What are the best ways to implement an ERP system on a budget?

Opting for a cloud-based ERP can offer significant cost advantages and operational flexibility. For example, a small e-commerce business might find that a cloud-based ERP like Shopify Plus or NetSuite provides all the essential features—such as inventory management, order processing, and financial reporting—without the need for a hefty initial investment. With these solutions, you can start with a basic subscription package and then scale your services as your business grows. This eliminates the costs associated with hardware acquisition, maintenance, and software updates. The pay-as-you-go model also allows businesses to better manage their operational costs, focusing only on the modules and features they need.

Often #erp implementation is seen as a technology implementation exercise. However, it a wider change initiative involving policy, process and people aspects in addition to technology. We at MaGC advise our clients to first undertake an #erp readiness assessment. The assessment can give valuable insights on preparing the organization for ERP as well as selecting the appropriate solution.

Select the right ERP system according to the nature of the business. Open-source ERP solutions can be less expensive. Allocation of junior consultants in less price may lead to override the whole budget of implementation. So it is better to assign a team of experts. Vendor Negotiation Keep things simple and straight. Avoid customizations Be specific about the requirements The objectives of ERP implementation must be very clear to all stakeholders including end users. Remember cutting corners too aggressively can lead to problems in the long run

Few important aspects are Make sure select the right ERP for your current and future needs. Allocate best resources(SME's) to the project and make sure there is a right balance in their day job and project work. Allocate sufficient Budget Change Management taken seriously Data Migration planning top priority as it can cause huge delays and many times cause for failure. Robust UAT Focused traiining this is not a exhaustive list but some of the key things

Respecting basics irrespective of ERP solution we wish to choose depending on size & volumes we possess at present or envisage for future. 1. Strong master data framework consisting of inputs from key stake holders. 2. Work on as is to be scenarios for reports automation with justification of digitization. 3. Not neglecting any department as an island in the to be process so as all must feel motivated and involved in the change management. 4. Last have governance of master data , it's effectiveness controls with who does what . Focus on core business or else the saying "If you grill data enough it will confess"

One of the best ways to save money on ERP implementation is to opt for a cloud-based ERP solution, instead of an on-premise one. In one of my last engagement during the discovery phase client and partner (CXO)discussed which way we should take our digital transformation toward.The discussion always starts with the very best quality solution in the market but at the end Pocket size also matters we can think of having Rolls Royace having Lakh in bank. So the suggestion or the best possible way is to bring on different ERP on the table and get best bargain rates as per your business. Cloud-based ERP systems are hosted and managed by a third-party provider, which means you don't have to invest in hardware, software, maintenance, or security.

Avoid letting budget restrictions compromise quality project management, design or build. Make savings elsewhere if needed but get the basics in place with quality. Include thorough quality checkpoints throughout the project, including details.

Startups must seek solutions that offer essential functionalities without overshadowing their budgetary boundaries. Engage in comprehensive market research to identify ERP providers that offer value-driven solutions. Focus on building a collaborative relationship with vendors, possibly negotiating a package that aligns with your financial limitations while meeting operational requisites. Remember, the goal is to foster operational efficiency without incurring substantial costs, hence always keep an eye out for solutions that offer good ROI. Lastly, encourage ongoing employee training to ensure seamless adaptation, steering clear of potential roadblocks and additional expenses.

The major reason of ERP implementations going out of budget is balooning of Scope. The ERP consultants once shows the features and capabilities of the ERP product, the Key users (from customer side) start thinking about how can they achieve their all tasks through this new ERP. Hence its must to ring fence the Scope of implementation. They can have multiple requirements but ERP consultants as well as the PM from client side need to be strong enough to do our very old technic VED (Vital / Essential & Desired) analysis and include only Vital with few essentials in the overall scope of Implementation. They can always decide phases of implementation and its very important to have focused approach to complete Phase-1.

Involve business users from the start! Define key users in each department and let them take part from the requirement gathering to testing to go live. Getting requirements only from management will leave your end customers unengaged and unempowered and that will make ERP project work much more stressful and complicated then it should be.

While collecting requirements, priorities and costs are important considerations before starting ERP journey, the vendor evaluation should also focus on the vendor roadmap, how often new functionalities will be added, release cycles etc. This is not only beneficial to cover new requirements from changing business needs but to also plan and be ready for upgrade cycles. The other thing to consider is to start small with 1-2 critical modules and then continue to grow the solution to other areas. This will help quicken the ROI.

Why ERP? Should be the first question to be answered by all the stakeholders. Depending upon the culture of an organization viz, how tech savvy it is, the choice of the ERP should be based. The budget is therefore a function of the level of needs of an organisation. Secondly , the perception of the budget also depends upon how committed the organisation to leverage on the ERP as a Management Tool to run their business efficiently. Once these two factors are clearly established, the choice of the ERP and the associated cost of licenses and implementation can be effectively budgeted for and successfully accomplished.

Technical stakes of modern ERP concern integration—hardware, applications, networking, supply chains. ERP now covers more functions and roles—including decision making, stakeholders' relationships, standardization, transparency, globalization, etc. ERP systems typically include the following characteristics: An integrated system Operates in (or near) real time A common database that supports all the applications A consistent look and feel across modules Installation of the system with elaborate application/data integration by the Information Technology (IT) department, provided the implementation is not done in small steps Deployment options include: on-premises, cloud hosted, or SaaS.

Unfortunatelly very often companies decided to involve only key stakeholders which are working on top level positions. It's very important to keep involved real users of ERP system. Those people could often let you know which features are most important in their day-to-day work. In this case you can properly prioritize delivery of features. This is especially needed in creating of specific reports and adding automations. Cooperation with users of ERP system could help you to find right path of implementation and to resolve the most important ad time consuming issues.

Get top management buy-in - It's important to get top management support and involvement, as there could be situations where there are conflicts with certain stakeholders on business process gaps, need for customization, etc. Certain sacrifices have to be made (e.g. change of business process, revert to manual process, additional steps in new process decreasing efficiency) to meet the project objectives. In this scenarios, the top management can help to make the decisions to enable the project to proceed.

The team is very important in any project and especially for ERP implementation, the Vendor consultants, Key users, Project manager needs to be having right knowledge and experience as well as should posses decision power. Some of best practices being followed are - Scope of Implementation & Project plan signed off on Day zero - Dedicated Key user team allotment from Client during project duration - Emphasis on max possible Standard functionality usage than any customisation - Keep a tab on Business Critical processes, reports coverage - Regular cadence of project team as well as with Sponsors - Well written test cases and strict user acceptance tests being carried away - Only Master data and Open transactions import into new system.

1. Plan and define objectives. 2. Engage stakeholder. 3. Conduct thorough requirements analysis. 4. Choose the right ERP system. 5. Establish a dedicated project team. 6. Develop a comprehensive implementation plan. 7. Ensure data integrity and quality. 8. Provide adequate training and support. 9. Monitor and evaluate progress: 10. Continuous improvement and adaptations. By following these best practices, organizations can increase the likelihood of a successful ERP system implementation, leading to improved operational efficiency, streamlined processes, better data management, and enhanced decision-making capabilities.

Adopt the business processes that the ERP is built upon as much as possible. The more you deviate from the ERP's standard processes, the more customisation that will be required and the greater the cost. ERP projects should always have a business process workstream to look at as-is and to-be processes, to understand which business processes can change and which are critical to remain.

From my experience to know the people in your organization that use daily in the ERP system will contribute to a succesfull implementation. In that way you can mitigate a lot of resistance and problems.

I would like to address this topic from the lay mans perspective, so that every one can understand & implement the followings. Before implementing a new system, we have to understand these points. 1. No one is perfect, 2. Perfection or performance excellence is a continuous journey, 3. It's like a marriage where the bride is ERP, and the bride groom is the organization. So before entering into the relationship we have to check the compatibility of the ERP & the business requirements or expectations. Since its a life long commitment from both sides all the stake holders should be involved from the beginning. The clear cut metrics should be shared from the stake holders based on the same ERP should be evaluated and implemented phased manner

1) Define Your ERP project's goals and objectives and it should be clear. 2) Identify specific needs assessment. 3) Choose the right ERP system for your business. 4) Start with essential modules, expand as needed. 5) Consider cost-effective cloud options. 6) Explore open-source ERP software if available. 7) Negotiate favorable contract terms. 8) Minimize costly customization. 9) Invest in comprehensive staff training. 10) Budget for ongoing system maintenance. 11) Continuously assess return on investment.

My best practices in leverage resources and tools: 1) Reduce manual and spreadsheet-based processes by using one back office system including financials, fulfillment, inventory and sales. 2) Gain daily cash balance visibility, using real-time dashboards, scorecards and KPI’s. 3) Run a global business with multiple subsidiaries, business units and legal entities using only one ERP solution. 4) Real-time visibility across the business, with 24/7 access from any browser.

Implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system on a budget can be challenging, but it's not impossible. Here are some strategies to help you implement an ERP system without breaking the bank: Define clear objectives. Conduct a needs analysis. Consider cloud-based ERP. Choose open-source or affordable software. Prioritize core modules. Limit customization. Explore vendor financing. Implement in phases. Use self-service training. Leverage in-house IT expertise. Plan data migration carefully. Regularly review and optimize. Choose a scalable solution. Negotiate with vendors. Invest in user training and change management.

In my experience, cleaning your Master Data (material, vendor, customer, info records, source lists, etc) before can make a big difference when implementing a new ERP system. Having a not-so clean master data can cause big headaches while you are “live” with your new system and sometimes it can take a lot of resources and time to clean it.

Minimize customizations - More often than not, a significant portion of the project budget will be taken up by consultant and development fees due to ERP customizations. Going for the vanilla version of the ERP will save a lot in terms of cost and project duration. Doing this means the team need to map their current business process to the new ERP and strictly follow the new method, even if it results in inefficiency or loss of productivity. This is easier said than done though - key stakeholders usually resist change, especially if they have to revert to a manual process. This is where top management involvement is most needed - they can make the difficult decisions and instruct the stakeholders to follow the new system.

Invest early in a creating a quality test automation (regression) set, including the processes and governance to keep the tests up-to-date, repeatable (data logic) and executed frequently.

Absolutely Maggie, I believe having a data cleansing process running prior to migration of data is critical to the success of the ERP projects and implementation. This should be well planned based on the volume of data being cleansed or sanitised. In previous cases we have run full scale projects to perform the clean-up to improve efficiency and performance from the new system.

Manage expectations. Your new ERP is not your old ERP. Acknowledging that up front will help the team integrate the new system into current processes quickly. People tend to lament on the struggle and what they have given up. Instead, emphasize the new benefits, challenge the shortfalls and look forward as you build a better overall system. Then document, document, document as your new system comes together and you will have a great resource to fall back on or train incoming team members. Embrace the process.