Robert G. Jacobs II, Senior Advisor, EquaTerra Enterprise Systems Practice

If your legacy business applications are more than 10 years old and require multiple entries of identical data, you should consider taking advantage of newer functionality. Disparate applications with business unit-level data synchronization or reliance on non-integrated desktop applications, such as spreadsheets and simple databases, indicate probable economies of scale and enterprise visibility that your organization could be taking advantage of through enterprise level business application integration. Difficulty managing the order-to-cash supply chain lifecycle, particularly with inventory management, offers more indication that a change to an ERP environment is in order.

Organizations should survey their user community and identify flagrant inefficiencies. Then, follow-up with an in-depth accounting of the current IT infrastructure and its ability to meet the demands of a dynamic business. Older IT infrastructure invariably becomes costly to maintain. Depending on circumstances, it may make business sense to consider opting for a corporate-wide technology refresh. If your applications environment is experiencing the following symptoms, it is time to evaluate an ERP solution:
•    Legacy business applications are more than 10 years old
•    Redundant data
•    Low level data synchronization
•    Over-reliance on desktop solutions such as spreadsheets and personal databases
•    Inventory management difficulties
•    Self identified inefficiencies tied to core IT operations and capabilities
•    IT infrastructure and capability does not meet the current and projected business demands

For more on this topic, read ERP in Mind: A Guide to Successful Selection and Implementation.

Filed under: Enterprise Systems, How to..., Information Technology (IT) by EquaTerra