Implementing a New ERP – Nightmare or Opportunity?
Let’s face it, technology changes have a bad rep. To most people, they are at best, a necessary evil and at worst, a project to be avoided at all costs. Just the thought of searching for a new solution, let alone implementing that solution, can be a daunting prospect. Change management, data migration, and training are very real challenges that are a part of any system migration. Change management, data migration, and training are all real considerations that come with any system transition. However, adopting a new ERP system doesn’t have to be a nightmare. In fact, with the right mindset and the right technology partners, ERP implementation can be a smooth and transformative process that positions your business for long-term success.
At AvSight, we guide hundreds of users through ERP transitions each year, helping them move from outdated systems to our modern platform. Most customers quickly experience workflow improvements and efficiency gains, but the benefits often go beyond the obvious. The implementation process itself can drive meaningful organizational growth, aligning teams, improving data transparency, and streamlining processes. Let’s explore some of the often-overlooked advantages of ERP implementation. Along the way, we’ll take a look at some of the insights our customers have shared during and after implementing AvSight.
Agility & Organizational Alignment
Agility is an essential asset for any organization focused on growth, yet it’s surprisingly difficult to develop. As companies scale, resistance to change and competing priorities can create barriers to progress. Implementing a new ERP system fosters collaboration across departments, ensuring tht leadership understands the challenges, priorities, and goals of each team.
“The transition process encouraged our teams to communicate in ways we hadn’t before. It brought clarity to our workflows and helped us align around shared goals.”
Implementing a new ERP is truly a team project. Getting stakeholder buy-in often requires principals to get to know the challenges, priorities, and goals of each department. Selecting the right system and facilitating effective training require project leads to engage with teams companywide and really understand their processes. These interactions provide powerful opportunities for cross-company collaboration and communication, leading to better long term organizational alignment.
A well designed ERP system will also serve as a centralized hub for all of your organization’s processes and data. Having a single source of truth keeps everyone on the same page and makes it possible to build a unified vision.
An ERP implementation can help you...
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Unify your organization around shared goals.
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Break down communication silos between departments.
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Cultivate a culture of innovation and openness to change.
Data Transparency
When you’re on a system for several years, it’s all too easy to allow errors, inconsistencies, and outdated data to compound, clogging up your database and making accurate reporting nearly impossible. Switching to a new ERP system gives you a fresh start, making it the perfect time to detox your data and establish healthy data habits for the future.
“We didn’t realize how much outdated data was holding us back until we switched to AvSight. Now, we have real-time insights and can make confident decisions based on accurate information.”
Cleaning up your data can be an intimidating project, but the AvSight team is here to help. Check out our guide to mastering data quality here. Want more hands-on assistance? AvSight offers data clean up services as an option during implementation.
An ERP implementation can help you...
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Make informed strategic decisions, confident that your data is reliable.
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Improve customer experience by being able to quickly provide accurate status and inventory information.
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Simplify and speed up nearly any task that requires data by eliminating time spent digging through outdated or inaccurate records.
Improved Processes
When’s the last time you mapped out your entire organization’s processes? As things get busier and more urgent priorities take over, it’s all too easy to put processes on autopilot without really considering the hows and whys of your workflows.
“Mapping out our workflows during implementation helped us see where we were losing efficiency. We streamlined operations, eliminated redundant steps, and saved countless hours.”
A key step in evaluating and implementing an ERP is process mapping. To find the system that’s the best fit for your organization, you’ll want to map out the processes that your teams use on a daily basis. This creates the ideal opportunity to examine and evaluate the processes you’re using. It’s not uncommon for business strategies to shift without processes evolving, so you may discover unnecessary steps or other inefficiencies weighing your team down. Eliminating these will streamline your processes and save you valuable time.
Moving from a legacy system to a modern ERP system with more advanced capabilities can also allow you to leverage technology to improve your processes. Things like automation, cloud access, and integration with other systems, make it possible to reduce manual entry, automate repetitive tasks, and simplify communication.
An ERP implementation can help you...
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Develop a clear understanding of each department’s processes and goals
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Identify unnecessary steps and inefficiencies
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Leverage automation and integration to reduce low ROI activities
Effective KPIs
With your data clean and your processes defined, you’re already ahead of the vast majority of your competition, but once your KPIs are dialed in, you’ll be unstoppable. The work you’ve put into understanding your business goals and objectives gives you the foundation you need to define measurable outcomes and establish metrics for tracking them.
“With clean data and clearly defined KPIs, we can now track performance across departments in real time. We’ve never been more confident in our business decisions.”
An ERP implementation can help you...
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Determine realistic and specific outcomes
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Set metrics to ensure you’re on track
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Align your team around strategies to achieve those outcomes
Talent Development
The need for effective leaders and project managers is a major concern for growth oriented companies. Feeling that they have growth opportunities is a key contributor to job satisfaction among top performers. An ERP implementation offers the perfect opportunity to allow these high potential employees to develop leadership skills and gain valuable experience. Working alongside a wide range of internal and external stakeholders provides a valuable opportunity for leaders in training to grow interpersonal skills and develop rapport with individuals in roles that vary significantly from their own. Managing the details of a project and working through challenges and surprises teaches resilience and resourcefulness – critical traits for future leaders.
“This process challenged our team in all the right ways. We emerged stronger, more adaptable, and better prepared for future growth.”
An ERP implementation can help you...
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Grow interpersonal leadership skills
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Gain project management experience
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Develop resilience and resourcefulness
A Project Worth the Effort
Taking on a complex project, such as an ERP implementation, is always intimidating. But the skills developed in managing challenges will help your team develop the processes and skills needed to scale and improve your business. Ready to grow your business? Request a free demo of AvSight to get started.
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