The ‘GO’ for a Packaged Software solution is one of the biggest challenges faced by organizations. While some parties will be advocating for its importance others will be more interested in the failure issues evident in history. The solution to this decision should always lie in a comprehensive business case the new system. The merits of an of enterprise systems implementation are as huge as the failure implications. If business managers only concentrate on the expected benefits thereby neglecting possible failures, it can lead to the collapse of the company.
Packaged Software adoption process requires as stated earlier requirements definition and other business drivers. These drivers could be seen as a migration from an already existing system to an enterprise-wide system. The ‘need’ is defined by the following migration processes:
From Intra-Company to Inter-Company
Reaching out to Suppliers
Reaching out to Customers
Reaching out to alliances
Reaching out to Competitors
Social Integration through global networking
Technology of Extended Reach
Beyond fax –Electronic Document Interchange
Inter-Company Databases and Applications
Online Collaboration
The migration process has impacted companies with both negative and positive consequences. The implications of cost and the accompanying benefits put most at risk. From above, it could be inferred that the highest point to attaining a competitive edge is by integrating all functional areas of the business. Research in business integration, have for the past been on the integration of marketing, R&D and sales. This proved useful but with the emergence of information system, it has been observed that integrating marketing with technical functions (IT) provide excellent results and also, increases company-wide initiatives. Also, without efficient interaction, an effective integration will not be achieved and it is enhanced by information flow. Organizational systems need to interact with both people and processes of the organization with all being in phase. Organizations are today operating in integrative environments that include competitors, suppliers and partners.
This makes it sound good, if customer data and the cost of developing new applications are available to many to share. The Packaged Software implementation decision could be from either the attainment of business process efficiency, technological push as depicted by the competition, or an information technology perspective. In any of the three scenarios, it will be better for organizations to define the need critically with reference to the current situation, future prospects of the organization, and a comprehensive business case.
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