments.
Implementation guidance
During the implementation many of your employees will have to deal with the new software for the first time and most likely with changed processes. By choosing a user-friendly software solution, your employees will be able to review and test the processes more quickly. Choose to first train a group of motivated core users who know the processes in their department well. They can then train the remaining users. During the implementation, pay constant attention to internal (organization-wide) communication and hold regular meetings for this purpose.
Alex Bouwmeester is Project Manager Europe at Dysel and accompanies the customer from start to finish in the implementation.
