Strategic Issues at NIBCO

Although all of above factors played very important role in the success of ERP implementation, the most important one should be the clear understanding of its strategic goal. Cisco did correctly to define themselves and realize the current problem and make plan

Pros. An ERP system is a necessary investment for Riordan because it integrates all departments and their respective functions across the organization into a single IT system (UMaine, 2009). There are three main benefits of ERP systems that directly address problems with Riordan’s operations. One benefit is a logical solution to a mess of incompatible applications currently in use by the organization. ERP also allows global access and sharing of organizational data as well. Additionally, implementing an ERP system will help the organization bypass the difficulties and expenses of replacing legacy systems (UMaine, 2009). An analysis of Riordan’s current issues with its Finance

NIBCO is a pipe and valve manufacturing company headquartered in Indiana with ten plants and three distribution centers. NIBCO wanted their business processes to be strategically improved in order for their manufacturing facilities and distribution centers to meet their customer’s requirements (Brown, DeHayes, Hoffer, Martin, & Perkins, 2012). There were multiple systems being utilized within NIBCO and none of the systems had the ability to communicate with each other which created duplicative and wasteful resource efforts. NIBCO’s decision to implement an ERP system was to improve their information systems. Beutler (as cited in Brown et al., 2012) stated that the consulting group reported to NIBCO “to look at integration as a major

Kumar, P. (2010). Successful implementation of ERP in a large organization International journal of engineering science and technology. Vol. 2(7), 3218-3224. Retrieved from http://www.ijest.info/docs/IJEST10-02-07-151.pdf

Cisco Systems, Inc.: Implementing ERP [HBR case #699022] Reviews Cisco System's approach to implementing Oracle's Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software product. This case chronologically reviews the diverse, critical success factors and obstacles facing Cisco during its implementation. Cisco faced the need for information systems replacement based on its significant growth potential and its reliance on failing legacy systems. The discussion focuses on where management was particularly savvy in contrast to where it was the beneficiary of good fortune.

Muscatello, Small, and Chen (2003) state that ERP systems, when they are implemented effectively, can bring impressive strategic, operational and information-related benefits to those firms that adopt them. However, in such situations, a failure in implementation might bring about the financial collapse of the firm. They further state that in the modern world, most of the information about the failures and successes are based on reports that are made concerning ERP implementation in big manufacturing and service organizations. However, it is stated that those who sell ERP systems are now steadily turning their marketing sights on small and medium-sized manufacturers. It is because of this that Muscatello et al state that researchers have been given the opportunity to gather, analyze and disseminate information that will help these firms to

NIBCO could not afford for their ERP implementation to be delayed or to significantly exceed budget since the existing information systems were encountering regular downtime (Brown, DeHaynes, Hoffer, Martin, & Perkins, 2012). Also, since all other major business initiatives, except the distribution center consolidation, were placed on hold; delays might impact the business’ ability to maintain customer satisfaction. With nearly 200 people being involved in the project, it was critical for the ERP installation to move quickly and to return those personal to necessary positions within the

Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (MSCC) faced many challenges that needed to be overcome before the business can effectively run. First, MSCC needs a reliable ERP system in place that will meet the needs of the business (Brown, DeHayes, Hoffer, Martin & Perkins, 2012). An ERP system can include multiple functional areas, and be catered to business needs. ERP would take all MSCC’s applications and software and convert them into one program that would be identical in every department. Further, an integrated ERP system can improve Supply Chain Management, data accessibility, and it can standardize business processes, to name a few. Furthermore, the system can provide a competitive advantage, and can be utilized to manage and process information from every department within the company. In addition, the system can store all the information into one database, allowing the business an eagle eye view of how their systems are operating (Aladwani,

ERP implementation is unlikely experience that any company will have. It has to be planned prepared and stimulated from the entire stakeholder otherwise it will sunk the millions of dollar and it drain the companies market. In case of Nestle USA, it confronted a lot of difficulties due to improper implementation plan yet be able to recover as a successful project. Many organisations have gone through the similar situation that there are plenty of lesson to be learned. We can conclude that ERP implementation needs big consideration on business requirement, business process reengineering, stakeholder’s involvement, hardware and software and other units.

After reading the case study, there were many conditions which I think made the ERP implementation desirable for Bombardier Aerospace. As quoted in the case study by a senior project manager that ‘Organization has become a textbook silo organization’ because of its acquisition strategy. This particular quote is one of the desirable reasons as whenever Bombardier Aerospace acquired any company they adopted the data, process and the systems of each company and hence it was just like a textbook silo. The cost of information system ownership increased due to the increased number of systems. There were process delays, sequential

In 1994, after a significant strategic planning effort took place, NIBCO Inc., decided to implement a plan to, “Go Live” with a new SAP program. (Brown, Dehayes, Hoffer, Martin & Perkins. 2012) The reasons behind NIBCO’s decision to implement and ERP System are those that are familiar to other companies who have made the same decision. One of the key conclusions from the strategic planning that led to the ERP implementation was that the organization could not prosper with its current information systems. (Brown, Dehayes, Hoffer, Martin & Perkins. 2012) They systems that they were currently using had evolved into a patchwork of legacy systems and reporting tools that could not talk to

In the years following the formal introduction Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in the early 1990s, there have been few ERP implementations that have been managed successfully, including those introduced by large corporations. Although much capital is usually put into ERP implementation, lack of key business practices has prevented extensive success. This paper reviews failed ERP implementations in three large organizations. It analyzes the reasons for the failures as well as the lessons to be learned so other organizations can avoid similar scenarios.

By using ERP in an organization not only deals with the Business and IT related issues but also focuses on other aspects like customer services, inventories, production, web portals..etc. But as we are aligning IT with Business, our main objective is through machines which drives the business to new level.

In this paper, I will identify whether the technological dilemmas dealt by companies dealing with ERP systems are valid today. Some of the non-technical challenges discussed “Putting the Enterprise into the Enterprise system” mentioned in the article were the lack of planning when it came to putting the right processes to fit the ERP system, implementing ERP system to have department data communicate with each other, and having a system that was uniform throughout but met the needs for regions of those large corporations.

Communicating between departments is extremely important for many businesses regardless if they are small startup or a fortune 500 company. Different forms of Software are key to this communication. A very specific system that has proven to do this the best is Enterprise Resource Planning, also known as ERP. Enterprise Resource Planning Systems integrate business management along with technology. There are many different areas and functions of an ERP system that include; Manufacturing, Finance, Human Resources, Accounts Payable, and Accounts Receivable. ERP systems have been known to save organizations time and money in many different ways. Although ERP systems have helped businesses integrate their multiple systems into one system there are also many disadvantages of ERP systems that businesses must be known before purchasing.