How to successfully deliver your complex ERP transformation programmes
The scale of an ERP transformation makes it inherently complex
An ERP solution is often at the heart of your business, driving critical processing and decision making across multiple functions. Therefore implementing, updating or changing functions such as Finance, HR, Supply Chain, Asset Management and Project Management will be a significant investment, with corresponding high levels of delivery and benefit risk. It is critical to treat any such change as a business transformation and to have the right level of experience and capability in place to ensure successful delivery of the associated benefits. It is also key to focus up-front on the data, integration and deployment challenges and spend the time to mobilise thoroughly.
Organisations that are undergoing an ERP Transformation are moving to the latest vendor Cloud ERP solutions, leveraging the increased levels of automation and best in class processes that these systems provide. The scale of these transformations makes them inherently complex, and it is critical to mobilise thoroughly and then deliver with rigour and control. At Project One, we have worked with many customers to shape and mobilise ERP transformation journeys and deliver their ERP Implementation, such as HR transformation and finance transformation. We use our independence to facilitate selection of the right solution and integration partners, driving delivery from your side and making sure the resulting solution lands well into your business.
“I just wanted to call out what an amazing job the Project One team have done so far in both our ERP Implementation and with the first week of Early Live Support. The team have been truly amazing giving all of us confidence in the cutover plan and managing it through extremely well. They have also managed to keep everyone in a buoyant and positive mind-set which makes getting through challenges so much easier” Business Systems Lead, UK Defence Company
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Are you acting now? If not, you should.
Many organisations have already transformed their shared services or back-office functions through ERP transformation Many others are waiting, looking at end of life product dates (for example for SAP and Oracle), and deciding what to do These are complex initiatives, you need to make sure you have a very high level of capability to progress. Why you need to act now: ERP transformation programmes, even if done in phases, will require multi-year investment Legacy SAP and Oracle support is coming to an end, and this needs to be addressed now Moving to the new SAP S/4HANA platform is a full business transformation (not an upgrade) with a complex data migration path Integration into your existing application landscape will need changes and comprehensive end to end testing Staying on legacy leaves your business areas behind as competitors take advantage of new capability ERP skilled resource is in short supply, and you may not get the A team you need to drive success.
Where are you with your ERP Transformation?
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We have global experience across multiple sectors, helping our customers to transform. Here are some of the challenges we have helped to fix:
Drive successful ERP Transformation
Defence Manufacturer
Agreed roadmap and business case, facilitating vendor and SI selection. Led process modelling, onboarded SI and mobilised delivery phase for a global SAP S/4HANA implementation
Led the SAP component of a wider IT portfolio for a JV set-up for a UK defence manufacturer. Managed complex cross-country stakeholders and SAP relationship.
We know what works and what doesn’t, and we can share our views on how to set your transformation up for success. Here are the top tips to drive your transformation:
Ensure ERP transformation is seen as a business initiative, not just an IT project, by securing Exec sponsorship and dedicated SMEs from the start Define clear ambition, outcomes, and scope upfront to underpin success and to prevent your ERP transformation from getting out of control Drive change management to ensure everyone understands the ERP transformation, it’s impact, the benefits, the approach to adoption, and is prepared for a smooth and safe transition ERP transformations like SAP S/4HANA or Oracle Fusion take years to implement, so plan early and act fast if your legacy system is nearing end-of-support Perform a well-managed product and delivery partner selection with a strong cultural fit, as skilled ERP integrators are in high demand, so act now to secure the best team Prioritise data and deployment challenges early, as data issues often derail transformations in later stages. Plan ahead to stay on track Establish strong governance, clear scope control, and a well-structured and efficiently run PMO to keep your ERP implementation on track and enable timely decisions.
Led the cutover for a significant European Oracle Fusion rollout. Integrated 60+ interfaces and led the data migration process.
Leadership and direction for cloud-based Oracle transformation. Provided product expertise; Drove delivery of the digital back office solution. Built a cohesive, collaborative and effective programme team.
Led cross-supplier teams to drive SAP S/4HANA transformation across 5 separate divisions, including international. Established strong governance and control; set-up and led critical change management activity.
Recovered and now leading a complex SAP S/4HANA manufacturing programme.
Introduced more effective supplier management and cost efficiency.
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Six steps to your ERP Implementation
There are several key stages to an ERP Implementation. Project One can work by your side at each stage, providing the expertise and support required to make your transformation a success:
1. Up-front concept and feasibility
2. Programme mobilisation
3. Delivery
One of the first activities will be to select which ERP solution/vendor to progress with, by executing a well-managed Request for Information (RFI) and Request for Proposal (RFP) process. Alongside this, the team will need to document the as-is processes for the in-scope business units and also map out the future state. A systems integrator is likely to be required to run the delivery phase – they will also need to be selected. At this point the roadmap will need to be drilled down into more detailed project plans.
This is a crucial first step to agree the ambitions and outcomes of the ERP transformation. There will be some big questions to answer, for example, is this a cloud-based or on-premise solution? Determine how to change your business processes to minimise customisation to the base ERP package. At this stage, it is critical to define the business case for the change and to define a high-level roadmap. A senior business sponsor also needs to be appointed, to ensure this is a business-driven transformation, and not an IT project.
ERP Transformations will have many issues and changes in direction. Incredibly strong customer- side control and drive is required, and this can only be provided with deep expertise in complex programme management and supplier control. There will be multiple suppliers to manage, and the change impacts will be across multiple business areas. It’s imperative to establish and run a governance and control PMO engine, who drive the key delivery processes and establish ‘one version of the truth’ reporting and decision making. This phase will drive delivery through build, system integration testing and user acceptance testing through to go-live implementation.
5. Architecture and Data
6. Post go-live support
4. Change Management
Running alongside all of the above stages is the need to have dedicated focus on IT architecture to ensure that the solution lands within the current IT estate and all interfaces are identified, and the approach to integration is agreed. Alongside this, it will be essential to define the data approach, for example, for any data migration required or to determine the data archiving strategy. These are key items that need to be addressed up-front in any transformation so they don’t impact the project plan later.
Due to the complex nature of the change, the project will need to supply enhanced post-go- live support to help embed the new systems and processes into live operation, both on the IT and the business process side.
In addition to driving the solution delivery, focus is required on Change Management. ERP Transformations will not be successful unless the impacted people are bought into the change and are supporting its success. This will require significant stakeholder management across the organisation and the setting up of a network of change agents to facilitate the changes in the individual areas. This will drive the required process design as well as the general awareness and training. Communication across many different channels will be required to drive this successfully.
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30 Golden Rules We have recently implemented several SAP S/4HANA transformation programmes and have distilled all of our experience into 30 Golden Rules to align to. These rules can also apply to other types of ERP transformation.
Scope and Sequence
Ensure scope alignment with the Vision. Cross-check scope questions with the Vision as the scope will inevitably evolve. Scope has many dimensions, e.g. functionality, legacy systems, sourcing, business and/or geographic sequencing of implementation. Typically Finance goes first, however the finance function touches every part of the organisation so be aware of overly complicated interim states. Rolling out a template approach for multi-site organisations has advantages, however many industry sectors and geographies will ask for changes – minimise customisation. There is no right sequencing answer for a multi-business and/or multinational roll-out. Do the analysis and stick with the decision.
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Ownership
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Start with a clear vision and ensure exec sponsorship, and ownership. The move to S/4HANA should be business-led enabled by systems change. Invest in Change Management. There’s a range needed from ‘lift and shift’ to fundamental changes to process and op model. Keep comms super simple, S/4HANA can become overly complicated and the business users can quickly become lost and disengaged. Invest in a network of Change Agents and Super Users to ensure uptake and support across all of the business areas.
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Team focus
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Involve the wider business up-front. It’s important to plan for a shift from Programme ‘push’ to Business ‘pull’. Ensure an ethos of One Team with shared outcomes and success across all involved internal teams and third parties. These programmes are long and tough and so investing in teambuilding and fostering a sense of shared purpose is well worth it. Getting the right people involved at the outset is fundamental to success. Stabilise the core of the team and plan for succession of key people. Don’t assume business teams know their processes 100%. Moving to S/4HANA is a lot about unpicking deeply embedded processes.
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Governance
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The Governance structure is most important, get it right to begin with, and stick to it. Take the time to get the right sponsors and stakeholders and the right level of communication all aligned. The definition of how decisions will be made and who can decide what, should all be worked out at the beginning. Ensure up front that governance, planning and decisions are openly shared and agreed where multiple business units are in scope. Ensure a business design authority is appointed and empowered from the outset.
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Understand the difference
Each ERP implementation needs solid foundations before the more visible work is done. However, S/4HANA is not an upgrade from ECC6; it is a fundamentally different product based on the HANA database. This represents a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity to re-design business processes to align with best practice. Real time analytics, enhanced revenue opportunities and IT simplification are all quoted benefits. Due to the likely significant process changes this must be a business-led transformation programme which is inherently complex. Data is at the heart of a S/4HANA implementation; the mapping to the S/4HANA data model is not simple.
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Data
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Data migration has proven to be the most consistent workstream that causes most issues and delays across S/4HANA implementations. It is not a simple data migration route to move from ECC6 to S/4HANA. Have a clear definition and process for data migration, and proactively work out potential issues. Establish clear data ownership and planning up-front. Legacy data is typically years old and has been subject to extensive customisation. Be very clear what the Master Data Objects are and where they are to be mastered, and how they will flow. Try to avoid a prolonged freeze period. Allow time to learn from early data loads and build in lessons ahead.
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ERP related services
Introducing Project One
Our experience can help answer key questions, select the right partners and drive activity.
Agree ambition and outcomes Big Qs e.g. cloud or on-premise Benefits definition/ownership Roadmap and business case.
Concept and Feasibility
We are an award-winning, independent consulting business specialising in major programme delivery:
We work in small, senior teams at the top of the delivery programme providing expert leadership, and orchestrating activity across suppliers and internal teams Our core services include Programme Management, Change Management, and Governance and Control (PMO) Our consultants have 15+ years’ experience delivering complex change, and our work is assured by our Consulting Directors We work customer-side, bringing independence and genuine advice with your best interests in mind We bring capacity and experience to increase the pace of delivery while helping customers to build their internal delivery capability.
Choice of product/SI (if needed) To be/as is process definition Delivery plan Team structure and governance.
Programme Mobilisation
Customer-side programme drive SI and supplier management ‘One-version-of-the-truth’ governance and control PMO engine.
Delivery, Governance/ Control
Align stakeholders Manage the relevant SMEs Setup of change network Ongoing release approach.
Change Management
Architecture roadmap IT integration approach Data archive strategy Data migration approach.
Architecture and Data
meet our
REAL PEOPLE - REAL CHANGE
Assure inflight projects to keep on track Recover failing initiatives Reset to hit intended outcomes.
Assurance/ Recovery
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real change • real difference
enquiries@projectone.com projectone.com
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