For many companies and organizations, an ERP implementation is a major change. After all, it is more than "just" new software: in many cases, entire business processes must be changed. How do you make sure your employees go along with that change?

Richard Cramer is a change expert. He has more than twenty years of experience with change projects in large and smaller organizations in the Netherlands and Belgium.

Richard dispenses with the idea that the goal is merely to get implementation through. 'It's about using people's strengths and talents. After all, a system is just a system. You're not going to make a difference with the latest software. How your people use that software is what matters.'

Change or transition?

Any change takes effort, Richard stresses. 'People are used to working in a certain way. In the old system, they know every restriction and every shortcut. So you can't switch to a new ERP system at one moment and then expect everyone to be able to work well with it right away.

There is a difference between change and transition. Compare it to becoming a father or mother. There is a moment when you actually become one, when the baby is born. But that doesn't mean you're ready for parenthood right away. It helps tremendously if you use the nine months of pregnancy to grow toward it. The change is the moment of birth; the transition is the overall change process. A successful ERP implementation often begins with the right guidance from an experienced ERP partner who understands both the software and the business processes.

Change impact analysis

Richard starts in every organization with a change impact analysis. In it, he looks at what the impact of the change will be on the organization and tries to assess what the risks are and what is needed to manage the transition.

'I sit down beforehand with all the key players in the organization. To me, key players are all the people with influence, whether that influence is formal or informal. Some employees are just people you have to have with you to get the rest to go along with you. You have to capitalize on that if you want an ERP implementation to be successful.

Communication Plan

'After the change impact analysis, I write a communication plan. We have different expressions for different types of stakeholders. Some people are informed in advance, others are allowed to participate or have a say.

All employees receive a newsletter from time to time and we also organize a number of webinars where we explain and clarify things in advance. It's not just sending: any question can be asked and we address everything seriously, or we figure it out and come back to it later.

Toward the end of the implementation process, we also do extensive testing, and finally all employees receive training - and later repeat training. That repetition is necessary to make sure that everyone is going to use the new software and get everything out of it.

Making it manageable

Richard's tip is to break up the implementation into small steps. 'There is a lot to be done, but you keep it manageable if you make it small. Every few weeks, employees get a new assignment where they have to clean up or enrich existing data, for example.

We also communicate regularly about progress. What stage have we reached now? And how far along are we? That way you keep your spirits up and employees soon see small benefits and successes.'

Starting on time

As a process facilitator, you have to play chess on three boards at once, Richard advises. 'You have to know: what do we do today and tomorrow. But also: what do we do in a month - and in three months. If you have that in focus, you also know what you have to set in motion this week in order to be ready in three months.

Many implementation projects run out of hours because there is not enough forward thinking and important things are started too late. Project groups are often very preoccupied with the here and now forgetting that hours need to be freed up, test cases need to be set up, or meetings need to be thrown in. This backfires in the long run.

Trust

Richard is very pleased with the ERP implementation he is currently supervising at one of Logres' clients.

'The culture was right before I came in. People realized they needed help to get the change through and gave me the confidence and budget to guide the organization through that change. In addition, the people within the organization are very eager to learn and take your advice to heart. That's a credit to this organization and it helps tremendously in making the ERP implementation go off without a hitch.'

For organizations transitioning from an existing ERP system, thorough preparation for the SAP Business One migration is the foundation for a successful implementation.