A report by Panorama Consulting sought to reveal trends and common implementation occurrences for enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform deployment in 2015. The firm studied 562 participants with experience implementing ERP systems at their enterprises. Some of the key findings were that many deployments came in under budget, yet there was a significant incidence of implementation failure. This reiterates the importance of selecting a partner with qualified ERP specialists to guide enterprises through the process of adoption.

Panorama conducts this study annually and 2015 marks the highest participation rate of manufacturing decision makers.

"Manufacturing still represents the most common industry among respondents," explains the study. "This may be a result of an increasing number of vendors incorporating more robust manufacturing functionality into their software. Logistics, production planning, inventory management and production functionality continue to be significant aspects of vendor software roadmaps."

ERP platforms are uniquely suited to meet the needs of manufacturing operations of many different sizes. At any given time, executives in manufacturing must manage their workforce, inventory, orders, communications, production and shipment. With so many different balls in the air, a streamlined solution for resource planning helps remove opportunity for human error and automates processes that have historically been completed manually.

One correlation the study presents is the rise in ERP deployment failures and the decreased reliance on ERP consultants. As enterprises become less reliant on experts to deploy systems, the rate of failure is bound to increase.

"The data indicate that the same organizations that are struggling with budget and timeline overages are also unlikely to seek guidance from ERP consultants," says the study. "Since last year, there has been a decrease in the percentage of respondents who engaged ERP consultants. Of those that do choose to work with ERP consultants, the nature of the organization's engagement with consultants has shifted."

Particularly when ERP solutions are customized to specific business models, the stakes for failure rise. With the guidance of qualified and experienced ERP specialists, enterprises can feel confident in the quality of their implementation.

However, a higher percentage of respondents to the survey said they've been able to recoup the costs of their ERP deployment. In 2014, 27 percent said they had not yet reached ROI whereas in 2015, only 11 percent said they were still waiting for a financial return. Sixty-two percent of those who had recouped costs said it was done within the first three years of implementation.

At Accent Software, we've guided enterprises through the selection, deployment and maintenance of ERP platforms that streamline operations. Contact us today to learn more about how business management software can take your enterprise to the next level.