Your organization determined the right ERP and successfully completed implementation. While that’s a great achievement and warrants a sigh of relief — as well as a go-live celebration — remember: the entirety of the migration is far from over.

Months of hard work and countless development hours have likely taxed the project team, which is ready to kick back and reap the benefits of the new system. But jumping in and returning to business-as-usual isn’t a realistic expectation.

Adopting the mindset that the installation process is complete puts the company at risk. In reality, migrating to a cloud-based ERP is a big investment, and it’s essential that the rollout is treated as critical post launch as during the earlier stages. Premature let down can result in employees not getting the training they need to use the system, and undetermined system errors can morph into fatal flaws.

Let’s look at what should happen after a new ERP solution goes live!

The Critical First Month

The go-live phase must be a priority for leadership, the project team, and all staff must be onboard to see it through. No one is accustomed to the software, so any issues can be detrimental. Some issues that are reported from those who have suffered a rocky go-live period cite server space errors, faulty customizations, and bad data as issues to watch out for.

What should a business that is launching a new ERP do once it’s live? Cast a safety net that is wide enough to ensure forward progress, despite any possible setbacks. With this in mind, it’s recommended to schedule support at least one month out from launch. That way the team that helped the organization put the ERP in place will be present to address issues with a quick resolution timeline.

Employee Training

Ideally, the project team included representatives from every department that will be working in the ERP system in the rollout plan. With high-performing staff from an array of areas onboard, it should help to ease the concerns of the elusive unknown. These employees need more oversight to continue making strides with the determined solution once in place.

Keep training up — that is how leadership can be assured that data is accurate and workflows are running smoothly during this critical part of the implementation cycle. Whether user rights are that of a “super user” or “guest,” the company must ensure that all employees who have access to the ERP know what to do to get results for their needs. These internal resources should help reaching out to other users within their functional group.

Benefits and Expectations

If your company has a business case in place, it has an advantage during this phase. If there’s one word now, it is: measurement — documenting benefits and key business indicators (KPIs) help to keep teams on track.

Identifying project goals and keeping teams aware of developments will help to keep resentment for learning a new system at bay for employees, who may be stressed by changes and what is unforeseen. Communication around this new tool can help to subside any feelings and frustration of having to learn new (and often overwhelming) technologies. Get key liaisons onboard from day one.

Making it Better

A couple points ring true: improvements, such as ERP implementation, help drive profitability, while planning around rollout and training practices can help ensure a solid investment. When done correctly, ERPs can provide insights, data, and reach beyond previous capabilities.

Hard to predict ERP projects can throw projects off track. Leadership should make sure the team never derails far from plan — this will keep timelines in check, while helping to set goals for what is to come.

Final Steps

Knowing that the final phase is as important as those at the early end of the spectrum will help leadership and teams to understand that an ERP implementation project is a long-term commitment. A transition time comes with the changes for the business; and all employees must realize the importance of the initiative.

This phase can impact employees adversely, so careful planning can give senior management the needed edge to rollout a new cloud-based ERP solution with minimal issues, boosting the efficiency and overall staff satisfaction. When done right, business leaders should expect improved efficiency and employee performance. Also expected are: overall company gains and growth.

ERP Migration: Getting Started

Acumatica makes it easy to implement a single solution that ties in every aspect of business. With a highly advanced system, customers are able to take advantage of the many beneficial aspects a cloud-based ERP system includes. Acumatica’s Cloud ERP Software is built on the world’s best cloud and mobile technology and is the fastest growing provider, delivering modern solutions for ERP. Streamlining processes and gaining improved visibility over all aspects of operations can accelerate business growth.

With a long running history of partnering in software excellence, we look forward to the opportunity to take clients into the future with cutting-edge software technology that delivers results. Contact us to learn more!