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    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch

    The ERP or CRM selection process can be a long and sometimes frustrating process. Vendors have been reviewed and site visits completed. The contract has been signed…now what?

    The next 30 days are crucial to launching the project successfully, but it’s quite rare for a vendor to have consultants and project managers waiting for you to sign the contract so they can spring into action. Once a project manager is assigned, he or she will begin reviewing internal resources and begin planning the schedule of activities. The project manager and consultants will need time to review the documents and processes that have been gathered about your company. The project manager will begin to set up the project artifacts such as the initial schedule, project management website, communication plans and a definition of the scope and project charter.

    This delay leaves a vacuum that can disrupt the momentum of your team. The following seven steps, outlined by Scott Priestley, president and founder of Lionshare Software, Inc., can help you keep the team focused and help launch your project successfully.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 1

    Click through for seven steps you can take to keep your ERP or CRM project launch on track.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 2

    Many times, members of the “Selection Committee” are retained as members of the “core team.” If not, it’s important to determine who the “subject matter experts” will be for each functional area. Be careful to select people who either have a long history with the company and are knowledgeable about many areas, or people who are newer to the organization but have been involved in a system implementation previously. Regardless, it’s very important that these people be given the time and support necessary to act in the company’s best interest on the core team. These individuals will be shaping the future of the organization and this is not a part-time job. Make sure to adequately define the scope of their involvement early and transition existing projects or responsibilities to other individuals. The quality of the input and effort of the core team is one of the main factors for a successful implementation.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 3

    Depending on the maturity of workgroup collaboration in your organization, it may be necessary to take several days to introduce or review the qualities of an effective team. This should include etiquette, leadership and process. Topics to consider will include change control mechanisms, project management structure and decision making models.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 4

    An effective kick-off is very important to the morale of the team and the momentum of the project. It’s very important to coordinate this with the project manager assigned by the vendor. Insist upon having the consultants who will be assigned attend the kick-off meeting, introduce themselves, and describe how they will be involved with the project, what their role will be, and what they will ask of the core team.

    The core team leader should prepare the team to present an overview of their function, their known strengths and weaknesses, comfort level with technology, any risks that they may see with the project at this stage (such as conflict with other corporate initiatives, company schedule, etc.), and some definition as to what improvements they anticipate in their area as a result of the new system – measurable targets that will be tracked throughout the project and post go-live.

    It’s very important to have the executive sponsor and other leadership attend the kick-off meeting to show support and describe ways in which they are prepared to support the core team members and the project.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 5

    Most projects require additional infrastructure such as servers, software licenses, more robust disaster recovery options, etc. The local IT resources should be working with the vendor to set up, test and deploy any required system upgrades to support the project. This may be back-end/infrastructure or updated systems for core team members. To facilitate this, requirements should have been defined as part of the review process and the necessary procurement process should have taken place as soon as a decision was made.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 6

    There are always competing initiatives or conflicting schedules that need to be identified and managed as part of the ongoing risk management portion of project management. Many times this is seen in other areas of the business such as Lean Process initiatives, new product launches, tradeshow schedules and ISO or other compliance requirements. The important thing is to realize that these conflicts will arise and must be managed effectively to reduce the impact to the project.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 7

    The concept of a war room seems unnecessary to many organizations. The resistance is usually due to limited space and competing needs for existing space. Scott Priestley states adamantly that clients who have moved their core team members to a dedicated location through the duration of the project have had much greater success than ones that didn’t. By doing this, the leadership sends a very powerful message to the rest of the company: “It’s not ‘business as usual,” “these people have been temporarily reassigned and are dedicated to this project,” and “this is a really big thing.”

    However, realistically, it IS a pain – especially when there really isn’t anywhere that can be dedicated. Some very creative approaches Priestley has seen include renting a construction trailer for the core team, building an elevated mezzanine addition, relocating to an adjacent floor in a multi-tenant building, moving to separate office space in a nearby building, or even repurposing the executive board room for this project.

    Seven Steps to a Successful ERP or CRM Launch - slide 8

    It’s very important for your core team to have a thorough understanding of the basics of business process mapping. For many organizations, this may be a review of principles learned and used in Lean Process projects or ISO/Quality initiatives. If not, a complete introduction of the concepts, tools and terminology is very important – business process optimization is another of the key requirements to making your solution and your organization fit well together.

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