Most Erp Implementations Take Long Time To Complete, Why?

By Author: Dr Andrew Napier
Total Articles: 504
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ERP implementation involves a lot of people in the process like the functional ERP consultants, Technical ERP consultants, team members, managers and the client. Since many people are involved, many processes are also involved. There can be a number of reasons why ERP implementations take long time to complete. The team members need to be efficient, dedicated and have coordination between them. Other factors which can affect the implementations are insufficient budget, frequent change in business plans, improper analysis of the project, testing delays or incapable ERP consultants. Also to adapt to the requirements of the clients takes some time and the ERP implementations takes so long to complete. Once done, there may be some variances which would take some more time to rectify and resolve.

ERP implementation is a critical job which depends on the size of the company and the operations complexities. There is a lot of work involved in the process and may take many months to complete. There are many steps involved and it has to start with understanding of the requirements of the client. Mapping of the needs has to be done ...
... in order to provide a solution to the client. It may take a while to satisfy and convince the client with the solution offered and the client may want to view the proof of the concept. If he is satisfied, then the implementation starts.

The consultants also need to document everything from the requirements to the solution. These documents are approved by the customer’s team and the project manager and feedback is given. If there are any changes to be made in the documentation, it may take some more time. After this GAP analysis, the consultant starts the process of implementation. The modules may need to be customized according to the client's requirements. Since the implementation process involves many parts and many people behind it, coordination between the teams is highly important. All parts are interrelated and if any part is not completed, the whole process of ERP implementations take so long to complete. A user guide has to be made and training has to be given to the users of the system.

All these steps are why most ERP implementations take long time to complete. The other reasons which delay the work can be the complexity of the software used, the complexities involved during customization, inefficiency of the members of the team and shortage of resources. If the team members are not capable of analyzing the risks and the loopholes of the system or cannot offer a proper solution, the process gets delayed. Due to such delays there may be a shortage of resources which causes further delays. A wrong estimation of the cost also may lead to shortage of the resources. Delays in communications and interactions at every phase take a lot of time and delay the project. The customer may also be responsible why most ERP implementations take so long to complete. The customer may have unrealistic expectations or delay some decisions at the implementation stage.

Read about Disadvantages of ERP Software. Also know Tally 9 Features, Advantages. Read about Top 10 ERP Software.