đ¨ ERP implementations don’t usually fail
They quietly settle for “good enough“.
Letâs be clear about one thing: the majority of ERP implementations do not fail.
Headlines like âWhy ERP implementations failâ or âThe main reason ERP projects failâ are usually exaggerations. Total failure is rare. Whatâs far more common is something subtler – projects that go wrong.
And when an ERP implementation goes wrong, there is always a cost. Whether that shows up as additional spend, extended timelines or a heavy drain on internal time, it ultimately hits the bottom line.
Most ERP implementations do reach a successful conclusion, but the journey is rarely smooth. There is often a point partway through where the project starts to feel like a failure. Whilst recovery is usually possible, the outcome is often a system that is merely “OK” rather than truly transformational.
ERP discovery is a Goldilocks problem.
Think of it like designing a vehicle with three wheels, only to realise mid-development that your use case actually requires four. Instead of returning to the drawing board, you retrofit a fourth wheel onto the existing design. You technically get the vehicle you wanted, but only by accepting compromise.
Thatâs exactly what happens with many ERP systems.
And this is where most ERP implementations really go wrong: right at the start.
The problems may not be visible immediately, but when an implementation begins to drift, the root cause can almost always be traced back to the discovery phase.
Sometimes this happens because vendors spend too little time understanding your business. Having worked in your industry before, they assume they already know how you operate – an arrogance that leads to missed detail and flawed foundations.
In other cases, it đ§đŚđŚđđ´ like a lot of time has been spent. Polished documents are produced, impressive in volume and presentation. But because they follow a boilerplate, âsearch-and-replaceâ approach, they are generic and offer little real architectural value.
Or worse, discovery becomes a way to burn through budget, defining the system the vendor wants to sell rather than the system the business actually needs.
The best vendors donât just deliver a strong ERP platform; they deliver a strong implementation. And that starts with getting discovery right.
So how much time should discovery take?
Thereâs no universal answer. It depends on your business, your complexity and how you intend to use your ERP system. With the right partner, discovery is never rushed and itâs never an endless drain on time and money either.
It takes just the right amount.
