Analysis of Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERPs) with Technical aspects

Transcription

1 Analysis of Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERPs) with Technical aspects Zille Subhan 1, Ali Tariq Bhatti 2 1 National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences (NUCES), Lahore Pakistan zsubhan@hotmail.com 2 North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro NC USA atbhatti@aggies.ncat.edu, ali_tariq302@hotmail.com Abstract:- In the past few years, the information technology has emerged as a key driving force for growth of business organizations. The trend of implementing the latest tools and technologies has reached to maximum extent. The majority of business organizations has adopted new and innovative tools to manage their business tasks effectively. In this scenario, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is a huge information system that organizations implement to manage their business tasks. This is a huge information system which links almost all the business departments and functional areas. This report presents a detailed analysis of an enterprise resource planning system. The implementation of an enterprise resource planning system requires taking into consideration various critical factors, which are essential to be considered in order to make this implementation fruitful. This report presents a detailed discussion on the advantages provided by ERPs to business organizations. The basic purpose of this report is to analyze critical success factors involved in the implementation of ERPs. This report also presents recommendations with every factor that an organization can follow to make best use of these systems. Keywords: ERP, Business strategy, Cross- Organizational Integration 1. INTRODUCTION An enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is regarded as a huge, complex, unified, allencompassing, a suite of tools and services that is developed to provide support for major serviceable departments of a business organization or industry. In addition, a huge system of an enterprise resource planning is required for information storage that collects and combines data and information from a wide variety of sources (such as departments and other entities), existing within as well as outside the corporation. However, it can also be used to supply instantaneous data and information to business workers as well as other associates. In the past few years, the majority of large organizations has adopted a wide variety of ERP solutions as a fundamental tool for their businesses to combine systems such as supply chain management (SCM) and put together an inter-organization and global combined processes across whole organizational processes. In this scenario, the implementation of these ERP systems ensures the reduction in time to carry out business activities as well as help business organizations improve their information sharing capabilities, supporting a coordinated and integrated workflow among various supply chain stakeholders [1, 2, 3, 4]. In addition, the adoption of ERP system in conjunction with other information systems normally involves three life cycle stages comprising assortment, application and process. Additionally, the final stage can be further extended in two stages known as a stabilization stage and a routine stage. In this scenario, the existing researches and studies on ERP systems have always paid attention to either assessing the suitability and effectiveness of the ERP system in comparison with software, specialists, or solution providers or determining critical success factors (CSFs) which can have tremendous impact on the assortment and execution of an ERP system, however the literature does not show any considerable endeavor to determining the possible post-implementation impact [1, 2, 3, 4]. Additionally, up till now a large number of researches have been conducted to determine a wide variety of precarious success factors which revealed a number of critical success factors involved in the selection and application of enterprise resource planning systems. Some of these critical success factors include obvious implementation goals, top management assistance and participation, scope of implementation and planning, implementation objectives, project team capabilities and management 5

2 of these team members, user education and effective communication, training, business process reengineering, change management, stakeholders participation and communication, project management, data analysis and conversion; experts and consultants, selection of architecture, project sponsor, and marginal customization [1, 2, 3, 4]. Though, these critical success factors are not for all the time significant at all stages of the ERP lifecycle, but the majority of them have significant impact on implementation as well as operational efficiency. In this scenario, the greater impact of these achievement factors with regard to ERP implementation remains in the operational stage. While the stabilization stage requires the ERP systems to undergo a postimplementation breaking-in period in which efficiency and effectiveness would not be typical of the enduring effects that a business firm can face. On the other hand, in the routine phase, the application of an enterprise resource planning system can be regarded as a success only from a technical point of assessment, however at this stage the success of the implementation completely relies on the users of that enterprise resource planning system and their attitudes toward the implementation and particular function for which this system is being implemented [1, 2, 3, 4]. It is an admitted fact that the business organization can attain a large number of benefits from the use of enterprise resource planning systems simply to the extent that their employees acknowledge and use them normally and broadly. Hence, with the purpose of increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of ERP systems in the operation stage, a firm needs to carry out extensive research in order to determine factors that can affect their employees satisfaction. In this scenario, there is a commonly used model to determine behavioral intent and usage of the system. This model is known as technological acceptance model (TAM). In fact, this model can help business organization understand influences that improve the effectiveness and efficiency of ERP system utilization. Though, in their researches a number of researchers and scholars have adopted TAM to observe the usage of an ERP system, however some researchers took into consideration a wide variety of external aspects and elements that that can affect ERP system procedure in the stabilization stage or intent to use an ERP system. In view of the fact that a small number of external elements do not clarify employees perspectives on the subject of specific systems, however the majority of researchers concentrates on simply a small number of external factors [1, 2, 3, 4]. The basic purpose of this research paper is to assess the usefulness of ERPs for business organizations. This research paper will discuss a number of critical success factors collected from different researches. The basic purpose of this research is to determine the impact of these critical factors on ERP implementation. 2. BENEFITS OF ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING SYSTEMS (ERPS) In this ever-increasing and extremely competitive worldwide business atmosphere, business organizations always look for tools and techniques to improve or retain their level of competitiveness by making use of information systems to effectively support customer service, minimize expenditure and cut down cycle times. In this scenario, enterprise resource planning systems offer a large number of advantages to business organizations with the intention that they can get together varying prospects by offering precise, appropriate, and combined information to improve the capability of decision making. Additionally, researches conducted to determine the efficiency of ERP systems shown vague results. Some studies have shown that business organizations can attain considerably greater stock returns upon publicizing the implementation of an enterprise resource planning system. However, some studies point out considerably higher long-standing return on assets (ROA) for ERP adopters compared with nonadopters [5, 6, 7]. In view of the fact that the implementation and use of an enterprise resource planning system has turned out to be a focal point of organizations and technology planning, however this implementation is still time consuming and costly with a large number of projects costing more, taking longer, and providing less than anticipated. In addition, adoption, configuration, and integration of information flows and business processes highly depend on an organization s ability. Without a doubt, an organization can put into practice enterprise resource planning system, however it needs to effectively and successfully adopt, reconfigure, and put together its data and information flows as well as business operations on a long-term base for the reason that markets and trends transform quickly and every day a new technology is invented. Additionally, in order to successfully implement an ERP system it needs to effectively redesign business tasks from a rigid, mass-transaction direction to a lean, agile, and knowledge-based process. In this scenario, all 6

3 through business process change endeavors, business organizations must integrate matching education and training courses, working actions, and information technologies to provide support for the new environment. Moreover, the successful and appropriate implementation of ERP will result in improved organizational efficiency mainly because of redesigned business processes, quick reporting cycles, integrated administrative tasks, and extended information potential [5, 6, 7]. 3. BUSINESS STRATEGY In their paper (HassabElnaby et al., 2012) discuss four classes of business strategy organizations. These four classes include defenders, prospectors, analyzers, and reactors. In this scenario, each class of business strategy encompasses an exclusive configuration of structural and contextual factors. In this scenario, this idea is practical for the reason that it relies on an organization s productmarket orientation strategy that takes into consideration the environmental factors [5, 6, 7]. How does the Implementation of an ERP System improve the business strategy The implementation of huge information systems for instance ERP has serious impact on business strategies of organizations. In this scenario, a business strategy can require long-standing planning and can include various actions such as market segmentation, supplier and customer relationship management, mergers and acquisitions, capital formation, products sourcing, and product improvement. It is an admitted fact that an organization s capability to have access to required information helps them attain a competitive edge over their competitors and initiate various strategic programs. In this scenario, the implementation of enterprise resource planning systems provides excellent support and capabilities for business organizations to carry on and become accustomed. Additionally, business organizations need to put into practice processes, actions, practices, systems, and metrics that can be helpful in supporting their business strategy. In view of the fact that an enterprise resource planning system can quickly provide a wide-ranging collection of interconnected data and information to business executives to support them in decision making, business organizations can attain competitive edge and strategic objectives for instance market differentiation, cost management. In fact, ERP systems facilitate business organizations to follow tactical choices for instance product improvements, mergers and alliances, cost management, and market differentiation and segmentation. In this scenario, the implementation of an ERP system has an optimistic effect on the implementation of prospector-type business strategy for the reason that it efficiently supports this strategy [5, 6, 7]. 4. ORGANIZATIONAL CAPABILITIES The research has shown that ERP systems have considerable impact on organizational capabilities, which are an organization s abilities to carry out a wide variety of jobs by making use of business resources. Additionally, the basic purpose of business organizations behind the development and management of these organizational capabilities is to attain a competitive edge by developing organizationspecific potentials. In this scenario, with constant utilization, organization s abilities turn out to be much stronger and more complicated for opponents to copy. Hence, the business organizations invest its time and money in information technology (IT) to make its operational tasks more well-organized and competent (HassabElnaby et al., 2012; Shatat & Udin, 2012; Sanchez & Yague, 2010). (See appendix for more detail) How does the Implementation of an ERP System improve the organizational capabilities It is an admitted fact that ERP systems have a significant impact on business abilities. Up till now, the majority of researches and studies conducted to determine the impact of enterprise resource planning on business organizations have demonstrated that ERP systems are advantageous to attain tactical, managerial, operational, management and IT infrastructure objectives. In this scenario, ERP systems facilitate business organizations with more accurate, precise and appropriate information synchronization. Hence, it helps organization minimize managerial and inventory expenditures and increases receptiveness to market variations and trends. In addition, reduction of buffer inventory and lead times improve the flexibility and efficiency of the business organization. As a result, in both practical and theoretical viewpoint, it is important for business organizations to determine the impact of ERP systems on organizations [5, 6, 7]. Moreover, various researches and studies have shown that organizations can improve their capabilities by implementing enterprise resource planning systems. In this scenario, precise and quick access to information allows a company s employees to collaborate and coordinate across business tasks all the way through various departments. In fact, they 7

4 can share data, information, knowledge resources, thoughts, and easily work together in the form of a group, as well as attain common objectives cooperatively with other workers from different departments as well as with other organizations and stakeholders located at different locations. Additionally, the implementation and use of an ERP system also provide an excellent support for the establishment of data warehouses with the intention that business executives can be able to have quick access to correct data and information when it is required for effective decision making and management. According to cybernetic control theory, if a firm wants to become accustomed as well as carry on in its setting, its decision makers should have quick response on major efficiency and performance indicators in adequate time to become aware of unforeseen divergence, take suitable acts and monitor system responses. The implementation of an effective ERP system allows an organization to effectively detain, process, and distribute a wide variety of important performance indicators in (close to) instantaneous, and a way that allows business executives to direct and share their decisions across the firms. Hence, an effectively implemented ERP system improves organizational capabilities such as product diversity, information access, process improvement, and monetary flexibility [5, 6, 7]. The majority of business organizations expects their latest ERP systems should allow process improvements. As discussed above, the implementation of an ERP system also helps business organizations improve their existing processes through which they carry out their business tasks. In this scenario, enterprise resource planning systems develop a bridge between information technologies and business processes into a coordinated set of processes, metrics and applications that go beyond firm boundaries. In addition, effectively managing a product range is not simply a production issue, however a major confront for sales also. In this scenario, the implementation of an ERP system facilitates business organizations to organize products professionally and create superior diversity competently. Moreover, ERP systems help business organizations improve their management and execution capabilities through which they can more voluntarily recognize market opportunities and risks, produce innovative concepts and ideas. Furthermore, the latest researches have shown that enterprise resource planning systems have a positive effect on a firm's financial performance. In fact, the implementation of ERP systems can lead an organization to continued operational performance and enhanced overall liquidity [5, 6, 7]. 5. EXAMPLES OF ERPS Some of the well-known enterprise resource planning systems include SAP/R3, Oracle and PeopleSoft which provide suites of software packages that assure the flawless incorporation of a wide variety of information flowing in all directions all the way through the business organization, such as information on accounting and economics, supply chains, human resources and sales and customers. In addition, these ERP systems are normally advertised as standard information technology solutions that allow business organizations to attain quicker the processes on the earth and are able to engage sequence times, minimized expenditures, and enhanced customer service. In fact, a wide variety of advantages and opportunities offered by these ERP systems have caught the attention of a large number of firms to implement ERPs in the past few years. In addition, the superiority and sophistication of ERP systems have not simply improved the capability of business firms to get together more data and information in depth and in instantaneous ways, but they have also brought about the more widespread lateral and vertical dispersion of information all the way through the enterprise. Moreover, the exhaustive utilization of information as a tool to manage and control business tasks has been recommended by a large number of researchers. Without a doubt, the easily accessible information makes sure that business executives stay well-informed on themselves in the decisions of the subordinates [8]. 6. COST OF ERP IMPLEMENTATIONS In the past few years the majority of business organizations has adopted these innovative information systems. The research shows that more than 70% organizations having a staff of more than 2500 resources have implemented enterprise resource planning systems. On the other hand, some of the business organizations believe that the implementation of an ERP system is expensive. In this scenario, these expenses can include the price of implementing an ERP, associated incremental hardware, software, training and implementation support, which can be more than $200,000 for smallsize organizations (just about $10M to $20M annual sales), more than a few million dollars or even more for large-size organizations and approximately $600,000 to $800,000 for a midsize organizations (just about $40M to $80M annual sales)hence, the investment of these huge resources, business 8

5 organizations anticipate major benefits such as increased competitiveness and operational efficiency [9]. Analysis of Critical Success Factors (CSFs) The research shows that business organizations implement enterprise resource planning systems for achieving a wide variety of goals such as cost reductions, legacy systems replacement and faster information transactions. In spite of all these challenges and risks associated with the adoption of ERPs, the implementation and adoption of ERP systems carry on growing internationally. However, most of the researches and existing literature in the information systems and the trade press domain spotlight the adoption and successful implementation of enterprise resource planning systems, but simply a small number of researchers talk about the critical success factors and aspects of such systems in the implementing organizations. In their research article, (Ifinedo & Nahar, 2006) refer ERP success to making use of ERP systems that can play a significant role in increasing organizational efficiency. In this scenario, (Ifinedo & Nahar, 2006) stress that the success they mention differentiates in extent of various other aspects such as technical installations required for ERP adoption and implementation success. (Ifinedo & Nahar, 2006) also present the analysis of other theories. According to their point of view, the quality and role of vendors and consultants all the way through the lifecycle of any ERP implementation is very important no matter what method has been adopted to measure ERP success. Various researches have pointed out the role of vendors and consultants in the success of an ERP implementation. In fact, trust on vendors and consultant as a major issue in ERP implementations that is why these systems are believed to be different from other IT projects. In this scenario, ERP implementation success model presented by (Ifinedo & Nahar, 2006) takes into consideration six main dimensions (as shown in Figure 1). In fact, this model takes into consideration various measures such as perceptual, attitudinal and other applicable measures linked to the information system [10]. Figure 1ERP Implementation Success model presented by (Ifinedo & Nahar, 2006), Image Source: [10] The research has shown that more than 70% of ERP implementations remain unsuccessful in achieving their predictable benefits. However, the major reasons that are cited behind these failures include ineffective business strategies, cost overruns, underestimation of the endeavor required for effective change management, and project delays. In addition to that ERP implementation are believed to be of increasing complication as organizations join other companies as well as their sustaining systems cross beyond organizational boundaries. Hence, there is an increasing need for a well-organized and wellmanaged integration both among the associated organizations and among different systems. Additionally, system and organization system integration that involves an ERP system goes in parallel with business change. Hence, it creates an increasing need for watchful business change planning and control. In some cases, organizations need to revise or extend their existing business change approaches with the intention that they could successfully help business change analysts in e- business integration and cross-organizational ERP scenario [11, 12]. 7. ERP SUPPORT FOR CROSS- ORGANIZATIONAL INTEGRATION An enterprise resource planning system is a huge set of software applications that work together to provide effective support for most of an organization s information needs inside as well as closely linked departments in an organization. Contemporary ERP systems with back-end support of 9

6 transaction processing systems serve as the basis for a wide variety of internet based integration and e- business model inside an organization and all the way through its value chain. In this scenario, such crossorganizational ERP implementations provide the business organizations with an excellent support for collaboration and coordination among several organizations in a value network by computerizing tasks and data control flows and work flows shared by the business stakeholders and associates [11]. 8. ERP IMPLEMENTATION MODELS In their paper, (Eckartz et al., 2009) differentiate between ERPI and ERPII. According to their viewpoint, traditional systems known as ERPI takes into consideration the incorporation of backoffice information systems, while ERP II particularly focuses on improving the relationships between the organizations and their customers (front-end). Some of the well-known examples of these systems can include vendor such as supply chain management (SCM) and customer relationship management (CRM). In addition, the differences between ERP I and ERPII have been discussed by a number of researches with respect to the architecture of the system and application domain. In this scenario, ERP I systems are normally implemented by manufacturing firms in the distribution and manufacturing areas as well as having a web-aware however comparatively closed architecture, on the other hand ERP II systems support all the areas and departments of an organization and are based on a web-based open architecture. Additionally, these differences need to be considered when we have to determine their success criteria, conceptualizing benefits and expenditures in the business change management. In this scenario, the success criteria that is adopted to determine the success of ERPI systems, cannot be completely suitable measurement for ERP II success, as these systems are comparatively huge and complex [11]. 9. CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS IN ERP IMPLEMENTATION In view of the fact that ERP systems are more complex than traditional information systems, hence the adoption and implementation of these systems are also more complex than traditional information system implementations and for this reason these implementations are more likely to be unsuccessful. However, if organizations effectively deal with these challenges and issues, ERP implementations can provide a large number of benefits. In this scenario, an organization must lead this implementation with an effective implementation plan that is able to imitate the complicated environment of ERP system implementations [11]. According to (Maditinos et al., 2012), in spite of all the characteristics and key benefits attained through the implementation of ERP systems, the adoptions and implementations of these systems are not for all time successful. In their paper (Maditinos et al., 2012) cite the reasons of this failure. According to their point of view the majority of business organizations are not capable of completely justifying their funds in ERP system, in view of the fact that the most of ERP benefits remain unseen. According to their research, more than 25 percent of ERP implementations go beyond the early cost plan and more than 20 percent cannot be completed. In addition, in some cases ERP systems frequently fail to get together business objectives afterward their adoption. Moreover, the major cause of the wide-ranging dissatisfaction on the subject of ERP system efficiency remains in numerous reasons, comprising a misapprehension regarding the system's potential [13]. In addition, the success of the implementation of an enterprise resource planning system depends on various factors in which some factors are believed to be critical. However, the definition of success varies from system to system and heavily depends on the needs and requirements of an organization. In the beginning the successful implementation is believed to be the completion of a project in time, to satisfactory standards, within financial plan and in time. However, the last stages of ERP implementation are mainly concerned with the apparent participation of the system to business performance. All the way through, the ERP implementation success is determined from the standpoint of top management. In this scenario, critical success factors have been identified as those which are critical parts where things must move correctly for the organization to be successful. In fact, in the previous researches these rules have been used for a number of aspects of information systems consisting of reengineering, manufacturing systems implementation, project management, and, more recently, these rules are being applied to determine the implementations of ERP systems. In addition, critical success factors are mainly practical to practitioners for the reason that they offer obvious direction on where an organization should pay attention to the resources needed in the project. Additionally, prior researches on conducted to determine the CSFs in the implementations of enterprise resource planning systems took into 10

7 consideration prioritized sets of factors. In this scenario various researchers formed these groups on the basis of tactical and strategic factors, by this means offering further support to team leads and managers who are assigned the role of planning ERP implementation projects. In their paper (Shanks et al., 2000) outlines a list of eleven critical success factors involved in the implementation of an ERP system. Additionally, this list contains eleven most important critical success factors for ERP systems implementation. These factors are determined on the basis of literature and viewpoints of different authors. These factors include [14, 13]: (a) Top management support First most important critical factor that most of the literature discusses is the support from the top management, which encompasses several attributes such as the enthusiasm, support of senior management and positive commitment all the way through ERP implementation. However, according to several researches, the role of top management support in implementation of an enterprise resource planning system does not seem to be much greater than the one played by users, for the reason that higher management has to play their role simply in the situation of conflicts (and this factor is not directly linked with ERP system successful implementation), on the other hand user support has a significant impact on both communication success as well as, more significantly, knowledge transfer and sharing (without a doubt this factor is directly linked with ERP system s successful implementation). Hence, an organization should ensure user support with the purpose of implementing a successful ERP system. However, there are certain steps that can be taken in order to ensure user participation [14, 13]: Users should be allowed to present their ideas on the need for the implementation Organizational workers should be involved in the specifications of the system They should actively take part in the implementation process A wide variety of reward systems should be introduced in order to support to successful use of the newly accomplished enterprise resource planning system Without a doubt, fully contribution of users throughout the system implementation is essential. In other words, in the absence of the active involvement and the fully recognition and approval of its users, every enterprise resource planning system, regardless of its style and cost, is intended to create ineffective outcomes that the ones predicted, or even stop working despondently [14, 13]. (b) External expertise Without a doubt, the implementation of an ERP is believed to be a large size project. Hence, throughout the implementation of this huge project the use of the experience and expertise of outside experts plays a significant role. The research has shown that the effective support of outside consultants is vital for the successful implementation of enterprise resource planning systems. It is an admitted fact that the support presented by external experts is vital, in fact it is more important than the support that is offered by higher management. In addition, the role played by the external consultant in the implementation process has also been proved by a large number of researches. In view of the fact that external expertise is an aspect that has significant influence on implementation of an effective ERP system, hence business organizations need to pay more and more attention on searching and selecting the true and expert consultant groups for the particular business setting. In this scenario, organizations should not think that the efforts they are paying towards consultant selection is not a time wasting process, in view of the fact that the knowledge of the external firm in a related business environment, the dedication towards attaining joint objectives and the common attitude of the two vendors are of critical importance for effective implementation. In addition, organizations should not hire external consultants for only acquiring their technical expertise; however they should also keep in mind a wide understanding of the individual business procedures and an authentic dedication towards dealing with daily problems regarding ERP system implementation. In this scenario, it is recommended for adopting organizations to establish an agreement between the improvements to be made in particular sectors of business activity and fees paid to the consultant team. On the whole, this external group should be considered as a precious supporter throughout the implementation of ERP system. On the other hand, these consultants need the effective support as well as the approval of the business employees with the purpose of completely integrating their precious knowledge and establish a considerable distinction in the effective ERP implementation. In this scenario, if system users do not adopt a positive approach towards cooperating and collaborating with an external team, it will certainly produce ineffective results [14, 13]. 11

8 (c) Balanced project Team In order to make the implementation of an ERP system a success, an organization should form a mixture of business and IT workers with a wide understanding of business processes. The research has shown that ERP adopting organization should develop the required environment with the intention of supporting the procedure of knowledge transfer among various entities. In this scenario, IT personnel should cooperate with non-technical personnel and they need to learn more about their new organizational tasks and procedures apart from the training about the newly implemented ERP technology. In addition, these employees should enthusiastically attempt to obtain utmost results from the implementation of the ERP system, in view of the fact that inactive approach will not lead to successful ERP implementation [14, 13, 15]. (d) Data Accuracy In order to make the implementation of an ERP system a success, an organization must make sure that they collect high quality data from existing legacy systems. The organization must implement strategies to make this data consistent and clean so that it could be used beneficially for the effective implementation of an enterprise resource planning system [14, 13]. (e) Clear Goals Before the initiation of this implementation project an organization must define its goals clearly and these goals must be well-understood before further proceeding [14, 13]. (f) Project Management Without a doubt, there is dire need for effective project management capabilities for the successful accomplishment of this implementation process. In order to make this project a success an organization must develop and maintain a thorough project plan covering the project goals should be established and maintained [14, 13]. (g) Change Management Without a doubt, change is inevitable at every stage of system implementation. In order to deal with these emerging changes an organization must pay careful attention to change management, seeing that the ERP implementation will engage a wide variety of changes to business processes [14, 13]. (h) Education and Training In view of the fact the implementation of an ERP system requires a lot of people to work on different processes, in the same way the adoption of this system heavily relies on users. In this scenario, for the successful implementation of ERP project an organization must ensure effective training and education of both technical expertise regarding the ERP system and its associated models and knowledge about its working and use for both business and IT employees [14, 13]. (i) Presence of a Champion There should be a person who works as a leader, an individual, who is not always a senior manager, but responsible for explaining the benefits of the ERP system throughout the implementation process [14, 13]. (j) Minimizing Customization This factor involves minimizing the amount of customization and scope of the ERP system implementation and alternative choice [14, 13]. (k) Hiring Best people full-time The project team should be formed within the firm should be completely released from other tasks and responsibilities during the ERP implementation project. This team should be assigned a full-time responsibility of the implementation [14, 13]. 10. CONCLUSION In the past few years, the implementations of ERP systems to manage business tasks has become an attractive trend. There are many well-known vendors that provide excellent ERPs solutions to deal with business processes effectively. This research paper has presented a detailed analysis of enterprise resource planning system and various associated aspects. This research paper has discussed the ways enterprise resource planning systems support business organizations. At the present, business organizations use ERPs for the management and integration of different business processes. Without a doubt, the successful implementation of an ERP ensures maximum business efficiency and competitive edge. The research paper has shown that EPR is a huge information system and its implementation requires huge investment and time as well as involves various critical issues. In order to make this implementation fruitful organizations must take into consideration these critical factors. Different researches have outlined different factors depending 12

9 on the nature and size of the organization. This research paper has combined critical factors from various researches. This research paper has collected eleven critical factors from different researches. This research paper has also discussed the solutions to issues that can arise during implementation of ERPs. In this scenario, user involvement plays a significant role throughout the implementation of ERPs. They should be educated and trained regarding the use of ERP in order to make effective use of the system. REFERENCES [1] S. Sternad, M. Gradisar and S. Bobek, "The influence of external factors on routine ERP usage," Industrial Management and Data Systems, vol. 111, no. 9, pp , [2] M. Al-Mashari, "Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems: a research agenda," Industrial Management & Data Systems, Volume 102 Issue 3, pp , [3] R. C. Beatty and C. D. Williams, "ERP II: best practices for successfully implementing an ERP upgrade," Communications of the ACM, vol. 49, no. 3, pp , [4] W. Brown, "Enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation planning and structure: a recipe for ERP success," in SIGUCCS '04 Proceedings of the 32nd annual ACM SIGUCCS fall conference, Baltimore Maryland, USA., [5] H. R. HassabElnaby, W. Hwang and M. A. Vonderembse, "The impact of ERP implementation on organizational capabilities and firm performance," Benchmarking: An International Journal, vol. 19, no. 4/5, pp , [6] A. S. Shatat and Z. M. Udin, "relationship between ERP system and supply chain management performance in Malaysian manufacturing companies," Journal of Enterprise Information Management, vol. 25, no. 6, pp , [7] J. L. Sanchez and A. Yague, "Competitive advantages of the ERP: new perspectives," in PROFES '10 Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Product Focused Software, Limerick, Ireland, [8] S. K. Sia, M. Tang, C. Soh and W. F. Boh, "Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems as a technology of power: empowerment or panoptic control?," ACM SIGMIS Database - Special issue on Critical analysis of ERP systems: the macro level, vol. 33, no. 1, pp , [9] A. Ragowsky and D. Gefen, "What makes the competitive contribution of ERP strategic," The DATA BASE for Advances in Information Systems, vol. 39, no. 2, pp , [10] P. Ifinedo and N. Nahar, "Prioritization of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems success measures: viewpoints of two organizational stakeholder groups," in SAC '06 Proceedings of the 2006 ACM symposium on Applied computing, Dijon, France, [11] S. Eckartz, M. Daneva, R. Wieringa and J. v. Hillegersberg, "Cross-organizational ERP management: how to create a successful business case?," in SAC '09 Proceedings of the 2009 ACM symposium on Applied Computing, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA., [12] A. Singh and J. Wesson, "Evaluation Criteria for Assessing the Usability of ERP Systems," in SAICSIT '09 Proceedings of the 2009 Annual Research Conference of the South African Institute of Computer Scientists and Information Technologists, Riverside, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa, [13] D. Maditinos, D. Chatzoudes and C. Tsairidis, "Factors affecting ERP system implementation effectiveness," Journal of Enterprise Information Management, vol. 25, no. 1, pp , [14] G. Shanks, A. Parr, B. Hu, B. Corbitt, T. Thanasankit and P.Seddon, "Differences in Critical Success Factors in ERP systems implementation in Australia and China: A cultural analysis," in Proceedings of the 8 th European Conference on Information Systems, [15] B. Scholtz, C. Cilliers and A. Calitz, "Qualitative techniques for evaluating enterprise resource planning (ERP) user interfaces," in SAICSIT '10 Proceedings of the 2010 Annual 13

10 Research Conference of the South African Institute of Computer Scientists and Information Technologists, Bela Bela, South Africa, BIOGRAPHY Ali Tariq Bhatti received his Associate degree in Information System Security (Highest Honors) from Rockingham Community College, NC USA, B.Sc. in Software engineering (Honors) from UET Taxila, Pakistan, M.Sc in Electrical engineering (Honors) from North Carolina A&T State University, NC USA, and currently pursuing PhD in Electrical engineering from North Carolina A&T State University. Working as a researcher in campus and working off-campus too. His area of interests and current research includes Coding Algorithm, Networking Security, Mobile Telecommunication, Biosensors, Genetic Algorithm, Swarm Algorithm, Health, Bioinformatics, Systems Biology, Control system, Power, Software development, Software Quality Assurance, Communication, and Signal Processing. For more information, contact Ali Tariq Bhatti at ali_tariq302@hotmail.com. 14