Innovative ERP Strategies - A Forum for Superior Solutions

Stuck in upgrade hell

It's true.   It really exists.   There is a place called upgrade hell.

And unfortunately it's all too easy to end up there.   One of the biggest problems with the best-of-breed (I really hate that terminology - it sounds like we're a horse farm!) approach for small and mid-size companies is ending up in upgrade hell.

Here's how it happens.  You buy application X.   Then you buy application Y, a great complement to X, and you integrate the two.  Now you're sitting there, very proud of what  you've accomplished (Hopefully you haven't also done Z) and rightfully so.  You're polishing off your ROI analysis when you get the dreaded email from vendor X.   

"We are happy to announce our new version, and we will only be supporting the version you're currently running for another 3 months".  Sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach.

This is OK.  You can deal with this.  Next you contact vendor Y.  Unfortunately vendor Y's application doesn't run yet with the new version of X.  But they're working on the problem, in fact they have a new version coming out soon that is a real LEAP FORWARD - THE NEXT GENERATION.   Small problem.  It's a major upgrade.   Now you've got two upgrade projects that will take most of your resources just to get you back where you were.  Oh and what about those other projects you were planning?  FORGET ABOUT THEM.  YOU HAVE NO RESOURCES TO DEVOTE TO THEM.   

Sound exaggerated.  Not really.   The more unrelated applications and components you support you can expect your maintenance budget and resources to grow exponentially.   

And if you don't plan for this, you could end up in UPGRADE HELL!  Gee it's hot in here! 

ERP Trials and Tribulations

I was getting myself ready to speak on a panel where the topic was "Trials and Tribulations of ERP".

This wasn't my suggested topic, but the topic set by the organization, the AITP, Association of Information Technology Professionals.  By the way, while we're on the topic, if you're not a member in your area, I strongly suggest that you check out the AITP.   It's a wonderful organization that brings IT professionals together for education, fun and networking.   

In any case, it started me thinking - Why wasn't the topic  - "ERP Easy Success Stories", or "ERP on time and under budget", or "Stressless ERP"? 

As I worked on my presentation ("ERP - Where Companies Get Stuck" to request a copy), of course it hit me. 

The ERP process requires more discipline and sustainable focus than most organizations have, and since ERP implementations affect the entire organization, the deck is stacked against a smooth implementation.

What can we do about this?  Are we doomed?  I don't think so.  In the weeks ahead, I'll share some of my ideas for rescuing us from ERP negativism. 

He's not here anymore.

Can I speak with Joe Doe, the CIO.   "Oh, HE'S NOT HERE ANYMORE." 

"Are you sure?  I just spoke with him several weeks ago." 

"Oh yes, I'm quite sure."  Would you like to speak with his replacement?"  Not really.

Sound weird.  I assure you it's not.   Turnover is common in small and growing companies.

Some top management believes in "shaking things up" to keep people on their toes.  (or putting them out on their &*XV!.

We see so many companies making poor software choices, based on lack of a real software selection or needs analysis process, or buying some brand X, brand Y or brand unknown that sounded good.  Not that this is the only reason that CIO's get canned, but it's very frequently the start.

Start with a bad set of requirements, followed by a flawed selection process, and top it off with a less than tightly managed implementation, and you get ----- "HE'S NOT HERE ANYMORE." 

So why wouldn't I want to speak with his replacement?   In many cases, CIO's are pressured into acting quickly,  without "wasting" time or money on consultants or studies, the very tools that they need to build consensus, uncover the real business issues, and set themselves and their companies up for success.  If this is the case, why waste my time with their replacement, since it's likely that the next time I call I'll hear -- "HE'S NOT HERE ANYMORE." 

Addition by Subtraction

I've been sitting at home the last few days recuperating from some minor surgery which removed some body parts that were not functioning as they should.  I feel great and I already know that my body is functioning better now than before the surgery (they knew the same day - modern technology is a wonder).  It got me thinking about the business term "Addition by Subtraction".

Before all the math majors get on my case let me explain.  In my recent case I added more health by subtracting some "bad" body parts.  In business this term is often referred to getting rid of some "bad" element within a team, group or organization, which actually makes the whole perform more efficiently.  Adding efficiency by subtracting negative elements.

I couldn't help thinking about how this applies to ERP, also.  And, to me, ERP is not only the computer system we use.  It includes the processes, the people, the data, the culture and just about all other aspects of an organization.  Then it dawned on me - redundancies.

We have all experienced the negative consequences of redundancies (see our newsletter for ways to eliminate these).  You know, we store customer information in 3 or 4 or 5 different systems or places.  And we have business processes that have 2 or more people working on the same issue at the same time without each other knowing it.  If we concentrate on reducing these redundancies (subtraction) we will have a better organization (addition).

I wonder if there is any way to multiply by division?  Any math majors care to comment?

Integrated System vs. Integrated Approach

   This blog is about ERP.   Just because I'm involved with ERP systems and solutions, everyone assumes that  I believe that ERP is the answer to every IT challenge.

NOT SO!   ERP represents an integrated way of thinking and approaching information and business processes in an organization.  Looking at the whole.  Looking at the connection points.  Tieing things together.  Making as few handoffs as possible.  These are all good things.

But just because these are all good things doesn't mean that every company at every stage in its lifecycle needs an ERP solution.  (Don't let the ERP vendors hear that!).  Smaller companies who are years away from automating production still need an integrated approach to workflow, paperwork reduction and accurate costing.   

Large companies who are in no position to replace a legacy system still need some set of standards to apply to determine if and when to replace legacy accounting applications with off-the-shelf packages. 
So what every company does need is AN INTEGRATED APPROACH. 

What's an integrated approach?  We also call it a STRATEGY.   It's the roadmap, a plan for how to get maximum value out of information and support your business objectives.  It's the result of alignment of business and IT.   For some excellent work on strategy and IT value creation, see the blog of our friend and associate, Eric Kimberling at Panorama Consulting.

Very often the development of an integrated approach will naturally lead to the choice of an ERP platform, but let's not confuse the two, and let's not make that leap.  When we start doing things because it's the thing to do, as opposed to the thing that brings the most value, we start running into trouble. 

An integrated approach between business and IT is something that we can all get behind - SO WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?    (As you might already suspect, I have some opinions about this as well!).

 

   

What flavor is your ERP?

  A thought occurred today as I was having a discussion with a prospective client, who insisted that his ERP implementation was going to be "Plain Vanilla", so that they could take advantage of software upgrades as they are released.

  Definitely a worthy goal.  But how often does this really occur?  How many plain vanilla ERP implementations are really out there?   I know that we haven't seen too many. 

  There are definitely several flavors.  Take your plain vanilla and put sprinkles on top - don't modify the core code but build special reports, add tables to support some special requirements.

  More often than not customers at least end up making their own sundae!   Software engineering has gotten better, just like everything else that is engineered.   

But the bottom line is that for most companies that are big enough to afford an ERP solution, there are some unique and important differentiating business processes and practices that need to be preserved, and they won't (and probably shouldn't) part with these just for the sake of being able to say - "I'll have vanilla please".   

 

So let us know what flavor is your ERP? 

Communication is More Than Talking

In a previous posted thread on this blog about training/education I mentioned the topic of communication.  Let me discuss this a little bit.  Or should I say - communicate my thoughts.

As I noted in that thread there is no such thing as over-communicating.  And now-a-days there are numerous ways to communicate.  There is blogging, e-mail, voicemail, phones, face-to-face, meetings, body language, etc.  There are even a few uses for carrier pigeons and smoke signals.

What does this all mean to an ERP project?  I often refer to a web site that has a 10 step project management methodology and I receive their free weekly e-mail.  They mention communicating expectations more effectively as one of the values of their process.  Also, they tell us to be proactive and multifaceted in our communication.  In this way there are no surprises.  Most of the time it is not the bad news that gets someone upset, - OK, it is some of the times - but it's the surprise at the end of a project that really angers them.

So, if we communicate proactively and in many ways we can manage things more effectively.  It is one part of managing a project more effectively.  Does managing more effectively mean something to an ERP project?  I think so.  What do you think?

Is the future of ERP the big three, four, five ....?

     No one seems to doubt that the Enterprise software applications market is consolidating. 

     Whether you track this or not, there's dozens of smaller ERP solutions that have been just swallowed up by the remaining players, all in an effort to achieve "critical mass" and guarantee survival. (For a short review of some of the "dead" ones, see the interesting web site ERP graveyard).

Based on this, current wisdom seems to make it a foregone conclusion that  in a couple of years there will only be two or three players left, SAP, Oracle and Microsoft.   But is this really so?

As I was traveling the long road to Canada on vacation last week, I thought about the auto industry.  Initially there were the pioneers, followed by the marketplace explosion when there were over 100 auto makers.   And of course, as the auto became mainstream we have had consolidation, and current economic challenges may result in further consolidations and alliances. 

But think about what's happening - there are really successful niche automakers, such as BMW, Porsche, and Jaguar.  There are new "brands" within large brands, such as Scion within Toyota.  And there is the new Tesla, the world's first exotic, superperformance electric car.  Large companies inevitably miss market opportunities, and the future is highly profitable niches, even in software.   

We should heed these lessons  enterprise applications, and not fall prey to thinking short term. Yes, we are in a consolidating market right now - but that's based on current thinking about what software is and what role it plays.  That could (will!) change, and the market may change with it. 

Right now, there are movements such as OPEN source ERP.    That's a topic for another day.  But in any case, it's there and it's not going away.   

What do you think?  What are the implications for your business? 

We need to get there FAAAAST!!!

No comment is heard more frequently than "we need to get things done FAAAAST!!!!

We don't have time for long studies, big analyses.  Besides we know what we have to do - we've had these problems for years!!   And so, the doing begins . . . . or as the old joke goes from the pilot to the cabin "I have good news and bad news.  The good news is that we've got a tailwind and we're making great time.  The bad news is . . . we're lost." 

So just how fast is fast anyway?   ERP, Business process and information issues are almost always more complex than they appear to be.  They have to be.  They lie at the intersection of people, processes and technology.   So how do you solve problems fast?   

Here's the number one secret. (I hate to let this out of the bag).   Getting started!!   I can't you how many of those situations where we need FAAAAST, and companies sit on problems over-analyzing and re-analyzing them without doing anything.  But they didn't have time to do some analysis - they needed it FAAAAST. 

Fast is steady progress toward a goal.  Fast is building a team of superusers (See the tip of the month from June)who know how to tackle problems.  Fast is  . . . a PERCEPTION.    When you're always moving forward, the perception is that YOU"RE IN CONTROL.    And in fact, when you have a well defined process for implementing solutions, you can press the accelerator harder and make things go faster, put more gas in the tank as they say, or throttle back a bit when resources are needed elsewhere. 

It starts with a plan.  It starts with some real soul searching about what the problems might be, and who has the time, knowledge and focus to dissect them.   It starts with SLOW and slow becomes FAAAST!!!

I'd like to write more, but I can't because I hear a client calling who needs something done FAAAAST!!!!

Focused Training = Solutions

We've all been to generic training sessions for various things.  We attend a class outside our facility, we use a self-paced web based tutorial, we join in remotely via the Internet, etc., etc.  There are a multitude of ways to get trained in a trillion different topics.  These are all good ways to get an introduction into a topic - to get some kick-start into learning it.  I don't believe they help you get to a real solution to something you are trying to accomplish.

I like to attend (or give) what I call "focused training".  What is foucsed training?  It's taking a specific issue or problem and addressing it through training the user.  An example - you know how to enter bill-of-materials, but every so often you need another one that is close to one you have.  The only way you know how to do it is by entering the entire bill from scratch.  This is time consuming and error prone.  Is there a better way to do this?  In most ERP systems there is probably a way to copy the bill from one product to another.  Then you can change only the parts that are different.  Focused training from an expert can help you learn this.

I think this type of training has 2 big advantages.  One, you learn things better when they have a purpose and, two, you solve an issue or a problem.

What are your thoughts about training, generic or focused?