Discussion on:

How to make a sound business and technology case for ERP implementation

1. Company operates its functions as per the global standards. Since ERP's force to adopt the global standards. In other words , ERP provides the fast and easy way to adopt the business standards.
2. Easy to keep eye on all control / monitoring points of the company operations.
3. Early detection of the operational faults and provides gateway to recover fast.
4. Faster information flow - reduces decision making time. And toold to take correct decision in time.
5. Planning becomes timely fruitful activity.

Above are the benefits becides technical benefits which ultimately helps organizations to maintain their standards which one can't loose in this competitive edge.

Very nice overview about an ERP implementation advantages... one quick point. Although ERP implementations do provide a standardized, global, and scalable method to monitor and administer business processes, the ERP should not be viewed as the start point for the development of business processes within an organization. Many organizations will try to match the processes available within the ERP design attempting to reduce implementation costs. This may indeed reduce the cost of the implementation but the organization will be trapped by processes that don?t make the best business sense...having a direct impact on their bottom-line.

In order to extract the strongest return from an ERP, an organization must review, re-engineer, or re-create business processes that drive performance and optimization inside and outside their corporation. This essential first step coupled with the "right-fitting" ERP makes for a great implementation and a happy customer?able to quickly act and react to market conditions.

For a valid case, you will need to have an in-depth understanding of the current business processes and how the ERP system will improve functionality... In other words, how much will the better, faster, more accurate information save the company? This must be evaluated in actual financial terms - and measured prior to as well as after implementation.
Similarly, with improved connectivity, how many business partners will utilize the data portals and the enhanced data transport infrastructure? These need to be evaluated up front and the costs and benefits quantified.

Improved user interface: the actual monetary savings from this need to be quantified.

An exhausted development team on which you have spent a fortune training up in the latest ERP skills sounds like a recipe for staff turnover, not any significant benefit to the company.

Failing any of the above, you can just fall back to the old approach "Everyone else is doing it; we will be out of business in a few years if we don't...!"