An ERP who owns who

If you have been around even a short time in the ERP software business as either a user or a provider, you are sure to know of the latest acquisitions. The big ones of course are all the companies Infor bought as well as the Oracle mega mergers of PeopleSoft/JDE. Here is a website dedicated to tracking these acquisitions, called fittingly enough The ERP Graveyard.

The ERP Graveyard has a spreadsheet of acquisitions going back to the 1990’s. So if you are interested in what happened to so-and-so software, you might find your answer to dead ERPs here.

Challenge Of ERP Implementation Q & A

This is a good commentary on the challenges of an ERP Implementation. It can be summed up in that it is a technological, financial and human challenge that requires extensive change management.

Challenge Of ERP Implementation Q & A
Rick Maurer
Question: ERPs seem like a good idea, so why is return on investment so low?

Answer: Resistance often kills many of these new systems. Even though the promise of what an ERP can do is high, the planners often fail to look at how the users are likely to view this ‘improvement.’ ERPs take away the old tried-and-true ways of working. Even though some of these cobbled together systems aren’t all that good, people understand them. When they are asked to give up what they know and what they can rely on, you often get resistance to using a new software system.

ERPs also threaten the fragile balance of power and control. The old system allows departments and some individuals to
control the type of information that gets out – and control the way data gets disseminated. The new system destroys all of that and that can be threatening.
One manufacturing plant has spent millions on an ERP, and kept throwing money at the technical parts of project, with no success. What they failed to Read more…

About the Author:
Rick Maurer is an advisor to organizations on ways to lead Change without Migraines. He is author of many books on change including Beyond the Wall of Resistance. His web site offers over 100 free tips and tools for leading change successfully. www.beyondresistance.com

Get More From Your ERP Investment

Most companies want to know what they will get out of an ERP system. What is the ROI on the ERP investment. This article deals with some of these issues…

Get More From Your ERP Investment
Robert D. Kugel

Ventana Research recently completed a research study titled ‘ERP Innovation’. When we speak of innovation in using enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, we mean to suggest going beyond the first-generation objective of increasing efficiency through automation. We believe companies can achieve more today with this software than ever before. They can attain a higher return on their substantial investment in this critical enterprise software. Our study was designed to determine to what extent companies have taken advantage of these enhanced capabilities. Overall, we find that innovative companies have taken the lead in more completely utilizing their ERP systems. Our research indicates that these achievements are the result of using capabilities that already exist and that others can implement. … Read More…

ETO ERP: Making the Wrong Choice

ETO ERP: Making the Wrong Choice
Roger Meloy

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems offer great benefits to engineer-to-order (ETO) companies looking to increase productivity and decrease cost. According to TR Cutler, spokesperson for the ETO Institute, ‘These benefits come as a result of a successful implementation, but not every implementation is successful.’ Cutler asserts that, ‘One reason some implementations are not successful is the selection of the wrong system.’

The ETO Institute has just published a white paper, ‘Why Do Companies Choose the Wrong System?’ This document is written with engineer-to-order companies in mind. It highlights the problems facing ETO companies trying to find and evaluate a new ERP system. The while paper provides some time and simple steps companies can take to reduce the chances of making a critical mistake. (www.etoinstitute.org)

Cutler, who authors regular columns for Industrial Connection magazine (www.industrialconnection.net) and InMFG magazine (www.inmfg.com) is looking for case study profiles of ETO manufacturing companies and their ERP experiences. ‘The good, the bad, the ugly. I want to know what ETO manufacturers think about the ERP selection process, what companies have served them well and which have not. This will provide an interesting profile for the members of the ETO Institute.’

The ETO Institute specifically highlights some of the problems ETO manufacturers face when searching for an ERP system. Go to www.etoinsititute.org and learn more. Registration is free of charge and more than a thousand ETO manufacturers are expected to join in 2005.

Thomas R. Cutler ETO Institute 954-486-7562 www.etoinstitute.org e-mail protected from spam bots

ERP – Army Style

Stumbling around the web, we came across a great ERP reference site. This site is the US Army’s ERP/SOA Resource Center. Its own description is as follows:
As the Army embarks on transforming its warfighting capabilities, it is imperarive that the Business Capabilities / Enablers / Processes transform to support the warfighter. ERP systems provide an integrated suite of Information Techonology applications that support the end-to-end business operations of an entire organization. The ERP Resource Center is designed to provide Enterprise Process Owners, Program Executive Officers, Program Managers, and others involved in the Business Transformation of the Army with detailed information, supporting documents, and tools and techniques regarding the use of ERP systems.

This site is filled with useful information. It is not helpful if you are a small company looking for an ERP system other than to guide you in an overview of what ERP is and does. There is a glossary online there too, but it is government focused. If however you are implementing a Tier 1 package, then this gives a lot of good information.

You may also be interested in: The fourth “R”: Navy ERP.(Enterprise Resource Planning): An article from: Navy Supply Corps Newsletter

We especially liked the “Bolt On” section that discusses Business Intellegence, CRM, and PLM. They even have the Gartner Magic Quadrants to show you (as of 2005) who plays where.

Be sure to check it out at http://www.army.mil/ESCC/erp/index.htm

Manufacturers Don’t User Most of Their ERP Software’s Features, Says Aberdeen

Manufacturers Don’t User Most of Their ERP Software’s Features, Says Aberdeen

Published: September 18, 2006

by Timothy Prickett Morgan

Based on a detailed report put together by Aberdeen Group and commissioned by a bunch of ERP software suppliers, companies with ERP software don’t use most of the features that have been painstakingly woven into their software.

Aberdeen based its analysis on a study of more than 1,000 manufacturers. The study was underwritten by Infor, Lawson Software, Plexus Systems, QAD, and SoftBrands, and presumably they provided some of the customers that Aberdeen talked to as well as the cash to do the survey and report that resulted from it. Aberdeen also talked to customers using other ERP suites, including those who have deployed Oracle and SAP suites.

According to the study, called “The ERP in Manufacturing Benchmark,” two thirds of the manufacturers surveyed said that they make their choice of which ERP software to use based on features and functionality, but then, on average, they use only … Read More

Best Practices in ERP Software Selection

This is a great post that gets right to the point about ERP Selections:

Best Practices in ERP Software Selection
Posted 8/2/2006 by Eric Kimberling (ERP Consultant)

ERP vendor selection can be a daunting task, and one that is often not given the appropriate attention. CIOs or other executives in charge of making such major decisions often make decisions based on perception, gut feel, or faulty information. For example, executives often choose ERP software vendors based on what competitors or other large companies have chosen. However, information such as this does not necessarily reflect what is appropriate or inappropriate for your specific company. Further, planning for a successful implementation involves more than choosing the right software; it also involves preparation to ensure that ERP enables measurable improvements to your business.
In choosing an ERP or IT software package and planning for the overall project, executives need to make decisions based on objective and unbiased information rather than gut feel. In particular, organizations should consider the following:
Read More…

ERP at a Pharma Company

Here is an interesting case study of ERP at a Pharmacutical company. The interesting thing is like so many companies, they migrated from a Foxpro system to SAP. From home grown to world class…

ERP at a pharma company

Kemwell has been able to gain better insights into its manufacturing processes through an ERP deployment. Tighter control on costing is a big benefit, says Abhinav Singh.... Read More