5 ways to find the right ERP Partner

Make the right selection for long-term benefits

You’ll need to make many important decisions when deploying a new business management system. Some are more important than others. But the most important one – and the one you arguably can’t afford to get wrong – is who you select as your implementation partner.

It doesn't matter if your business has the best business management system in the world. With the right ERP Partner to assist with your implementation and support your system, you'll truly get the most out of your investment.

So what are the things you should be looking out for when trying to find the right ERP Partner? Here are our top five things you should consider when looking to partner with the right software vendor.

1. Culture

Culture is vital. You need to find an organisation with the same ideologies as your own. If you can find somebody on the same page as you, it will make a massive difference. You’ll be working closely with your chosen partners through the different sales, implementation and go-live stages. Then, they will be your first port of call when you require any support. Always ask yourself if you can see your company working with your selected partner for the foreseeable future. If the answer is ‘no’, they are unsuitable for your business.

2. Resources

You need to feel like you can trust your partner and that they’ll honour what they promised during the sales cycle. Always do your research into an organisation. Take a look at their website and their corporate social media profiles. See how many people are part of their project delivery and consultancy teams. Do they have the right skills to help you deliver your project? If something doesn’t feel right, then it often isn’t.

3. Experience

Many growing businesses will have never implemented an ERP system before. Or it will be a project that was last completed more than a decade ago. So they will rely on their chosen partner to lead them along the right path. That’s why it’s critical to work with somebody who has gained the right experience and has the right skills to deploy your chosen system. Make sure the company you decide to partner with has extensive knowledge of your business and the industry you work within.

4. Support

Once your system is implemented and you’ve gone live, the partner's support team will be there to help with any issues. You’ll want to maximise your investment in your ERP Solution and avoid any periods of downtime or where your system isn’t running at full speed. Always ask potential vendors how long it takes them to respond to enquiries and close support calls. It’s also worth finding out what their customer retention rates are like. You can probably decide what customers think about the level of service a company provides by how many choose to renew their agreements.

5. References

What better way to find out what it’s like working with a potential partner than speaking to one of their customers? Most companies now put customer testimonials on their websites – or will be able to provide a reference customer from the industry you work within. Alarm bells should start ringing if neither of these is available.

Are you looking for an ERP Partner who ticks all the right boxes for your business? Get in touch with one of our team at SEIDOR or call us on 087 468 1980ERP Solution.