ERP Implementation Steps

 

As businesses begin to think about moving over to an ERP solution, it may seem like a daunting business decision. However, understanding the steps that will be completed throughout the implementation helps to envision the process occurring smoothly and efficiently. Breaking an implementation down into individual steps and projects to complete before moving on is how the process is able to be completed with less disruption to businesses. In today’s Softengine Blog, we are going to introduce five main steps that occur in an ERP implementation.

 

Identify Business Needs: Before choosing a specific ERP solution, identifying what specific requirements you need from an ERP to help run your business with greater efficiency and accuracy is a great first step. With the plethora of ERP options available for every type and size of business, it is best to compare features of the ERPs to the certain business operations you wish to automate with the ERP. For food businesses, this may be recall solutions, and for manufacturers, this may be lot traceability. Despite the type of business, there are incredible features and abilities that are packed into an ERP solution that will inevitably alleviate some stress from completing internal operations.

 

Project Planning: After identifying specific business needs and finding the perfect ERP solution and partner to help implement and support an ERP project, the second step will be beginning the project planning process. Working with the project management team, the entire roadmap of the implementation can be defined and visualized with expected completion dates. This step helps to see exactly what the ERP implementation process will entail and what each step consists of. Within the project planning phase, the phases of implementation will be discussed along with communication plans and scheduling goals. With clearly defined project goals and steps to be completed along the way, the project planning step is where the collaborative effort comes to fruition between the project managers and your team! (1)

 

Data Migration: Data migration is the official first step of moving your business’s data over to the ERP. Within this step, there will be many different tasks completed to ensure that the data being moved over to the ERP is cleansed and as accurate as possible. Beginning the journey of running on an ERP is a huge accomplishment and will only be an even greater success as long as the migrated data is accurate. Your ERP partner will play a huge role in helping with this process because it is the first step on the journey of running your business on the ERP software and they are highly trained and specialized in the various data migration components. (2)

 

Training and Go-Live: Once the business information is completely cleansed and migrated over to the ERP, it is now possible to begin training employees on the software. Training is essential for the employees who will be working hands-on with the software because it is necessary for them to be comfortable with navigating and completing tasks. The training process does not have to be conducted in one certain way or last for a specific amount of time; it really depends on how comfortable employees feel in their abilities. Once training is complete, it is time for the big step that everyone is anticipating since beginning the implementation process; the Go-Live. A go-live is when a business begins to run their entire operations from the newly implemented ERP solution. This is a stressful day and period of time for all involved in the project, but the ERP partner is there with support and to help with any misunderstandings or bumps in the road that occur during the go-live. (2).

 

Post Go-Live Support: After the go-live period has ended and employees are feeling even more confident in the new ERP solution, it is now time for the support period to begin. This refers to the ERP partner being available for any discrepancies or bugs that occur within the system and helping resolve any issues that the client is facing. In many cases, support is merely a message or a call away and the issue can be resolved in no time.

 

In conclusion, the ERP Implementation process is truly a cooperative effort between both the business and the ERP partner to create a customized plan that fits the specific business needs, schedule, and levels of training and support. Here at Softengine, we are an SAP Gold Partner specializing in SAP Business One, the leading ERP software for the small-to-midsize business market. We pride ourselves in our client-first approach to ERP and our 24/7 support team ready to help with any issues that may be experienced within the system.

 

More information about the Softengine Advantage: https://softengine.com/about-softengine/the-softengine-advantage/

 

More information about SAP Business One: https://softengine.com/product/sap-business-one/

 

Resources:

1. https://dysel.com/knowledge-centre/blog/5-key-steps-for-a-successful-erp-implementation
2. https://www.erpfocus.com/erp-implementation-plan.html#migratedata