You've implemented an ERP system that has transformed your business processes, improved your efficiency, and boosted your bottom line. Congratulations! But don't keep your success story to yourself. Sharing your ERP journey can benefit you and others in many ways. Here are some tips on how to craft and communicate your ERP story effectively.
Why do you want to share your ERP success story? Is it to showcase your expertise, attract new customers, inspire your team, or contribute to your industry? Having a clear purpose will help you focus your message and choose the right channels and formats for your story. For example, if you want to generate leads, you might create a landing page with a case study and a call to action. If you want to educate your peers, you might write a blog post or a white paper with best practices and lessons learned.
My Goal as a Transformation Delivery Manager can be more or less be summed up as follows in no specific order: 1) Be outcome driven rather than focus on output 2) Result Oriented approach focused on effectiveness rather than efficiency 3) Maintain highest degree of Customer Centricity 4) Be focused on Solving Customer Problems 5) All of the above traits instilled in a highly skilled team more often than not gives results 6) Learn, adapt, apply, improve-Repeat 7) Never lose sight of the Business Problem that technology is supposed to solve 8) Communicate effectively, pro actively, honestly and openly. 9 Embed effective Change Management into the solution 10) Focus on the culture-be clear on the type of team you are building
Every good story has a problem to solve. What were the pain points that led you to adopt an ERP system? How did they affect your operations, performance, and customer satisfaction? How did you evaluate and select the best ERP solution for your needs? Be honest and specific about the challenges you faced and how you overcame them. This will help you build credibility and empathy with your audience, as well as demonstrate the value of your ERP investment.
Often the implementation of an ERP is driven by internal stakeholders, in most cases wanting to get a better understanding of the performance of the organization. I've noticed that those organisations tend to forget about the needs of the customers and their own employees. The risk is that they have implemented a brilliant cockpit giving them all the insights they wantend but in the process have burdened their employees with extra data entry work that doesn't bring them anything (at least it seems) and created a rigid process that reduces the flexibility in service towards the customer. The real challenge of implementing an ERP is therefor defining the benefits for all stakeholders and involving them in the process before the start.
One thing that I have found to always work is to start with the customer. Understand, empathize, build rapport, Look for pain points and keep addressing them. Seems simple but often can have many challenges as stake holders can be unreachable, have conflicting interests, out of sync with technology or be too focused on their areas of interests only. I will elaborate on them later.
The most compelling part of your ERP success story is the outcome. How did the ERP system improve your business processes, efficiency, and profitability? What benefits did you achieve in terms of time, cost, quality, and customer satisfaction? How did you measure and monitor your ERP performance and impact? Use quantifiable data and metrics to back up your claims and show the difference before and after the ERP implementation. You can also use testimonials, reviews, or awards to add more credibility and social proof to your story.
Results of the ERP implementation are best measured by taking a snapshot of the values of the KPI's already in place at the start of the project. Make sure that those KPI's cover all dimensions of your business, so besides the obvious financial parameters, follow operational, customer and employee based KPI's closely as you're implementing. If KPI's start to increase or decrease you can quickly jump in and see if the movement is connected to the implementation or an outside factor. If connected it gives you the ability to adjust the blueprint of the implementation accordingly. Long story short, take a snapshot of the KPI's you have in place at the start, follow them closely during and after the implementation to be able to adjust quickly.
Most of the outcomes were tracked from both outside in and inside out perspectives determined by KPI's. 1) Always create a Requirements Traceability Matrix to track all developments from start to end 2) Maintain specific formats for updates-to make them crisp, concise and to the point with all activities/tasks aligned with those who are accountable for their completion. 3)FS, TS and Test Documents prepared on time and with clarity. More on the specifics at a later point in my subsequent posts
Your ERP success story is not only about what you did, but also what you learned. What were the key factors that contributed to your ERP success? What were the challenges or risks that you encountered or avoided? What advice would you give to others who are considering or implementing an ERP system? Sharing your insights and tips can help you establish yourself as a thought leader, as well as provide valuable guidance and support to your audience.
One of the most common issues I have encountered as an ERP specialist is the disconnect between the decision-making process for starting a ERP transformation and the people actually carrying out the transformation. I highly advise the leadership of companies starting a ERP transformation to communicate on: Why this transformation is important for long-term success? Why is the help of everyone needed to achieve the transformation? Create an internal landing page for the ERP transformation informing about the current status, success stories, and learnings from failures along the way. Don't forget to praise the effort from key users driving the transformation oftentimes on-top of their daily business.
Especially in larger organisations with many layers between the board and the local entity it is very important for the responsible manager / managing director to be wel informed about the goals set out at the top in order to explain to your colleagues. But just the same it is important to feed the top layer with the specifics of your unit (one size fits all is a challenge in the ERP world). Be sure that your story is not explaining why something isn't possible but what's needed to support the top layer goals and make it workable in the field. Defining solutions instead of defining problems as a mindset makes an ERP implementation successful.
Depending on your goals and audience, you can choose different formats to share your ERP success story. Case studies are an effective way to showcase your expertise and generate leads, while blog posts are great for educating and engaging your audience. Videos are a visual way of telling your ERP story, perfect for capturing attention and emotions. Podcasts provide a conversational and personal way of sharing your ERP story, ideal for building trust and rapport. Webinars are a live or recorded presentation that can demonstrate your value and generate leads. Each format has its own advantages, so choose the one that best suits your needs.
Once you have created your ERP success story, you need to promote it to reach and attract your target audience. You can use various channels and strategies, such as social media, email marketing, your website, and events. For example, share your story on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook, and use hashtags or groups to increase visibility. Additionally, send your story to an email list or create a newsletter with catchy subject lines. Feature your story on your homepage or blog with SEO techniques. Finally, present your story at industry events or conferences with slides, handouts, or giveaways.