The Renewed Promise of ERP
The Incredible Changes that Give Hope to Small Companies
It is not uncommon for me to talk to prospective customers and experience a healthy degree of unease as it relates to enterprise resource planning (ERP) or any large technology project. I hear “too big, too expensive, too long and too risky” in some form or combination – and I honestly don’t blame them.
One of the benefits of having worked in the space for approximately a quarter of a century is that I have seen all sorts of things. I have seen a lot of good…certainly some bad and even some ugly. Oscar Wilde once said, “experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.” For some, that “experience” was costly:
- Projects that ran amok resulting in blown timelines and budgets
- Solutions with poor user experience and missed expectations
- Negative impacts to business operations and damage to careers
We have all read or heard the stories, but the good news is that the market (not just me) has learned a tremendous amount over the history of ERP projects. Furthermore, the underlying promise or objectives of these programs are still sound. Objectives like:
- Process and data integration
- Real time visibility and advance analytics
- Process automation
- Financial and operational control
So, the question is “what did we learn and what has changed?” What can we point to that gives organizations hope with this next generation of programs?
The simple answer is – almost everything. The technology, how it is delivered and who delivers it have all undergone some form of overhaul. To put a bit of a finer point on that assertion, here are my Top 10 fundamental changes that give promise to the small or medium companies considering ERP.
I frame this list in a public cloud solution context and more specifically S/4HANA Public Cloud which is a good fit for small and medium size companies considering ERP for possibly the first time.
- Cloud Delivery – The solution is delivered and managed by SAP in the cloud, which eliminates the need for extensive on-premise infrastructure. Even more important, the vendor-managed structure means NO MORE UPGRADES!
- Improved user experience – Modern user interfaces, such as SAP Fiori, are drastically more intuitive. This not only enhances usability but also makes adoption and change management for the business user so much easier.
- Smarter and Faster Tech – The technology is not just easier to use…it is better. For example, the software can now consume tremendous amounts of data which allows for real-time analytics. It also enables game changing capabilities such as Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence which take process automation to the next level.
- Pre-configured Solutions – The public cloud model in particular focuses on fit-to-standard, ready-to-run solutions. SAP provides these with industry-specific best-practice templates that radically accelerate implementation. No more long design cycles – companies can see the solution straightaway.
- Agile Methodologies – Possibly the biggest lesson learned was the danger in long development/build cycles. Adoption of agile and iterative project management approaches allows for faster deployments and quicker adjustments based on user feedback.
- Modularity and Integration Tools – In line with agile methodologies, the technology and approach today is much more modular. This allows customers to solve for what they need and grow into a broader solution set more easily. Enhanced integration capabilities with APIs and tools like SAP Integration Suite streamline connecting SAP with other systems. This reduces the “too big” issue of old.
- Delivery Packages – The delivery of the software has come a long way. In addition, to agile methodology most systems integrators (like Navisite) have developed delivery packages designed to accelerate delivery, but more importantly provide a very solid cost estimate. Any CFO will tell you that it is not just the extra cost that some of these projects incurred – it was the surprise.
- Enablement Technologies – Part of the secret sauce under the lower cost to deliver is the development of a myriad of tools in support of that delivery. Advancement in data work and automated testing have significantly cut major low-value, time consumers out of the delivery process.
- Experience – The entire ecosystem is scarred but smarter – whether that is best practice adoption, lessons learned, problem avoidance or critical success factors – every customer benefits from the knowledge and skill developed over the past 30+ years.
- Support and Resources – Increased availability of training, documentation, and community support help organizations navigate deployments more effectively. Furthermore, much of the resourcing is available or embedded in the solution. For example, SAP provides Joule – a Generative AI assistant that helps customers intuitively interact with your S/4HANA Cloud system.
In a nutshell, we have better technology that can be delivered faster, cheaper and easier – we are talking an order of magnitude from the first-generation programs. Furthermore, the technology and projects can be rightsized to an individual customer’s need, no matter what size. Real value can be delivered in weeks not months or years.
It is an exciting time to be working with customers on how technology can enable their business. This is especially true for small and medium businesses. I encourage businesses to consider looking at how to take advantage of these advancements to GROW their own business. The future is bright.