Should You Simply Optimize Your System?

It can be a good idea to assess whether your ERP system is being used and maintained appropriately. This can be done either from a market perspective (what are others doing?) and/or from a more internal viewpoint, where you examine whether your processes or system usage could be redesigned to increase productivity and/or efficiency in relation to the ERP system.

It may also be relevant to review operational costs — perhaps parts of the system are no longer used, yet the company is still paying for them. This is often the case in organizations that, over the years, have purchased smaller best-of-breed solutions that have taken over functionality previously handled by the ERP system. There may therefore be opportunities to reduce the number of licensed users being paid for.

The outcome of such evaluations may provide insights that can support decisions about whether to in-/outsource differently, adopt new modules or systems, or redesign selected business processes. It may also lead to decisions ranging from doing nothing at all, to launching new implementation projects — including re-implementation — or even replacing or phasing out the system.