What do you do if your ERP professionals lack essential soft skills?

A key component of team enablement is the willingness for management to allot budget for soft skills training. Often people face the "sharpen the axe" dilemma where management expects results without the support for the training, tools, and development necessary for employees to excel. In my experience, hiring a soft skills training vendor provided the best results. Internal programs frequently failed to make impact, and when the cost in payroll and hours required to devise and deliver a program is taken into consideration, the company would have come out ahead by hiring the SME vendor in the first place.

One of the most important skills of ERP professionals is communication skill which includes, but not limited to, 1. communicate in precise and concise manner 2. speaking common business language and sometimes in specific industry language of your client. Communicating with users using tangled messages and explaining functionalities using ERP package specific terminologies will create unnecessary complication to a project.

1. Skills assessment. 2. Gap analysis. 3. Identify training needs. 4. Provide a training schedule. 5. Set objectives. 6. Provide training and development. 7. Monitor 8. Repeat where necessary.

Soft skills play a crucial role when you are involved in major projects such as implementation, support, or roll-outs within an organization. As a team lead, you are responsible for assessing the personalities and skills of your team members to ensure they meet project standards. If any team member's skills or personality traits do not align with the project's requirements, it may be necessary to conduct skills assessment exams or provide additional support and training to help them improve. It's essential for a team lead to have strong interpersonal skills to effectively communicate with team members, understand their strengths and weaknesses, and provide constructive feedback.

Honing the soft skills is the most important pillar of success for any ERP professional. Proper communication; strong vibes; Dress code; cultural sensitivity; following protocols, crisp written communication including email are some of the areas in which we need to train our ERP professionals.

Effective Communication Skills Training Which involves: Improving listening skills, including empathetic listening and perspective-taking Constructing 3-part assertion messages for more effective expression Learning to manage difficult relationships or problem-oriented personalities Learning to stop reacting emotionally, and instead respond rationally Getting clear on what you need and how to effectively communicate to get your needs met Gaining insight into how other parties might be feeling and what they might need

Identify training needs: - Assess individual and team soft skill deficiencies. - Determine which areas require targeted improvement, such as communication, teamwork, or problem-solving. Tailor training programs: - Develop customized workshops or courses to address identified gaps. - Utilize various learning methods, such as interactive sessions, role-playing, or real-world scenarios, to enhance engagement and effectiveness. Measure effectiveness: - Evaluate the impact of training programs through feedback surveys, performance assessments, or project outcomes. - Adjust training approaches based on results to ensure continual progress and relevance.

Promova workshops e treinamentos específicos focados no desenvolvimento de soft skills necessárias para o uso eficaz do ERP, como comunica??o assertiva, resolu??o de problemas e adaptabilidade às mudan?as, proporcionando aos colaboradores oportunidades práticas de aprendizagem e aplica??o dessas habilidades, como Role Playing

Understanding importance of Soft Skills. Most important thing is to make resources understood importance of Soft Skills, who it will be helpful for them in their professional and personal career. Provide required training for soft skills so that they understand what actually needs to do. Provide resources with practical and live scenarios to use and practice their skills, so that they can understand their capabilities.

Absolutely, conducting individual assessments is a crucial first step in identifying areas where team members may need improvement. Once these areas are identified, it's important to develop personalized plans to address their deficiencies. This could involve various methods such as additional training sessions, mentorship programs, or providing resources for self-study. A skilled trainer can be instrumental in helping team members excel in their roles by providing targeted training programs. For instance, a communication skills development program can be highly beneficial for improving interpersonal communication, active listening, and conflict resolution skills among team members.

Mentorship might be the most important piece in this puzzle because the lack of soft skills will also create an urge to have a framework or a channel for the ERP team to transmit their message in the right way. While upskilling them will help them to see what's missing, you should not forget that there are ongoing projects and jobs to be done. So, creating a medium and giving mentorship will help to move the needle and will help you to lead by example.

Definitively I encourage a Mentorship in order to develop their soft skills. In add a substantial training. to try to reduce the timing of professional onboarding

Creio que o primeiro incentivo que o gestor pode dar é estar disponível como mentor e facilitar o acesso da equipe. No mais, incentivar que a equipe busque e forne?a mentoria de forma rotineira e intencional, tanto nas intera??es acadêmicas, no seu networking e na vida como um todo. Mais do que pensar na mentoria como um remédio para um GAP, vale pensá-la como um estilo de vida que pode trazer grandes resultados para a carreira.

Mentorship and Coaching: Pair ERP professionals with experienced mentors who can provide guidance and support. Coaching sessions can help them improve their soft skills and become more effective in their roles.

Mentorship is a great way to develop soft skills within your ERP team. Pairing less experienced professionals with seasoned mentors creates a dynamic where learning is personalized and ongoing. Mentors can provide guidance, share experiences, and offer feedback in real-time, which can be invaluable for professionals looking to enhance their soft skills. Encourage your team to seek out mentors within the organization or consider establishing a formal mentorship program to facilitate these beneficial relationships.

Living in a collaborative environment encourages the improvement of the team's soft skills. By involving people from different areas in a project, we encourage better communication and collaboration. These interdepartmental projects also help not to see themselves as islands within the organization and learn from the needs of other areas.

Through collaboration, I’ve witnessed firsthand the remarkable development of soft skills within my team. Engaging with peers from various departments has broadened our collective understanding and improved our ability to communicate effectively. On a personal note, in my interactions with my peers, I gain insights into our team’s approach to tasks and challenges. This collaborative process not only helps me contribute to resolving system issues but also enhances our collective communication skills. As we navigate complex technical solutions together, we naturally develop a more effective communication style. This, in turn, strengthens our team, fostering an environment of inclusive teamwork where every member feels valued and heard.

Cross-Functional Collaboration: Encourage collaboration between ERP professionals and other departments. This can help them develop a better understanding of the business and improve their soft skills through interaction with different teams.

Collaboration is really the essence of an Enterprise Resource Planning tool. ERPs are meant to encourage entire business collaboration, where data is amalgamated from all of the organization and serves as a centralized location to record and access that data. This helps provide insight to how other teams within the organization use data. I've found in my ERP implementation consulting work that this tool is a great source for teams to gain a better understanding and appreciation of the entire business and of other teams in the company.

Promover um ambiente de trabalho colaborativo é essencial para o desenvolvimento das soft skills dos profissionais de ERP. Trabalhando juntos em projetos, eles aprimoram habilidades como comunica??o, trabalho em equipe e resolu??o de problemas. Incentivar equipes multifuncionais e projetos interdepartamentais proporciona uma compreens?o mais ampla e melhora a capacidade de colabora??o em ambientes diversos. Isso prepara os profissionais de ERP para enfrentar os desafios do ambiente de trabalho atual de forma mais eficaz.

Recognition of the work of a person or a team within the implementation of an ERP is very helpful. Identifying a job well done with a reward adds further motivation to people's work. You have to reward in public and correct in private. This award or reward will show the rest of the team that the result of their work well done is valuable. A good feedback talk where good work is thanked and recognized is very motivational.

- Provide constructive feedback: - Acknowledge improvements and offer specific praise for efforts made. - Highlight instances where soft skills have been effectively utilized. - Offer mentorship and coaching: - Pair team members with mentors who excel in the desired soft skills. - Provide regular coaching sessions to offer guidance and support. - Celebrate successes: - Recognize and reward achievements related to soft skill development. - Showcase examples of successful collaboration or problem-solving. - Promote a positive work culture: - Encourage open communication and mutual respect among team members. - Foster a supportive environment where individuals feel comfortable seeking help and sharing ideas.

Positive reinforcement can be done by appreciation and recognition of the work of an individual or the team. Each achievement and milestone needs to be celebrated to maintain positive vibes in the team. This makes the team stress free and improves productivity of the team.

One of the major challenges is understanding the behavior of your team and surroundings and the major part of it is human empathy ,so to improve soft skills one needs this very basic element and the sense of responsibility which comes over a period of time and mostly by retrospective behavior so this element is to be built step by step for enhancing soft skills in your team

Feedback and Recognition: Provide regular feedback on soft skills performance and recognize improvements. This can motivate ERP professionals to work on their skills and enhance their overall effectiveness.

Implement continuous feedback loops: - Establish regular check-ins for ongoing guidance. - Encourage open channels for concerns and assistance. Offer constructive feedback: - Provide specific, actionable guidance. - Highlight areas for improvement with suggestions. Promote a growth mindset: - Emphasize learning and resilience. - Encourage learning from mistakes. Recognise progress and achievements: - Acknowledge improvements. - Use positive reinforcement for motivation.

A large part of improving your soft skills is being open to feedback you may receive from supervisors, managers and even colleagues. When you're open to feedback, you can be better able to receive constructive criticism and use that information to improve in your workplace role, including your soft skills. You may receive feedback on your communication skills, ability to work in a group, time management, leadership potential and more. As you're receiving feedback, consider thanking the individual who's providing it and developing a plan, either with yourself or through speaking with a manager, to improve and learn.

It's crucial to implement targeted training and development programs focusing on areas such as communication, teamwork, problem-solving, and adaptability. Additionally, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and providing opportunities for feedback can help enhance their soft skills proficiency over time.

A leader should be natural observer. Before starting a major project, the leader should be able to read teams' behavioral capabilities and place people accordingly. The purpose is to create a whole in which each member contributes to the same goal. Once you have done this, any feedback given in a genuine manner, positive or less positive should create the results you are hoping for.

It's always beneficial to evaluate the other side of this conversation as well. It might be a bigger skill gap among the company and having an upskilling initiative where both the technical and functional people can learn and develop will help to close this gap for all the teams involved.

As an IT leader, when faced with ERP professionals lacking essential soft skills, consider a different approach: -Training: Offer soft skills training. -Cross-Functional Collaboration: Encourage teamwork across departments. -Mentorship: Provide mentors for guidance. -Feedback: Offer regular feedback and recognition. -Diversity: Foster a diverse and inclusive environment. Role Rotation: Rotate roles for skill development.

In my experience most of the time I have seen one common phrase "It's too technical" and that's where soft skills are most needed for ERP professional and I have seen many including myself struggle sometimes for it, over the years and through various observations I have found various ways to develop soft skills and also coached others with below ways: - I always try to put my feet in the other person shoes and think from him/his perspective and provide the answer in their way rather than pitching whatever urge I have to explain anything - Picture or diagram, analogy with existing case Or scenarios always help - Ask question to other and yourself,reflect and collect feedback - When things are too technical admit it and say it upfront