Country-Based Needs Regarding ERP Systems Customization
A primary benefit for companies that have or want to implement ERP systems is the enterprise wide customization that is possible. Processes in every department can be set up in a module and then integrated with other modules as required. By the same token, businesses in various countries do the same things in different ways and appreciate the possibility of software that can be precisely tailored for their needs.
The requirements of companies in South Africa are worlds apart from those in Europe and the US. Even large companies in SA do not really require the all-encompassing scope and equally high price tag that comes with global solutions provided by multinational providers. The end result is that many firms have paid too much for a large-scale system they don’t need or gone the other way and settled for a lower midmarket offering that precludes any possibility of growth.
It would be pointless for a divisional or IT manager to try and explain a business process done the South African way to a consultant from America or Germany. The culture and the paperwork are both just too far apart to reconcile or adjust for the local market. The real demand is for upper mid-market solutions provided and implemented by regional vendors.
This means a package with the proper framework for mid-market to large companies and the availability of experienced local consultants. The unified information system connects offices, subsidiaries, agencies, etc. When the customer wants to enter a new market or start a new department, it is scalable enough and ready to activated and customized without any delay.
The company can start off with a few of the core modules such as Production, HR, Finance, Accounting, Distribution and Marketing. They can get started with the data migration from old systems to the ERP, and move the whole thing from test to live servers. As and when convenient, other modules can then be customized, tested and integrated with the live system.
This is the kind of low-cost, simple to use and smaller customization/implementation timeframe package that appeals to South African businesses who seek value for money above all else. This also leads to the obvious choice of local consultants. A foreign team would be expensive and they would have too much culture shock and a big learning curve to get the project completed as quickly or effectively.
Apart from the cost and efficiency factors, there is also change management to consider. Management and employee resistance to the massive company-wide change that an ERP package triggers is always a key factor that decides whether an implementation is going to succeed. This is perhaps as important as a competent customization, if not more.
Many companies that have implemented ERP systems have never realized the full potential because employees just cannot figure out why they have to give up methods which have worked well for so many years. In order to convince them, experienced local consultants have to provide training and show them how the system works. They should be able to relate when they see how much more productive employees have become in other South African companies where the system is now in use.
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