World-Class Software Solutions

8 Questions
You Should Ask
Your ERP Partner
Who you choose for your implementation partner can make a
huge difference. The right partner will definitely manage the
project to deliver a system that fuels your company’s growth, the
wrong one will cost you money.
World-Class Software Solutions

But,
How do You
Make The Right Choice?
Partners are ready and prepared to

Ask more and answer common questions such as

costs, experience and implementation
straightforward methodology. But if you ask unexpected,
deeper questions you will force partners
questions. to think, therefore, you will uncover far
more about their business practices and
commitment to their client’s success.

An excellent technology partner will welcome those questions, eager to share

what makes them special. They will engage the services team to help provide
you with complete, honest answers.
To help you identify who are the great partners out there, we collected
questions and advices from top ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and CRM
(Custom Relationship Management) implementation experts you can use
during your evaluation process.
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World-Class Software Solutions

What Makes Your Implementation Process Successful? 04

How Can Your Company Contribute to Project Success? 05

What is your approach to change management and training? 06

How will we define and measure success? 07

What Makes Your Company More Qualified Than The Competition? 08

How do You Develop Customizations? 09

Do You go Over Budget During Implementations? If so, How Often? 10

How Does The Size of Your Company Influence Your Services? 11

About Us 12
1.
What
World-Class Software Solutions

Makes Your
Implementation
Process Successful?

Even though business management systems have transitioned to be more intuitive

and user-friendly over the years, implementations are still tricky. You need a partner
that can understand your business objectives and requirements and apply the
software functionality to improve processes and profits. Ideally, you want to choose a
partner who can demonstrate they successfully completed implementations many
times over.

Define the process

1
Your partner should be able to describe with documentation all the phases, deliverables and
expected outcomes of their implantation process. They should address how they approach the
following:
• Requirements gathering and analysis
• Development and configuration
• Customizations and integrations
• Solution design
• Deployment and training
• Post-production support

Discuss potential challenges

2
Every project hits bumps in the road and your partner should be detailed in how they will overcome
the obstacles that arise. Whether it is an undiscovered requirement or an employee resisting
change, experienced partners should be upfront about specific issues that may arise and how they
will handle them when they happen.

Check out references

3
It is important to check references. The partners you are speaking to should not have any issue
providing you with names or contact info for previous customers. You should call and email those
references and ask them any questions or concerns you may have.

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 World-Class Software Solutions

2.
How
Can Your
Company Contribute
to Project Success?

A mistake some companies make is thinking their ERP implementation partner

will come in and do all the work for them. To get the most value from an ERP
implementation, everyone in the organization should be involved in the project
and have a clear understanding of what is going to happen.

Executive leadership
1
A well-planned and executed ERP implementation will support the long-term goals of your
business. The executive team can set a tone of cooperation and shared responsibility. Each
department should understand how the system will impact and improve their business
processes and productivity.

Reduce fear factors

2
An experienced partner will suggest a proactive communication plan to help alleviate fears
and highlight positive outcomes.

Give employees time to be successful

3
One of the most common challenges during an ERP implementation comes when employees
are asked to do their project-related work in addition to their full-time job. Stressed out,
overworked, anxious people are not going to be able to give their best.

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 World-Class Software Solutions

3.
What
is your approach
to change
management and training?

Prepare for resistance

1
People are inherently averse to change. Setting up
regular lines of communication should begin before
the implementation. Start talking about the change
before it happens, so that everyone feels included in
the process.

Take a phased approach

2
Working with your partner you can determine your
priorities and tackle the most important problems
first. Discuss with your partner whether the project
can be broken into smaller phases to minimize
disruption.

Training time
3
Your training plan should include different learning
styles to ensure no worker is left behind. On-demand
training provides unlimited training opportunities, but
some employees will need more hand-holding.

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 World-Class Software Solutions

4.
How
will we define
and measure success?

Before taking on an ERP implementation, your organization should clearly

define the desired outcomes. From the outset, your partner should be
laser-focused on how the ERP system will help you achieve those objectives.

Clearly define success metrics

KPIs should be monitored throughout your ERP implementation, but even more importantly,
they should provide ongoing feedback on company progress. A few examples of goals and
associated metrics include:

Improve Increase
Customer Sales
Experience Performance

• Customer ratings • Average sale

• Repeat customers • Percent of lost sales
• Call response time • Average margin per sale

Your partner should be familiar with those and provide guidance to establish the metrics that
are critical for you to monitor.

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 World-Class Software Solutions

5.
What Makes
Your Company
More Qualified Than
The Competition?

Finding the right partner to work with can be as important as finding the right
solution to meet your organization’s unique requirements.

Industry expertise
1
Most of the partners you talk to will likely have an in-depth understanding of the software, but
their knowledge of your industry is equally important. A partner with expertise in your
industry has gained insight into best practices that other organizations use.

Certifications
2
The level of vendor certification (gold, silver) can indicate how closely the partner is aligned
with the software vendor. Higher- level partners often have faster access to support from the
vendor’s technical experts.
Technical industry and functional certifications held by the people who will work on your
project indicate expertise and a commitment to learning.

A trusted advisor
3
Ask your partner, and talk to their references about the long-term relationships they have
with clients. As a trusted advisor, your partner can help you take full advantage of your
technology now and into the future.

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 World-Class Software Solutions

6. Standard ERP functionality is

designed to support the most

How
common business processes. But
most organization have unique
processes and requirements that
aren’t standard. Your partner
should be ready to talk about the

do You Develop potential for customizations and

how you will work together to find
the best solution.
Customizations?

Determine the best course of action

Your partner should have a plan for how you
will evaluate options and choose the best
course of action. Essential questions to ask
include:

• Is there an ISV solution that will solve this

issue rather than a customization?

• Will the customization cause us any issue

during upgrades or new version releases?

• Would it be better to change our traditional

business process for this situation rather than
create a customization?

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 World-Class Software Solutions

7.
Do You There are many reasons that a project can go
over budget. There are projects where
unknown issues come up, like an unexpected

go Over Budget business process or integration requirement

that can only be solved by a customization.
Your partner should be able to tell you how
During Implementations? often their projects go over budget and what
they do when it does happen.
If so, How Often?

Established process and clear project plan

1
Your partner should have a well-documented implementation process that clearly lays out how the project
will be managed. When your budget is set, a timetable and project plan should provide guidance.

Active project management

2
Your partner should be communicating regularly and actively with your project team, providing regular
updates on project progress and any potential challenges to on-time, on-budget completion.

Change orders
3
There may be situations during your project that requires a change order, which is a documented,
well-defined addition to the original plan. Your partner should be ready to explain how that process will work
if the need arises.

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 World-Class Software Solutions

8.
How Does
The Size of Your
Company Influence
Your Services?
The size of your implementation partner’s organization may have a significant impact
on how your project is managed. A larger firm may have a wider breadth of consulting
resources to draw from. A smaller, local or industry focused professional team may not
have the technical expertise for complexities that arise.

Experience counts
1
Find out if the project team has previously worked for other companies on similar projects. Your partner
shouldn’t be hesitant to let you know what some of the projects they led were and their outcome.

A deep bench
2
A larger organization is likely to promote the deep bench of consultants they can bring to your project. This
can be especially helpful if your project is on a fast track or is an “out-of-the-box” implementation.
Additionally, these larger organizations can draw upon resources with other technical skills should the need
arise.

Commitment to training
3
Ask prospective partners about the training and professional development programs they have in place for
employees.

Finding the best partner to help you make the right choices before starting your ERP implementation will
save you time, headaches and money. By asking the tough questions, you can uncover the strengths and
weaknesses of the potential partners you evaluate. We at Chetu are committed to bring you the best
development, integration and implementation services for your future ERP solutions. Take time to explore
the full range of features and services available through Chetu today.

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World-Class Software Solutions

ABOUT US
Founded in 2000, Chetu is a global provider of software development
solutions and support services. Chetu's specialized technology and
industry experts serve startups, SMBs, and Fortune 5000 companies
with an unparalleled software delivery model suited to the needs of
the client. Chetu's one-stop-shop model spans the entire software
technology spectrum. Headquartered in Plantation, Florida, Chetu
has fourteen locations throughout the U.S. and abroad, and nearly
1,800 software experts worldwide.

We are here to provide you with more information, answer

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