Several decades ago, a forerunner of enterprise resource planning emerged as large companies were looking for ways to facilitate the much needed integration of activities between manufacturing, inventory control, and purchasing. These pioneers often referred to the process as MRP. Later when the software developers become more proficient in providing solutions across the entire enterprise of the business inclusive of each department, the term ERP (enterprise resource planning) began to gain greater traction, particularly when the implementation of these highly integrated software business solutions found their way into some of the largest companies in the United States. Today, all over the world, companies that are large and small, participate in interfacing with software ERP vendor companies seeking for the proper fit of ERP modules within their own organization.
The proper implementation of ERP systems does not occur in hours or days, but is usually a lengthy multi-year project engaging not just the services of a erp vendor or the resident information systems team within the organization, but all business units as well. Indeed, the success of implementing ERP cannot be fully realized unless everyone is participating and so what you have is a certain level of technical implementation steps coupled with training and general acceptance within the business operating culture of the organization.
To explore this, we have written and provided a number of articles that will help acquaint you with the bigger picture of erp in order to bring home in sharper focus the pathways for effective ERP implementation. After all, if one was to point to the singular process that enables the effective use of ERP in an organization, it resides within the implementation planning strategy and how its carried out. Hence, you will learn a great deal more about the various lock down points that success will usually hinge on as well as how to best organize and prepare for a successful implementation.