ERP Phase 2: Trick or Treat?

Are there similarities between Halloween door to door “Trick or Treat” and staff arriving at an executive’s office after an ERP (Enterprise Resources Planning) project goes live with requests for system enhancements? Although there may not be as many costumes involved in the work environment, an executive cannot be certain whether the request must be denied (a trick results) or a system change can be made (a treat provided). With some of both encountered, how do you ensure the organization moves forward effectively without breaking the support budget to avoid tricks?

Minimizing tricks starts with managing the remaining scope and budget commitments from Phase 1. During the Phase 1 project requests for work excluded from the original plan may be deferred to a “Phase 2”. These scope deferrals should have been evaluated, estimated, and documented in the project environment such as Microsoft’s TFS (Team Foundation Server). As these Phase 2 items are raised, the TFS details should be referenced and updated based on current priorities and investments. For scope deferrals no longer required or desired, budget may be freed up for new items. In this way the Phase 2 budget may be monitored and new items categorized and evaluated without re-inventing the overall project plan and budget.

New items raised that are not in TFS from Phase 1 should be addressed as opportunities. Assuming these items require a system enhancement, there should be assessment of the impacts to current processes, configurations, data, and code. No enhancements should be made without a thorough assessment. Some considerations for the various additions may include:

•  Reports – these are new or changed screen forms or printed data. Assess whether this is still a requirement or just replacing a report that is (or was) infrequently used? Have existing standard reports and inquiries been completely reviewed for fit? Is there a user based option to obtain the data such as export to Excel or a user based “ad hoc” report?
•  Printed forms – changes to forms such as invoices, orders and other external facing documents. Check the external requirements and challenge internal ones. For infrequently used documents assess options such as exports to Word or Excel to create an acceptable format.
• Data validation – these are requests to reduce data entry errors. The code to add system edits or user selections may reduce errors, but may also have unintended implications such as limitations to future flexibility to thoroughly assess.
•  Data entry automation – these are requests to eliminate “clicks” required by the user and can improve efficiency. Validate that the process is required and whether the process metrics are being achieved and whether further improvements are cost justified.
• New requirements – changes to configuration and systems to meet new requirements from the business. The approach for these changes should be evaluated against the current and other standard functionality available prior to initiating enhancements. In some cases the team members may not fully understand other functionality that could meet the requirement which the consulting team may provide with demonstrations.

The short answer is to plan and prepare for the Phase 2 requests during Phase 1. The plan should include budgeting Phase 2 and assessing scope items when the initial deferral decision is made. Setting expectations with your team are critical to managing new items to the budget and return on investment.

As we carve the Halloween pumpkins and put out decorations for the arrival of those fun costumed visitors, executives should keep in mind how they give out “Treats” as well as how they turn “Tricks” into opportunities during the Phase 2 of their ERP project.

About Kirk:

During his 30 year consulting career he has led many ERP implementations, primarily in manufacturing, distribution and the high technology industries. During a two year respite from consulting, he was an executive leading a global supply chain organization using Microsoft Dynamics. Kirk published works include a book Lean Distribution, which focuses on the relationship between ERP and lean operations in the supply chain.