Page 188 - DCAP307_PLANNING_AND_MANAGING_IT_INFRASTRUCTURE

Planning and Managing IT Infrastructure

Notes Now, we will discuss some best practices when implementing them. When choosing to implement
a new ERP system, it is extremely important to consider all the inherent risks that will arise
throughout the process. Implementing an ERP system will affect multiple people, groups,
stakeholders, and business processes in your organisation.

Did u know? Any project, software-related or not, that deliberately crosses organisational
boundaries is ripe for potential complexity and risk.
There’s no getting around the fact that ERP deployment is a major undertaking, but the process
doesn’t have to be painful. With proper planning and execution, implementing an ERP system
should be a smooth process and quickly improve efficiency across your business.
Here are some critical ERP implementation best practices to consider when selecting and
deploying a solution.
1. Define clear goals and objectives: Make sure you clearly define what your organisation is
looking to achieve with implementing a new ERP system. An ERP system will affect many
departments and business processes throughout your group. Making sure you clearly
define what objectives, needs and deliverables each group within your organisation is
looking to achieve will help better ensure the system you choose is capable of effectively
achieving the overall goals.

2. Select the Best ERP Implementation for Your Business: Given the range of functions that
ERP encompasses, it should come as no surprise that there are multiple types of ERP
implementations. You can choose to build your own custom ERP and program it from the
bottom up, though the cost and complexity of taking on such a huge project can make a do-
it-yourself approach a poor one.
Or you can purchase on-premise ERP software and install it on your company’s computers
and servers. Before investing in an on-site ERP solution, however, consider this sobering
fact: Two-thirds of mid-size businesses are running old versions of their ERP software. Why
the lag? Organisations often decide that the pain required to re-implement incremental
releases is too great – especially since each upgrade means the business risks losing
critical customisations and integrations. Keeping ERP technology current is key to
maximising its potential, so it’s essential to choose a system deployment option that’s
easy to update and will preserve custom features.

There’s a third alternative: a cloud-based ERP solution like NetSuite. Because the system is
cloud-based and managed entirely off site by the ERP provider, a cloud-based solution
means you don’t have to make expensive upfront investments in IT hardware and servers,
nor worry about dedicating significant personnel resources to managing it. In addition,
cloud-based implementations are usually much faster and easier to deploy than on-site
deployments, and maintenance is much easier since the cloud-based ERP provider is
responsible for keeping the technology up to date. Most importantly, with cloud technology,
product enhancements are painless – customisations and integrations automatically update
with system upgrades – so you can always be assured that your business is running with
the most advanced capability.
3. Choosing the right software: To gain full value from an ERP system, you must match the
software to your organisation’s information needs, processes, functional requirements,
and workflows. Consult various vendors and ensure that the ERP system you are sold can
truly fulfil your needs.
4. Prepare for business transformation: ERP is fundamentally about changing, or
transforming, information flows through an organisation. By definition, therefore, both

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