Should companies replace their ERP solutions if they are not happy with them? Why would they go to the trouble? What would they be most happy with if they did make a change – and if they made the change to SYSPRO ERP?
These are questions we put to business owners and senior executives of SYSPRO USA customers – a vast and impressive group of seasoned manufacturing and distribution industry veterans. Smart people. Good people. People who have a great pulse on manufacturing industry needs and drivers. We wanted to know what SYSPRO users believe is going on in the wider market, particularly what they think is making their peers move with – or away from – their current ERP providers.
Everyone knows that implementing an ERP solution requires time, money and a great plan. Industry averages from various analyst and consulting groups state that companies only change their ERP solutions (i.e. move from one provider to another) every 7-10 years.and maybe longer. That’s a considerable length of time, even longer once you additionally factor in the typical 3-6 months or longer RFI and RFP processes, plus add on another 6 months or more for deploying a new ERP system.
So we first asked SYSPRO users what they thought the primary reason would be for their peers at other companies to make such a change. Out of four possible choices, more than half of the respondents said that company growth/change exposes shortcomings in many ERP solutions. There is a current disconnect between many companies who are currently feeling “stuck”with ERP solutions that are inflexible, difficult and costly to change, and the escalating need to continuously change business practices to adapt to new opportunities. Sure, making a change to a new ERP solution is hard –but not making the change to a more flexible solution like SYSPRO can be a real profit killer.
So, we inquired into why our SYSPRO customers thought others didn’t move more quickly to an ERP solution that is better for them and their business. We suggested four possible reasons why they might stay put, even if they were unhappy: fear of business disruption, cost, complacency (i.e. we are comfortable even if it’s not ideal), or did they believe all ERP solutions are basically similar? Our customers thought the hold-up was the fear of disruption and costs.
Finally, since our customers are the beneficiaries having moved from another ERP solution to SYSPRO ERP, we wanted to know the answer to this question: If a manufacturer or distributor were to change from one ERP solution to SYSPRO, what would ultimately make them the happiest: the business/financial impact, the customization/ease-of-use, the technology capabilities or our world class customer support? Two of these options soared way above the others: the business impact and the usability!
SYSPRO is known globally for award-winning technology and customer service, so we were initially a little surprised that customers valued the financial impact and customization capabilities, which of course work hand in hand, above the things that more typically make the headlines about SYSPRO. As we all know, customer service is always important, but at the end of the day, the software has to do the job and be flexible enough to meet business requirements.
SYSPRO customers are the very backbone of the U.S. economy, and they are a backbone that must remain financially sound, business nimble and able to adapt to whatever the global market throws at them. The survey results show that our customers are getting the support that they need from SYSPRO in order to remain competitive and see positive business implications to their bottom-line.
We’re proud to be supporting our customers and their initiatives, and we feel humbled every day by the trust SYSPRO customers place in us.
