by Panorama Consulting Group | Nov 1, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
Six sigma initiatives and ERP systems have both been around for a long time. Companies like Motorola and GE made six sigma part of the business mainstream in the ’80s, while Baan made ERP software equally important at the corporate level in the ’90s. A lot...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 27, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
I’m a big fan of horror movies, and Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. It’s the time of year where many of us (or our kids) dress up like scary characters and watch scary movies. As much as I love Halloween, slasher movies, and a good scary mask in...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 26, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
Embarking on an ERP implementation can feel like going to battle: the process can be grueling and time consuming, money and jobs are at stake, and the odds are stacked against you. In months past I’ve blogged a lot about ERP failures and we have heard a great...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 25, 2010 | ERP Blog
When CIOs and CFOs invest in their new ERP software, they expect a long and happy relationship with the new software. Like most capital investments, they typically expect the investment to last ten or more years. Ten years is a good deal of time and generally long...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 18, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
One of the key reasons that companies implement ERP systems is to incorporate best practices into their business operations. Pre-configured ERP systems for a specific industry can bring embedded business processes, functionality, and configuration to the table. After...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 15, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
In a recent poll, we asked participants to gauge how their most recent ERP implementation went. Perhaps not surprisingly, only 23% said that it went as expected, with another 12% saying that it went better than expected. On the other hand, 42% said their deployments...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 11, 2010 | ERP Blog
One of the first steps in an effective ERP selection process is to determine the type of enterprise system you’re looking for. There are lots of buzzwords out there – Tier I, Tier II, SaaS, the cloud, best of breed, and various others. What does this all...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 8, 2010 | ERP Blog
A few weeks ago, one of our blogs focused on the pros and cons for companies choosing to leverage best practices and pre-configured manufacturing software systems. As we pointed out, while a useful starting point, best practices are not always relevant and cannot...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 6, 2010 | ERP Blog
Recent technological innovations have given companies in search of ERP software more deployment options than ever before. In addition to traditional on-premise ERP systems, there are now a number of strong ERP solutions available in the form of hosted or SaaS...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 4, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
I’m a huge fan of professional football (American football, that is). Perhaps the thing that fascinates me most about the sport is how much each play matters, and how within each play, every little thing matters. If an offensive lineman protecting the...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Oct 1, 2010 | ERP Blog
The general consensus in today’s enterprise software space is that Software as a Service (SaaS) and cloud computing are the waves of the future. Industry analysts and vendor sales reps are proclaiming that SaaS ERP systems are cheaper, faster, and easier, while...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 27, 2010 | ERP Blog
Earlier this month, the US government proposed a tax credit that would allow companies to fully depreciate their investments in new equipment and other capital expenditures through the end of 2011. Instead of depreciating investments in these assets over an extended...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 22, 2010 | ERP Blog
An ERP system (or enterprise resource planning) is a platform for gaining and sustaining business excellence. Excellence in business is more important than ever in a global economy where international competition is intensifying and holding on to a competitive...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 20, 2010 | ERP Blog
ZDNet recently posted an article about the perils of an ERP industry in which most of the major players are somehow aligned with ERP vendors. Panorama’s business model is based on independence from software vendors, which we have discussed in this blog on a...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 15, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
Grab the Advil! I have a headache. A really big, oversized ERP headache. The Swinging Door of ERP Consultants As a former implementation lead on the client side, I can attest that the practice of replacing consultants at every stage of an ERP implementation was...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 13, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
If I listen to the hype from some ERP vendors, ERP implementations are a cakewalk. According to these sales messages, pre-configured industry solutions, data conversion tools, and generic training materials allow a company to have their ERP software up and running in...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 10, 2010 | ERP Blog
A Blue Ocean Strategy was first introduced by professor Kim and professor Mauborgne at France’s INSEAD in their book “Blue Ocean Strategy.” They define a market which is well explored and crowded with competitors as a “red ocean.” An untapped market which has...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 6, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
We are often asked by clients why our estimates for ERP implementation durations differ so much from what they hear from sales reps. While ERP vendors can usually provide anecdotal examples of customers that have implemented ERP software in a very short time span or...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Sep 3, 2010 | Change Management, ERP Blog
One of the most common benefits cited with an ERP implementation is the reduction of paper forms to manage information flows. Easy, right? You just enter data into the ERP system, and then enjoy the speed and environmental benefits of electronic processing. Actually,...
by Panorama Consulting Group | Aug 30, 2010 | ERP Blog, Implementation
I’m a big fan of ’80s rock. I am also guilty of quoting more than my share of classic rock songs in my blog. So when I heard “Canary in a Coal Mine” by The Police on the radio the other day, I instantly thought about ERP projects. The song...