ERP Implementation Phases ; Steps For A Successful Implementation

Successful ERP implementation is considered a vital and important factor in the growth and consistency of a business. In case of wrong ERP solution or implement it unsuccessfully, your large investment can lead to a huge financial loss (the nightmare of business owners).

Before getting into the depths of the implementation stages, let’s understand the ERP and its phases of implementation.

What is ERP Implementation?

ERP (enterprise resource planning) is a business management application capable of managing entire business operations with ease using specific business modules. An ERP consists of different modules responsible for managing the operations of a specific department.

An efficient ERP comes with different modules to manage different departments, including finance, sales, marketing, inventory, distribution, and much more.

Businesses works on specific methodology and requirements that lets them cater something extraordinary to their end customer. For such businesses, the implementation of ERP software is a must to enhance productivity and overall efficiency.

But there is a need for intense research before choosing the right ERP solution based on unique business requirements, categories, and types. It is the most important step that comes before starting a successful implementation process.

Businesses invest a lot of efforts and money in choosing the right solution that can align with their processes, services, and operations, resulting in simplified business processes with maximised growth opportunities.

Currently, there are various ERP solutions available to help you choose the best from among many, including Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central ERP, Microsoft D365 Finance, and more. Most of the time, businesses find themselves in a dilemma whenever they choose the best application.

If you are going through the same thing, the expert consultants at Dynamics Square are available to help you choose the one that suits your current needs and will easily adapt to your future requirements too.

Essential Phases of ERP Implementation

The ERP implementation process includes a few critical stages that are common to almost all businesses. However, before beginning the processes, organisations must better understand their requirements so that integrations and customizations can be built or modified accordingly. Check the implementation stages below:

1. Business Analysis

The first thing you need to do is understand your business as well as its requirements so that you get an overview of all processes, operations, system requirements, and current and future needs.

You need to understand its workings, business flow, and how it processes the core business operations. An in-depth analysis of your business will assist you in selecting an ERP solution that will provide you with true long-term benefits.

This analysis will also let you decide the server deployment options that suit your business, whether they are cloud, on-premises, or hybrid.

2. Choosing an ERP

Once you know your exact requirements, explore the possible ERP solutions in the market based on various parameters, including cost-effectiveness, scalability, performance, availability of modules, connectivity, and others (based on your business). Like Business Central works best as an ERP for SMBs and Dynamics 365 Finance works best for businesses with complex financial needs.

After knowing your business well, choose an ERP solution that closely suits all your requirements and is capable of aligning with your business hassle-free.

A better decision will support the ERP implementation life cycle, resulting in maximised ROI and enhanced performance.

3. Data Transfer

If you are completely new to ERP, you will be using a legacy solution, such as Tally, to manage some of your business processes. Also, it might be possible that you are still working like a traditional business; manually.

In both cases, you must distinguish between data that is important to keep and data that is not. Once you’ve made your decision, all of your data will be successfully transferred to your new ERP solution, and your ERP system implementation partner will make certain that it’s done safely.

If you are going with the cloud deployment option, you can access your data or any of the processes from anywhere and anytime.

4. Testing the System

Testing the entire system before implementation is one of the crucial steps of ERP implementation. During the testing phase, we will examine all functions, features, and performance, as well as push the capabilities to their limits to see how they perform in both normal and challenging situations.

Testing the entire ERP system after data migration is one of the essential steps for ERP implementation.

We ensure the smooth working of all modules, customisations, and integrations using a rigorous testing methodology suggested by Microsoft.

Testing will offer insights into critical areas where there is a need for improvement or performance enhancement.

5. Training Employees

Moving from an old legacy system to a totally new automated ERP solution isn’t as simple as it looks.

You must train employees on the new functionalities and capabilities of the new ERP solution so that all employees can use it effectively.

Also, before choosing the right ERP solution, you need to check whether the Microsoft-certified implementation partners support effortless training or not.

If not, we would suggest you search for a partner that offers the training at the same cost as the ERP implementation plan.

Here, training the staff of IT departments is a must for all businesses. Because, after the training, these people can resolve the simple issue at the time they arise, resulting in enhanced business efficiency and cost savings.

6. Making it Live

Once everything seems good, we will live with the system. Now, you can effectively use your new ERP system for the growth of your company.

After making the system live, we will coordinate with you for a couple of weeks to analyse the performance of the ERP system in an actual scenario. If there is a need for any improvement, we will make it on time.

7. Post-live Support

The ERP implementation life cycle of almost all solutions is very similar. But offering post-live support by the implementation partner is a service you should look for before choosing a partner.

Whenever you encounter an issue or want a performance upgrade, post-live support will help you out. Our team is just a call away from resolving all your issues, whether they are related to an ERP or an unresolved process.

Conclusion:

There are a few major phases in the implementation of an ERP solution that lead to a successful and impactful implementation process. But would it be successful for your business?

To make it successful, you need a proactive and reliable ERP partner that understands your business while guiding you down the right path.

Dynamics Square is one of those top Microsoft Gold Partners in the UK that has been providing its cost-effective and hassle-free services for a long time. With a team of expert consultants, they are always available to resolve all your issues, irrespective of their complexity or business type.

With over 250+ global clients, we are ready to acquire more potential clients to help them achieve their business revenue targets.