An enterprise resource planning solution (ERP) pays for itself basically always. The time-to-value with an ERP implementation is the real question. Will your organization hit the ground running and immediately realize ROI, or will it take a few years before the infrastructure investment pays off?
Accelerating ERP time-to-value is where a fit-to-standard methodology can help. Adopting this standards-based approach for implementation saves time, money, and organizational headaches, which translates into a faster return on investment.
ERP encompasses all functions and processes within your business, making setup a complicated task. Typically, a business scopes its needs, selects the right ERP solution, and then labors over the long process of configuring the software and building its specific business processes into the system.
This setup takes time, and often there are kinks during rollout when processes don’t align correctly with the software or are configured poorly. Most businesses will get there (often after sending us an SOS for help), but this sort of ERP implementation takes time. It is also the historical standard.
But times have changed, both in business dynamics and ERP implementation best practices. Because of the cloud and an inherent need for business agility, a fit-to-standard ERP implementation approach now usually makes more sense than fitting the system to bespoke company processes.
A fit-to-standard approach is implementing around standardized best practices wherever possible, only deviating where actually necessary.
The idea is that most backend business processes are not actually a competitive advantage, so fitting the business to standards makes more sense than forcing Sally’s payroll processes on the system. Does your business really need custom accounting processes or bespoke fulfillment? Probably not. But it does benefit from taking advantage of thoughtful, time-tested business processes that are preconfigured in the system and ready to go.
With a fit-to-standard approach, your business starts with standard processes that meet most use cases.
This isn’t one-size-fits-all; it is selecting among standard processes already built into the ERP solution. Where these best-practice standards basically fit your needs, you adopt and roll them out quickly. Where they don’t quite meet the needs, you lightly adjust the system through configuration or add-on modules.
This implementation approach yields much faster time-to-value while also upgrading processes and increasing agility. That’s because off-the-shelf processes roll out faster, are tested and widely used, and can evolve more easily than bespoke solutions.
Making ERP follow custom processes can take years. Relying on standards for the most common business processes takes months. With a fit-to-standard approach, you can roll out a fully integrated ERP solution in as little as 90 days. We know, because we help businesses do it all the time. Contract pharmaceutical manufacturer TriRX’s rapid spin-up is just one example.
Fully taking advantage of a fit-to-standard approach requires an ERP architecture that supports it. While any business can implement with a standards approach, it helps when an ERP solution is built for it.
SAP Cloud ERP, for instance, is built around fit-to-standard. It consists of a small ERP core that relies heavily on plug-ins, add-on modules, and connectivity for actual functionality. This flexible, modular architecture makes it easier to tailor industry solutions that are not actually custom, because SAP and businesses can easily combine applications and functionality needed for a given business without having to resort to coding or customization. Businesses take something off-the-shelf and configure; they don’t customize except where truly necessary.
A further advantage of this modular, fit-to-standard approach is that SAP can offer better implementation support and rollout accelerators since the system relies on configuration instead of customization. The SAP GROW program is an almost turnkey solution for rolling out SAP Cloud ERP.
Business-specific processes and functionality are necessary sometimes, of course. Most businesses can lean on standardized processes, but that doesn’t mean all processes and functionality come directly out of the box. There’s still the need for configuring the system for your business, and sometimes developing custom workflows or functionality where it legitimately makes sense. Each business is unique, after all.
This is where an experienced implementation partner like Navigator can help. Because we understand the technology inside and out as an SAP Gold Partner and have been helping businesses with process alignment for more than 30 years, we can quickly size up business needs and assist with proper configuration. Where needed, we can also extend an SAP solution with modules or customization that truly drive value.
A fit-to-standard methodology and the right ERP solution improves time-to-value. Combine that with an experienced ERP implementation partner, and you have all you need for fast, painless business modernization.
For more on the fit-to-standard methodology or how we can help, contact one of our US-based ERP consultants by calling (801) 642-0123 or writing us at info@nbs-us.com.