January 11, 2023
When it comes to categorizing ERP implementation strategies, one of the most common classification criteria focuses on the software rollout roadmap.
Chart title: Major ERP implementation strategies by popularity
Data source: f.hubspotusercontent40.net—The 2022 ERP Report. Panorama Consulting Group
This strategy involves a one-shot shift of all your staff and business functions to the new system, which ensures faster implementation and cost optimization while allowing your company to reap the benefits of a modern ERP right from the start. However, it's also a riskier changeover, difficult to roll back and potentially leading to multiple failures at the same time.
While Panorama Consulting's report pinpointed a general propensity for hybrid (42.9%) and phased (40.7%) ERP implementation strategies over the big bang approach (16.4%), the choice is yours and will mostly depend on these four major parameters:
The big bang strategy is typically recommended for SMBs, which can easily handle a single transition of all their employees and units to their new ERP system. Large corporations with a wide range of business functions and branches, on the other hand, may find this strategy too abrupt and risky and prefer a phased rollout.
If your goal is to minimize project costs, consider the big bang strategy, as it remarkably speeds up the implementation and will save your company from maintaining two separate ERP systems at the same time.
Organizations prioritizing risk mitigation should probably opt for a phased or parallel ERP implementation. This way, they can get familiar with the new system and integrate it into their business processes, or revert back to their legacy environment if the rollout fails.
The big bang strategy represents a shortcut to fully seizing the benefits of large-scale ERP implementation without delays and maximizing the return on investment. However, even a phased, hybrid, or pilot rollout focusing on the most critical and profitable functions might generate considerable ROI.
So far, we've mostly focused on the rollout phase. However, an end-to-end ERP adoption roadmap encompasses several implementation stages and multiple areas of expertise.
Planning
This step includes assessing your software ecosystem and corporate workflows, drawing up technical specifications, and setting up a project timeline.
Design
In this phase, your team designs the architecture and user interface, outlining ERP features and modules through mockups and UX/UI wireframes.
Development
The coding process combines front-end and back-end development, along with software integrations, database setup, and multiple tests.
Testing
Acceptance testing makes sure that the final product complies with the user and operational requirements detailed in your specifications.
Deployment
Based on the hosting model selected by your company, the implementation team deploys the new ERP on local servers or in a cloud-based environment.
Migration
After accurate data cleansing to remove obsolete or inconsistent information, you can migrate your data assets to the new system.
Rollout
The final stage involves the adoption of the ERP solution, which can be performed in different ways depending on your implementation strategy.
Adopting a comprehensive ERP system with a suitable implementation strategy will result in major process enhancements and other benefits for your organization. Take a look at some examples from Itransition's portfolio of ERP implementation projects:
sales growth
Our team implemented a custom ERP/CRM suite to automate the core business processes (customer data entry, quote conversion to orders, etc.) of a major UK furniture manufacturer.
DevOps cost cuts
We delivered a combined ERP/LMS system built on top of Odoo and designed to help a US-based eLearning company streamline student enrollment, lesson scheduling, and other administrative tasks.
manual work reduction
Itransition provided a US maintenance company with an ERP solution based on Odoo to automate some of its key processes, such as inventory management and quoting.
sales growth
Our team implemented a custom ERP/CRM suite to automate the core business processes (customer data entry, quote conversion to orders, etc.) of a major UK furniture manufacturer.
DevOps cost cuts
We delivered a combined ERP/LMS system built on top of Odoo and designed to help a US-based eLearning company streamline student enrollment, lesson scheduling, and other administrative tasks.
manual work reduction
Itransition provided a US maintenance company with an ERP solution based on Odoo to automate some of its key processes, such as inventory management and quoting.
sales growth
Our team implemented a custom ERP/CRM suite to automate the core business processes (customer data entry, quote conversion to orders, etc.) of a major UK furniture manufacturer.
DevOps cost cuts
We delivered a combined ERP/LMS system built on top of Odoo and designed to help a US-based eLearning company streamline student enrollment, lesson scheduling, and other administrative tasks.
manual work reduction
Itransition provided a US maintenance company with an ERP solution based on Odoo to automate some of its key processes, such as inventory management and quoting.
Whether you decide to adopt a big bang implementation strategy, a variant of the phased rollout, or a hybrid approach, keep in mind the following recommendations to streamline your ERP implementation journey.
The purely technical aspects of your ERP system represent just a facet of the bigger picture. Selecting a suitable strategy based on your organizational size, propensity to invest, risk tolerance, and expected ROI can play a vital role in the success of your ERP implementation project. Combined with a solid adoption roadmap and the aforementioned set of best practices, an ERP implementation strategy will help you maximize the impact of this comprehensive software solution and streamline its deployment across your organization. To further facilitate this process, consider relying on Itransition's holistic expertise in ERP consulting and development.
Let's summarize our overview by addressing some of the most common doubts and concerns regarding ERP implementation.
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