8 Important Things in Implementing an ERP System

One important aspect of being able to manage a company well is having a system that can help manage business operations well. Therefore, a well-integrated computerized system is something that a company absolutely needs. This is really needed for large or medium companies, as well as for small companies and even micro companies.

This can start from the simplest things, such as recording sales and stock positions in stores using mobile devices. However, we often find that there are challenges in implementing information systems, both in companies that are already using the system or those that are using the system for the first time.

Many companies feel disappointed because a system cannot support operational activities optimally, aka "failure". However, we also often hear that there are companies that can use the system successfully. Even though the system used in both companies is the same.

From the data we collected throughout 1994 – 2015, it turns out that the success rate of system implementation over 20 years was in the range of 20% – 35%. This means that only 1 ERP system implementation project is successful out of every 3 to 5 implementation projects.

With technological developments, companies becoming more aware of implementing Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and advances in user education, implementing new systems will become easier. So there will be greater hope for success

Based on the "Chaos Report", several factors cause 50% of these companies to "have challenges":

  • ·         The function obtained is not as expected (over expectation)
  • ·         The project runs longer than the planned time (over time)
  • ·         The budget used is more than planned (over budget)


In choosing an ERP system, there are companies that choose systems that are already available on the market, and there are also those that choose to create their systems specifically (custom build).

The process of implementing a custom build information system can be more difficult. Because it takes more (time, cost & human resources) to build (development) the system and also test it compared to using a system that is already available on the market (off the shelf). This also includes the resources needed to fix errors (bugs) that arise from newly created applications.

There are several important stages in the ERP system implementation process. These stages aim to ensure that the external team/consultant and the company's internal team understand and comprehend the duties and responsibilities of each team in the project. The stages in implementation are:

1.       Project Preparation.

2.      Business Process Blueprint

3.       Realization.

4.      Go Live Preparation.

5.      Go Live and Support.

Dengan adanya tahapan-tahapan dalam implementasi sistem ERP ini, kita bisa lebih dini mengindentifikasi resiko yang ada pada proyek, Ada beberapa point kunci yang berpengaruh dalam proses implementasi sistem pada perusahaan. 8 point kunci tersebut adalah:

1.      Support from executive management / Top Management.

2.      Hope/Expectation trap.

3.      Business process blueprint / Business Process Blueprint.

4.      Data preparation management.

5.      Training.

6.      Testing.

7.      User readiness.

8.      Go-Live Strategy – Parallel Run Vs Cut off

All of these key points are present in each implementation stage, according to the activities and interests.