- do a bit more under due diligence.
1 - Find a competitor or similar business that runs the ERP package(s) you are looking at. Ask them if you can benchmark or at least get a "lessons learned" from them.
2 - Ask yourself how good are your processes and procedures. Are they industry standard or home grown.
3 - And last, based on the demo, get the vendors opinion on how well they can handle unique or exception processes.
In the end the single biggest question that makes or breaks an ERP project is number 2 once you decide on the vendor.
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I agree this is the time to evaluate your existing business processes and not just set out to replicate what you already do. It's a mistake we made, at least in part.
However, I don't know what an industry-standard procedure is, as surely every company is unique?
Your point 3 should be taken care of by your functional spec and the scripted demo. What we also found, though, was that suppliers weren't always transparent about what was standard software and what had been specially bespoked for the demo!
However, I don't know what an industry-standard procedure is, as surely every company is unique?
Your point 3 should be taken care of by your functional spec and the scripted demo. What we also found, though, was that suppliers weren't always transparent about what was standard software and what had been specially bespoked for the demo!
Your approach to requirements gathering and specifying functional requirements is exemplary. But in my consulting experience guiding large IT system selections, let me add:
-- Remember "nonfunctional" requirements like using your server OS, RDBMSs, support for architecture choices like virtualization, etc.
-- Get the vendor to describe in some detail their implementation process, with emphasis on what they will do and what they expect you to do. Get a schedule.
-- Get the vendor to describe how they will handle the transition from your existing systems to the new ERP. Get commitments on data migration, training, and change management.
-- Get all their promises in writing, as part of the contract. Use the contract elements for a checklist of deliverables. Use the functional & nonfunctional requirements as a framework for acceptance testing.
Implementing a system like an ERP is a major undertaking. You and the vendor should treat it as a major project, with formal project management and due attention to all the details. Otherwise you get essentially a box of install disks and a large bill.
-- Remember "nonfunctional" requirements like using your server OS, RDBMSs, support for architecture choices like virtualization, etc.
-- Get the vendor to describe in some detail their implementation process, with emphasis on what they will do and what they expect you to do. Get a schedule.
-- Get the vendor to describe how they will handle the transition from your existing systems to the new ERP. Get commitments on data migration, training, and change management.
-- Get all their promises in writing, as part of the contract. Use the contract elements for a checklist of deliverables. Use the functional & nonfunctional requirements as a framework for acceptance testing.
Implementing a system like an ERP is a major undertaking. You and the vendor should treat it as a major project, with formal project management and due attention to all the details. Otherwise you get essentially a box of install disks and a large bill.
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