What led us to perform a needs analysis is that the ERP we are currently on is no longer being supported by the vendor, and the help they’ve been offering has been anything but good. We were going to sign a contract to update with them, but they failed to make a few super key modifications, leading us to just end the contract. As a result, we needed to start looking elsewhere for solutions and that’s when we found ERP Advisors Group.
We went live with our current ERP in 2005 and we did it completely on our own. Overall, it went well, and we didn't have to shut down which was a big win for us, but it definitely still could have been better. Even then, it was a daunting task and our President realized that this time around we didn’t have the bandwidth to take the project on alone. We just don’t have anyone with the amount of required time available to run the project. Our previous IT guy was very good at coding and customized a lot of the back-end processes, but now there really is no one on our team who could do that without a ton of help. When I was told that I was going to be the project manager I immediately knew I would need a partner for our ERP efforts and that was when we brought EAG on board.
I think ERP Advisors Group works very well as a team. I’ve spent a lot of time with them, and I could just sit back and watch them work. They did a great job interviewing people. We’ve done a lot of interviews as well and EAG did a really, really good job. Also, the deck we got with their findings was really great as well and we used it to help develop our RFI and move forward in the process. I’m glad we had ERP Advisors Group to help us with this phase of our project.
Our president was heavily involved in our last ERP upgrade. As the Project Manager for our new ERP project, when I suggested engaging with a consulting firm he immediately agreed. Having a company that knows the ins and outs could help us navigate the process.
One of our primary objectives with the new software was to have the ability to upgrade. Our current ERP system has undergone numerous customizations, making upgrades nearly impossible.
Overall, we had a clear understanding of what to expect. The initial shortlist of options provided by Shawn and Carly was extremely helpful. I appreciated the way ERP Advisors Group organized the demos. Conducting mini demos allowed us to quickly narrow the selections, saving us from lengthy and unnecessary presentations. Our core team found the demo process enjoyable. Ultimately, we chose a solution we were already familiar with, but it was reassuring to have an expert confirm our decision.
The contract negotiation phase was particularly beneficial. Shawn's extensive experience in this area was evident, and we were very grateful for his assistance. Shawn's proficiency and experience were crucial to our success, we would not have successfully negotiated the terms we did without him.
I highly recommend ERP Advisors Group. Their specialization in this field is evident. I would not hesitate to recommend them again.
