As you move through your ERP/business software selection journey choosing the right vendor is no doubt a key area of

focus for you and your team. The selection of an inappropriate vendor will negatively impact the outcome of your ERP

project; therefore, it is crucial that sufficient time is spent focusing on vendor selection. Our experience in this area has taught

us a thing or two about the key areas to research when selecting a partner for your ERP project.

Here are some key areas to keep in mind when choosing your ERP system & partner.

1. Know what you need versus what you want

Base your requirements’ criteria around 3 broad areas:

1. What functionality do you require to facilitate mission critical, day-to-day processes? How can the software bring

efficiencies to these processes? For example, are repetitive tasks still being handled manually; what role can

automation play?

2. What are the current pain points you are experiencing with your existing system that the new system must resolve?

3. Think about your business at a strategic level and specify how your future system can help you to achieve your

strategic goals today and indeed 10 years into the future. This is often blue sky thinking, but rather than getting carried

away with functionality presented by vendors, you need to make sure this conversation is

driven by your vision for your company. A caveat here is to remember to focus on

tangible business results – improved service levels, future e-commerce functionality – to

ensure the conversation remains grounded in your reality.

With your list of requirements in place it is important that you rank each based on its

importance to your business goals and objectives, both now and in the future. This provides for

a much more objective review of your vendors’ capabilities, where you are ensuring the

software is the right fit for your business, not the other way around.

Selecting the right software partner for your business

2. Get out the scalpel - Dissect each vendor

It is estimated that approximately 90% of ERP functionality is comparable across vendors, therefore it makes sense to ensure

your research takes into account the following:

What are the key USPs for each vendor? Are they relevant to how you want to run your business? When you speak to

customers using their system, can they verify that their USPs add value to their business?

Given that functionality can be so comparable across vendors the service element can often be the differentiating

factor. Ask other companies using their system how they would rank their support and development offering in terms

of efficiency, resolution times, cost and end result?

The implementation process is a critical component of your ERP project and this is a people-led process. What

experience does their consultancy team have? Do they adopt a long term partnership approach? Again, ask current

customers for their objective opinion.

Don’t forget the basics. Where are they located? Will you be dealing directly with the company? Where is their support

team based and how are support queries managed (ask for service level details)? What

size is their team and what is their staff turnover ratio? What is their annual turnover, are

they growing, have they got a clear innovations roadmap for the future? Overall, you

need to have confidence that a) your business will matter to this vendor and b) that they

are in it for the long haul.

Selecting the right software partner for your business

3. Technology at its core – Ensure your investment is future

proofed

Whilst functionality may be quite similar across products it is extremely important that you ensure the technology that the

system is built on is future proofed. We have seen customers using legacy systems, where bolt-ons are used to facilitate

scale. This is not a sustainable strategy. Query what code has been used to create your ERP system and even use web

reviews to assess if this technology will enable the product to scale into the future. The last thing you want to do is put this

system in and find that as technology evolves your system becomes redundant after a couple of years.

4. The devil is in the detail – watch out for any potential

banana skins

Is there a limit on the number of support calls? Is there a limit on the number of transactions? Do annual fees increase over time? What

are the quoted additional development and consultancy rates post implementation? Is there a commitment to provide domestically-

based support services? How regular are their software updates and are they provided free of charge?

How are updates managed? Do they offer a hardware service to provide a one vendor facility for your

ERP project? Can vendors integrate their system with other 3rd party applications you are using in your

business?

These are some of the key queries to pose to your selected vendors as certain answers may eliminate

their suitability for your business.

Selecting the right software partner for your business

5. Your newest member of staff – Evaluate the people behind the

software

Your ERP system becomes the back bone of your business; facilitating day to day processes in the optimum fashion and

providing a platform for you to grow your business well into the future. However, this can only ever happen if the team

facilitating the implementation of this system become invested in your company. Judging this can often come down to gut

feel. Is the sales guy just trying to sell you software or is he/she taking the time to understand your business goals, processes

and nuances to ensure the software is the optimum fit for what you want it to do? Is he/she being upfront in their delivery

and providing strong testimonial contacts; related to your industry? Aim to meet the consultant who would be implementing

the system on site. What level of experience does he/she have? What rapport would they have with your staff?

It is these personal elements that can make or break the successful outcome of an ERP project…think of it like you are hiring

a new member of staff… will they culturally fit in with your organisations way of working, will they become invested in helping

to achieve your business goals?

Selecting the right software partner for your business

6. It’s not a race to the finish line – Take your time

Selecting your chosen ERP vendor is a complex task. The average time taken can range from 2-3 months to 2-3 years and

there are no hard and fast rules in this respect. Don’t feel rushed into making a decision that will impact your company for at

least the next ten years to come.

The right vendor is one that will grow alongside your business, adapting their software to accommodate your changing

business processes, whilst also adapting to future market needs/trends. Ensure your vendor adopts such an ethos by not only

looking at their strategic vision, technical capabilities, industry expertise & knowledge base. This ethos must be cemented by

a culture that embraces a partnership orientated approach. It is only through regular contact with your vendor that you can

become satisfied that this approach exists.

Take your time to explore, research and build partnerships with potential vendors so that when you reach the contract

agreement date you feel excited, positive and confident that your ERP project will be a success.

Selecting the right software partner for your business

The Intact Difference

We believe your ERP partner and system should provide you with the tools to uncover & unlock your true business potential.

We also firmly believe Intact iQ, our 3rd generation ERP software, can empower you with the systems and information you

require to unleash that potential.

Built and supported in Ireland and the UK, we believe Intact iQ is all about helping great businesses like yours take control,

drive sales and improve margins. Essentially Intact iQ will help you do what you do better...and: do more of what you do…

That is our firm promise to you and your business.

Supported and implemented by our committed, partnership orientated team, with over 24 years experience implementing

ERP systems in over 2,400 companies, Intact Software is not only proud of its 99% customer retention rate, but this is a core

KPI within our business. This KPI is a signal of our pledge to our customers and is a reflection of the partnership ethos we

have worked so hard to bring to reality through the approach we take to our software, people, processes and culture.

If you are interested in understanding more about the Intact Software difference contact us at

info@intactsoftware.com

Selecting the right software partner for your business