No reason to ERPanic!

What Steve Jobs meant by that:

Remain open to all possibilities and don't assume that you know everything from the outset. When it comes to consulting on ERP systems, many consulting firms assume a solution before all requirements have been analysed. This is partly because they specialise in one system and partly because the customer's catalogue of requirements is worked through stubbornly. Our expert David Lange, Solution Architect E-Commerce, started from a blank sheet of paper with our customer Thomas Philipps - you can read how he found the best possible ERP system step by step in this article.

For the relaunch of the online shop, Thomas Phillipps needed a completely new system landscape that not only included the already established shop system Shopware 6, but also covered all areas from merchandise management to accounting and also communicated with the ERP system of the sister company. ‘To do this, we first defined the three main areas of hosting and security, consulting and selection of the ERP system and functional planning of the web shop. Consultancy on the ERP system was initially the most extensive aspect, as it was important to understand the goals and requirements precisely, to get to the heart of the company and to ask questions about what the individual departments actually needed,’ explains David Lange, lead consultant on the project. It was in his hands not only to understand and record the different needs, but also to harmonise them. Which solution is best suited to all objectives and sub-areas - and where do individual solutions need to be outsourced or newly developed?

The mosaic for the solution was initially rather incomplete, like an archaeological find from Pompeii. A keyword-like catalogue of requirements from the customer was available for the selection - but only the details completed the picture. Instead of drawing definitive conclusions from the initial information, processes were scrutinised: How do you work with your shipping providers? What is the current picking process like? In this way, it was possible to understand what was really needed and to optimise processes such as the returns process. Processes such as registration, goods receipt and chargeback were examined and the right way was found to harmonise them in the ERP and Shopware. ‘Of course you have to weigh things up: You shouldn't overturn processes for 80 employees for no reason. A way must be found to harmonise people and technology in the best possible way.’ Through personal discussions, it was finally possible to develop an overall picture that pointed in a rough direction.

After numerous in-depth discussions with the employees, there were five systems in the running that could be considered for a company of this size in terms of function, price and flexibility. Now it was time to really scrutinise the details: Which is the most sustainable solution for our customer? As a decision-making aid, our expert drew up criteria that were scrutinised in more detail in the next step. From flexibility in customised developments to support options in the event of an emergency. ‘You also have to be honest: no system can cover 100% of what every department needs. So you have to take into account which individual developments or third-party solutions you add in individual cases. This varies from ERP system to ERP system.’

The numerous decision criteria, which were prioritised and subdivided even more granularly, now had to be put through their paces. Our team did not rely on the manufacturer's product descriptions, but spoke to the ERP system providers on the phone, were shown demos and set up their own demos to test the desired functions. ‘For example, it was important to us that our customer didn't have to wait six months for support to solve a problem - that would slow them down massively. In terms of flexibility, we also took a close look at how dependent we would be on the manufacturer's in-house developers or partner companies, as this could also block future progress,’ explains David Lange.

And the winner is...- In the end, two systems crossed the finishing line that fulfilled the criteria to the maximum. We made a clear recommendation for one of them, as it particularly impressed us during our research with its price/performance ratio, flexibility and support. ‘You really are spoilt for choice - other systems also have their strengths in certain areas. However, with the recommended ERP system, we were also impressed by the personal experience we were asked about as well as a support team that can accompany the ERP implementation with a high level of expertise and experience.’ This eliminated the ‘risks’ identified in the SWOT analysis and the Thomas Philipps team was able to decide in favour of the most suitable system with the warmest recommendation. ‘We are already in the middle of introducing the system, the departments are doing their jobs, the ERP provider's team of experts is taking over from here and we are supporting the process so that everything runs in the desired direction.’

Approaching the matter with a neutral mindset was the key to achieving the ideal result for the customer. David didn't want to reveal all the secrets of the consultation - but he did reveal a few essential ingredients: transparency about the strengths and weaknesses of the systems, joint development of the basis for the decision and, above all, no bias towards one system. ‘We don't represent a system provider, but are interested in a sustainable solution. In addition to the right choice of ERP system, another important factor is the right partner or team for the implementation. It's more trouble for us if the customer has problems in a year's time than if we benefit from a commission.’ With this in mind: even though hardly anyone brings more passion and expertise to consulting, David will probably approach the next project for ONEDOT with a Steve Jobs-like ‘beginner's mind’.