Contact

Header image
Header filter
Header slant

Change Management

Header quotes Focus on People Header quotes

Integrated ERP Solution
instead of IT Patchwork Why this Change requires Courage

Information silos have a negative impact on your competitive position, the loyalty of your customers and employees and your results. However, buying a new ERP solution does not automatically solve the problem. The challenges lie elsewhere. Your management must show courage - but this will pay off in the end.

New Purchasing Behavior and Higher Customer Expectations

General purchasing behavior is changing and customers have increasing expectations, for example that ordered goods will arrive even faster. These developments require a stronger integration of your way of working. After all, your customers work with the entire company and not just with your sales department or warehouse.

Information Silos: Competitive Position, Loyalty and Results suffer

Today, many organizations still use an IT architecture based on information silos. This means that departments, divisions and/or local subsidiaries use different software systems to collect and maintain business-critical data.

These information silos have unavoidable consequences: data is repeatedly entered, multiple versions of the truth are created and delayed decisions are made based on incomplete, outdated and sometimes even misleading “management information.” If you are still working with such an IT architecture, it will undermine your competitive position, lead to decreasing loyalty among customers and employees and affect your financial results.

The Challenge of Software Integration: winning Employees over to a Holistic Goal

How do you solve this problem? It would be nice if this could simply be done with the purchase of a new integrated software solution. Unfortunately, simply having software that can be used across the organization is not enough to work in an integrated way. Ultimately, your company must be prepared to use this software solution really comprehensively.

The actual challenge starts with defining an attractive, convincing and overarching goal of integration. And then you have to inspire all departments and all employees to do so because they now have to be convinced to exchange their own sub-goals for this one big goal.

Challenging the Status Quo - your Management must show Courage

You should focus on getting your entire organization to think and act holistically. Technical and functional aspects of the new solution tend to take a back seat. What matters more is perseverance, tenacity and courage.

This phase is probably one of the most important on the road to success! The responsibility lies with the top management of your company - they have to bite the bullet!

Unfortunately, management often does not have the courage to question the interests of individual departments to tackle suboptimal organization. Or to name uncooperative behavior by managers and employees. But it is precisely this courage to change that is required if you want to develop further.

Change Management: what you should consider in order to master the Switch to the new ERP Solution

If such a comprehensive change in the company is imminent, structured change management will also help you. A kick-off meeting should always take place at the start of the process. Then there are different phases that your employees go through during the change process as well as different roles of your managers to support the employees. And most importantly, since not all employees will be enthusiastic as they have to put their personal goals on hold for a while, resistance will occur. If your managers recognize these in a timely manner, they can counteract them.

With a view to the new software solution, also clarify these questions with your management team:

  • What are your five most important information silos?
  • Which silo frustrates internally the most?
  • Which silo is the biggest hindrance to your customers?
  • And what is the annual loss of revenue, profit margin and customer loyalty caused directly or indirectly by these silos?

Better Strategic and Financial Results: the Courage to Change will be rewarded

If you are willing to overcome these organizational hurdles - even before the actual implementation of your new solution begins - you can benefit significantly from your new strategy.

By successfully converting your IT patchwork to a new integrated ERP software solution, you can achieve strategic and financial results that were not previously possible. We can help you if you don’t yet have the courage to change.

Patchwork Carpet
Do you want to get rid of your IT patchwork?