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Is it better for an SMB to select software on its own or hire an outside ERP Consultant?
How much can we trust our ability to choose between the various vendors?
Will an ERP consultant cost us significant more time and money?
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2 Answers
I agree with John. The cost of a good consultant will pay for themselves many times over.
Having said that, I do want to provide a word of caution to John's statement that "A competent consultant can provide unbiased advice and guidance through the process.....". One has to perform adequate due diligence to make sure that the consultant really is unbiased. The worst situation is where the consultant is actually a reseller for a particular ERP system. By definition they will be biased.
In addition, people are human and everyone will have their favorites; which is completely understandable. However, not all ERP systems are the right fit for every company, so the consultant should be open-minded to make sure that they evaluate all relevant ERP systems. One easy way to check the consultant is not "playing favorites", is to ask for references on their last 3-5 consulting engagements. If the consultant was pushing for the same ERP solution in all cases, this may indicate a strong bias.
To wrap up, while "A competent consultant can provide...", it doesn't mean they will if they have other self serving interests (i.e. Reseller) or are truly biased going into all engagements. If the consultant is playing heavily biased towards one ERP system in all/most situations, then I would argue that they may be competent, but they should not be hired.
The above is only one example of the importance of due diligence.The upcoming panel discussion on ERP due diligence will highlight many others.
As with any major investment, it depends on the level of in-house expertise an SMB has at its disposal as well as the size and complexity of the purchase.
If the organization has internal resources with the expertise to assess the company’s needs, identify objectives, and evaluate vendors, there is no need to solicit outside help. However, if this is not the case, I think companies are better off engaging a competent consultant to help lead the effort. Relying on vendor professional services may or may not end up in the customer’s best interest.
As regards the cost of a consultant, I personally believe that the expertise of a good consultant pays for itself many times over. The ROI of an ERP solution depends almost entirely on how well it does what the company needs it to do. A competent consultant can provide unbiased advice and guidance through the process to help ensure that the selected product(s) and vendor(s) meet the company’s specific needs.
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