How to build an effective ERP team

People usually think that the implementation team is responsible for the final success of the project. It is partially true. In the broad view, it is like building a new house, it is the joint effort of the architect to create the design, the builder to lay the bricks together, then the butler to handle maintenance-related activities.

Architect

The pre-sales team would be the perfect representative of the architect since they are the first one who is in contact with the client to understand their pain points and expectations. They are also the firsts to discuss or consult the clients on how the project should be planned, for instances, which requirements it should cover, how it should be executed or even how much they should budget. These consulting sessions later becomes the statement of work, which defines the objectives and deliverables that other teams will need to follow strictly.

Pre-sales person must acquire a wide range of skills consist of excellent communication, problem-solving, collaboration and in-depth knowledge on products/services to convince the clients as well as lay out the attainable project goals.

Another aspect for pre-sales team is understanding the capabilities of both sides – the client and the project team. On the project team, they should know whether it is feasible for the team to delivery this requirement. On the client side, pre-sales team should understand the clients well so they could propose solutions, which helps to close the deal.

Builder

If the pre-sales team is the architect, the implementation team is no one but the house builder. The architect sketches the first blueprint; however, the builder is responsible to modify it to the final version and turn it into the reality. There are a few things to enhance the change of success:

The “must-do” item is a proper knowledge transfer plan with the checklist. It captures the critical knowledge transferred from pre-sales team, including the customer stories as well as the insights on why they proposed such scope, cost or timeline. It too helps to avoid the redundancy in getting requirements or conflicts in giving solutions.

Since every project has its own challenges but common mistakes still occurred, therefore, a recommendation is to have a Knowledge Exchange (KX) Center, where the lessons-learnt are documented. It is important to remind that we do not need to wait to the project end to record the lesson-learnt, it is supposed to be recorded whenever it happens. When it comes to the project management, it’s all about the strategy from team members selection to scope or stakeholders’ management. If we get the strategy right, the rest will be taken care of itself.

Butler

A successful project does not end with the system deployment but the use of it in operation for many years later. Therefore, it emphases the importance of the last team – the customer services (CS). CS team is likened to the Butler who is accountable for maintaining the house and giving the best possible experience to the guests. They are the key to defines the customer loyalty and reputation of company.

No matter how great your product and implementation services are, if the customer service performs below bar, retaining the customers would be greatly struggle. In fact, if the company uses the system for 10 years, they only work with the implementation team for around 1 year, which is 10% of the life cycle while another 9 years (90%) will be spent with customer service team. The customer service team plays a vital role in the company’s sustainability strategy, thus the key to have a century-old business is to have a qualified CS team.

Conclusion

In conclusion, team collaboration is the essence of any successful business, therefore,

• It is crucial to have proper strategies to recruit and build each team so the whole operation can run effectively and efficiently
• Transition work between teams, which requires a lot of planning to ensure the smooth transition. Continuous communication is the powerful tool to use to ensure that we to earn the internal buy-in or to temper any negative reactions.
• The quality of CS team is vital to the sustainability and boost the reputation of the company.