1.What does an ERP implementation consultant do?
ERP implementation consultant? Is it a group that takes ERP implementation as its own responsibility and invests a lot of human and financial resources to achieve this goal? . They are proficient in ERP theory and the use of ERP software, and skillfully use the project implementation methodology, which can effectively deal with various problems in the implementation process. They are experts in enterprise management, and many people have rich experience in implementing different ERP projects in different industries, and they can be handy at all stages of project implementation.
ERP implementation consultant? Responsible for all stages of project implementation, ensure that the required operations are completed within the specified time and according to the required quality level, and ensure that the personnel who must participate can really participate efficiently. In order to realize their promises, they should turn their skills and methods into practical work plans? Methods should be refined to tasks and implemented to specific individuals. The schedule of each stage and task should also be determined in order to finalize the project plan. Consultants bring extra value to the project, and their practical experience has benefited the company a lot. They know what to do and what not to do, so as to avoid it. A mistake? Is that correct? How to implement it? .
Someone summed up the contents of ERP consultation and implementation like this? That is, the work of the implementation consultant:
1. According to the internal and external environment and resources of the enterprise, analyze the feasibility of establishing ERP system in the enterprise and scientifically formulate the strategic objectives of ERP projects;
2. Determine the enterprise's demand for ERP, including the requirements of function, time and efficiency;
3. Analyze the gap between the current situation of enterprise management and the ERP system implemented, and make plans for business process reengineering and management improvement. In the process of implementation, the consultant should diagnose the enterprise management, find out the gap, and put forward the business process reengineering scheme, management business standards and data preparation scheme; Implemented by the enterprise.
4. Consulting training. The implementation of ERP project needs not only the improvement of managers' knowledge and ability, but also the change of managers' attitude and behavior. And then what? Attitude? 、? Knowledge? 、? Ability? 、? Action? This should be promoted by training executive consultants.
As an ERP implementation consultant, we should not only understand management, ERP software and implementation methodology, but also master some methods of doing things. Good working methods can help consultants gain the trust of customers and solve problems quickly during the project.
Second, ERP implementation consultation should be done well.
1. Establish and share reputation.
Accurately position yourself and actively establish your credibility. Consider the problem from two angles: one is to think about industry competition and company operation from the perspective of senior managers, and the other is to think about data processing such as documents, reports and interfaces from a professional and meticulous perspective. When you fully demonstrate your professional standards and play your role in these issues, your reputation will naturally be established.
At the same time, we should pay attention to sharing reputation with customers. The purpose of establishing reputation is to complete the task better and faster, rather than competing with customers for project control, and comparing who has contributed more to the project and who is better. Therefore, don't keep the honor for yourself, but sharing the honor with colleagues on the client can build credibility.
2. Build customer confidence
Even if there has been cooperation or contact before, even if the customer has signed the bill because of you, at the beginning of the ERP project, the customer will re-check your confidence and ability to ensure that they have chosen you correctly. Therefore, every time you meet a customer, you should be fully prepared and show enough agility and enthusiasm. Active communication with customers is very helpful to build confidence. At the same time, setting some simple goals at the beginning of the project and then completing them in time and efficiently can make customers trust you faster. What is a very effective way to build confidence early in the project? Achieve certain results quickly and successfully or provide additional value.
3. Add value to customers.
Strive to exceed customers' expectations and add value to customers. I don't advocate providing free services to customers, but I suggest that you provide additional benefits to customers through reasonable work or help that may exceed your promise. It is best to have content that is very valuable to customers and does not increase your workload. For example, when completing the project plan with the customer's project manager, help him understand the project more deeply by the way; Or, provide some industry reference materials during training.
4. Manage time effectively
Time is the commodity of the company and the property of the ERP implementation consultant. Time is also the scarcest resource in the world, so it must be managed effectively. This requires two most important skills:
(1) Determine the priority of work, and then work according to the established priority; (2) Allocate enough time for the current established work.
5. Stimulate customers to think
Read more and ask more questions to inspire customers to think for themselves.
After talking for so long and writing such a long document, the customer turned a deaf ear and read it but didn't see it. Why? When customers don't notice the problem and use their brains to think, duck stuffing? It's hard. You can do better if you ask customers' opinions first and find out their views on this problem. Don't tell him in a hurry? Correct answer? When customers really start thinking, they will chase you for answers.
6. Encourage the expression of ideas.
When people start to meditate, you should consider feedback. How do I know my views on the problem? You know, not everyone is willing to take the risk? Stupid? 、? Unrealistic? The risk of sharing their views. Or do you want to ask questions? What? Is the batter out? Start with open-ended questions to expand the customer's thinking, and then use directional questions to lock the answer? Is it? Test your understanding of the information guided by open-ended questions.
Attention, questions must be sincere, as long as you answer, you should be grateful. Once you inadvertently show contempt for the answer, it is equivalent to blocking the customer's mouth. Another noteworthy skill is that whether the answer is correct or not, your silence can encourage customers to continue to talk about this topic in depth.
7, grasp the suggestion way
When giving advice to customers, you must use appropriate methods, and don't let customers think that you are arrogant or nosy. Whether the method is appropriate or not will determine the effect (at least efficiency) of ERP project in this link. The following suggestions may help you:
? It is very valuable to get feedback from the other party before presenting relevant suggestions. In this case, you don't have to express your proposal in a hopeful way: for example? What is the suggested plan we have determined? . ? Or,? In another client's project, we made such a suggestion. Discussing your ideas with others will also provide useful information to help you sort out or modify your suggestions. ?
Attention? In an organization, many people have a say? No? . Although some of them have no real power, they can stop the situation. So, remember, you should not only convince those who can make things happen, but also convince those who can refuse suggestions. ?
8. Speak with experience
In the process of ERP project implementation, there may be quite a few problems between the implementation consultant and the customer that cannot be achieved? Get along? . Customers may have questions about timetable, personnel arrangement, training methods, coding system, etc. The best way to solve the puzzle is to speak with experience and let customers know what is the best way for conventional software and enterprises of this industry and scale. Pay attention to the strength comparison between you and your customers: your suggestion has been proved by (many) facts. What do your customers think? This is just an idea!
? You must be clear in your heart that ERP is a brand-new field for customers, and customers hope to get some protection when facing such an expensive and risky scheme. Letting customers know that your suggestions have been well implemented in other customers' plans can increase the weight of your suggestions. ?
9. Actively promote good news
Ever heard of it? Good things don't go out, bad things spread thousands of miles? Really? Methods 9 and 10 are just to solve this problem.
Every successful news is not just responsible? Inform? And then what? Celebrate? You must use it to strengthen everyone's confidence and make every good news become the driving force and horn of the next stage of the task. How to make good news spread thousands of miles? Of course, we can communicate through formal meetings, stage progress checks, project briefings, etc. , but you can also communicate with ERP project team members or other influential employees in the enterprise? Whatever. Make it clear.
The implementation consultant should carefully plan the transmission mode of information and ensure its correctness through various channels. How's it going? What's the effect? And other similar questions to convey a satisfactory answer. At this point, the interests of the consultant and the client's project team are completely consistent. Customers also want colleagues to know, understand and believe that the project is progressing smoothly. I hope everyone thinks that what the project team has done is meaningful and fruitful.
10, actively respond to bad news
When something bad inevitably happens, the first thing the implementation consultant should do is to analyze the importance of the problem. If you can make up for it through your own efforts, it is best not to disturb customers. Sneak into the village, don't want to shoot? To avoid weakening the confidence of ERP project supporters. If the problem is not that simple, then? It's best to tell the customer before the problem becomes a crisis. The ideal situation is to meet the customer in person, and clearly state all relevant problems and propose your solutions? . Generally speaking, no matter how they complain, members of the ERP project team will try their best to reduce their influence on you and gain the trust of other colleagues.
So the hint of bad news is based on the judgment of importance. Small problems block the news and don't let it develop into bad news. Messages that should not be blocked should be fully communicated within the project team to minimize the impact.
1 1, solve the problem quickly.
Whether it is an implementation consultant or a customer, there will inevitably be some deviations in the understanding of ERP, project schedule and resource scheduling, personal personality and work habits, mutual trust and work cooperation. After all, no one is perfect and things are not static. Once there is a deviation between the project and the project team, it is necessary to actively deal with the problem, which is one of the key standards for testing experts and one of the key ways to deal with customer relations. Some experts (mostly inexperienced consultants) don't want to admit that there are problems that they can't solve, but it's better to admit them before they deteriorate into a crisis and ask customers or others in the company for help.
Third, what should be paid attention to in ERP consulting work?
1, don't tell customers easily? No?
When the customer asks a question, the consultant should judge whether it belongs to the consultant's implementation. If it is a consultant's execution and you are not clear about it, you should record the problem, explain it clearly to the customer, and go back to consult a senior consultant to give an answer. If the problem does not belong to erp, for example, if the customer asks whether the erp system can automatically arrange orders and workshop plans according to mrp's ability, it is actually impossible, which belongs to artificial intelligence. At this time, he should explain clearly to the customer.
2. Never belittle others.
As an ERP implementation consultant, criticizing and accusing your colleagues, customers and competitors will not help your reputation. You can't show it to over-committed sales representatives, developers who always have bugs, and other implementation consultants who haven't completed their tasks in front of anyone? Helpless? 、? Complain Hate it? . If the customer's complaints about your colleagues are reasonable, or you are angry at your colleagues' problems, you must never stay out of it. You should and can only admit it first, and then deal with the complaint in time, instead of belittling your colleagues, even if you agree.
3. Communication skills
Pay attention to your image and body language. Customers should pay attention to each other when they speak. Don't grab words and do some bad things.
When you start talking about a project, you should understand the industry characteristics of the other company and the position and education of the negotiators in the enterprise. When we feel that the other party's management knowledge and practical experience exceed our own, we should be modest, express some opinions at the critical moment and lead the topic to the software. When we feel that the other party's management knowledge is not as good as our own, we should talk to the other party about management problems, software to solve problems, and not about things that the system can't solve.
4. Don't pursue theory? Perfect?
To define the task? What we need is a simple and feasible solution, not a theoretical one? Perfect? .
5. Management issues
Due to management confusion, data collection is not timely. At this time, the implementation consultant can put forward some management plans, and the specific implementation consultant should not participate, and the enterprise should implement it itself.
Classification: ERP theory and implementation methods
I have implemented several ORACLE HRMS projects, so it may not be systematic to share some experiences and ideas during my own implementation:
Overall: 1. The implementation of the system is to deal with people, especially the human resources system. It is necessary and inevitable to have a good relationship with them? Whether the system is good or not and whether it can be used is all made by people and said by people. As an information tool and data warehouse, the entry and maintenance of a large number of basic data are done manually, and their support and cooperation are necessary. 2, do not understand the needs, human resources management, which unit is similar, from a technical point of view, that is to say, as long as you follow the implementation of a project, you will be able to do another project independently. You don't have to worry about that. As for business, there is not much foreign investment in large enterprises, small enterprises and state-owned enterprises, that is, statements and management focus on the difference between content and fineness. The general understanding of existing business rules and overall objectives is similar? Be aware that. 3. The system really starts the implementation stage and makes detailed plans. The more detailed the plan, the easier the work will be, and then it will be carried out step by step. Of course, careful planning also means that the greater the possibility of adjusting the plan, as long as it is controlled within the overall progress range and the key points can be grasped. There is no need to urge users frequently because of some dispensable and light processes or steps. After all, everyone should be considerate of each other. Some projects I do have strict process control. In fact, the realization of the system is for users, so we must grasp this ultimate goal. As for the documentation and UAT test, I have mastered it almost. You don't really expect users to test the function, security and stability of the system for you during UAT, do you? Demand analysis stage: 4. According to all your knowledge, including business knowledge and system functions, make a list of requirements as much as possible and document the questions to be asked. The requirements should be detailed and the questions should be asked in place. You can choose between them through the survey results. For large enterprises and group enterprises, we should refer to the opinions at the company level. But it is more necessary to interview the specific business personnel of grass-roots units. After all, the system is mainly used by them, and the operability of ORACLE itself has certain limitations. Communicating with them more will help to eliminate the view that this system serves the group. Sometimes large-scale projects, with many grassroots users, cannot be simply filled in. Find some people who are proficient in business and communicate face to face and one by one. In addition, their views on some issues also need to be solved systematically. For the group, they are more concerned about the report, and they need that set of personnel indicators. They just gave a general framework and goals, but they couldn't dig out more things. The specific things are still done by the following people. In addition, in the stage of requirements analysis, there are often demonstrations of system prototypes. No matter how you prepare this presentation, it will be even worse, and there will be conflicts between business people. This is more important to communicate with key business personnel. This stage is not to discuss what the system looks like, but to discuss how the future business should be realized. Don't fall into the quarrel about the boring problems that can't be solved immediately, such as system interface, some special functions, employee coding, etc. Solution stage: 5. After sorting out the requirements analysis, you can consider the solution. That is how to realize the system in the future. For human resources, it should be relatively simple. But we should also carefully consider the choice of demand. Some requirements are contradictory, and some requirements are existing working modes. There are better alternatives in ORACLE standard functions, some of which are reasonable, but ORACLE standard functions cannot be realized. These should be explained to the people in the human resources department and finally confirmed by the users. Don't be busy completing this document, which is very important for the document itself, but it is also the most worthy of continuous discussion and improvement. Don't think that configuring the system according to this document can be a job. There are many variables before users actually use this system. It is better to change it early than late. Therefore, according to their own understanding of the business and system, carefully explain to users. How? Why are you doing this? Give priority to scalability, so that users feel that you are really thinking about their problems, rather than trying to start your own business based on the experience of the last project. This is the key. Only when you fully understand * * * can you deliver this document for signature confirmation. System configuration stage: 6. Trust Oracle Bone Inscriptions, there is nothing that Oracle Bone Inscriptions HRMS can't do, only what you won't do, or what you won't do for the time being. It's just a detour at best. Don't listen to the concepts introduced by Oracle Bone Inscriptions sales staff or technical support staff or PPT. As long as you can use the function or valuable function, you can test it yourself to know what is in it and what you can do when you realize it. Oracle Bone Inscriptions is strong and open. So, I'm not afraid I can't do it, I just care about how to do it. Don't be afraid of customization. Without customization, Oracle Bone Inscriptions can't play any projects, but every customization should be carefully demonstrated. Is it reasonable and efficient? Does the customer agree? Is there any promotion value and how to expand in the future? For customized development, in fact, an experienced consultant has a well-thought-out plan in the first two stages, so don't lament so much customization at this time. The standard functions of ORACLE itself are limited. Don't be afraid. It needs to be customized. Communicate with customers more and let them know that you have done a lot of work for them. Many companies strictly control customization, which can't be changed. It's better not to move. Actually, I don't quite agree with this way. The system is operated for users. Upgrade, version control, and technology transfer are all troublesome because you didn't do it well. This is much easier than optimizing an operation, so that several or even hundreds of business personnel press the Enter key less every time they enter salary data. Don't mistake other people's workload for workload? Respect for business people will get the same feedback. Of course, not everything is customized. This is not a Oracle Bone Inscriptions HRMS system. Know how to identify some unreasonable demands, communicate with users and gain their understanding and support. Customization is mainly written on it. As for the standard functions, they are basically value sets, flexfield, menus and the like, so I won't describe them much. Generally speaking, carefully consider the expansibility, convenience and security, and don't repeat it later because of your own arbitrariness; Do what you can think of. I don't know if there may be a problem, and then adjust it after the user mentions it. System testing stage: 7. Test it carefully. There is nothing wrong with the standard function. Customization needs to be cautious. If there is no manpower, it is ok to find key users. Don't wait for UAT. When UAT is completed, it will be officially launched. At that time, there will be new problems waiting for you to deal with You would rather do this part of the work solidly and leave the time for user training. Data acquisition stage: 8. This is usually in parallel with system configuration and system testing. No relaxation? The time spent on data collection is always the longest and the most annoying. A good data collection template is very important. In addition, for the data exported from the old system, even if the original system data is complete, the legitimacy of the data after entering the new system should be considered. Set the employee number first, not the serial number. Don't trust the user's ID number too much, especially if it comes from different sources, such as personnel and salary. I have never seen exactly the same. The inspection must be too detailed. It is better to do a good job in the early stage than to interrupt the work of key users frequently in the later stage. In addition, it is too troublesome to change user data without authorization in data verification and subsequent import. At least, record it first and let them confirm it before importing it into the system. Operation and maintenance support stage: 9: Oracle HR joined the new concept of effective date. Moreover, the organization, personnel type, salary and dismissal are all integrated, and they are not users with strong acceptance. If you do it yourself, you are sure to make some mistakes. At the beginning, you will often go to users and ask more questions. Don't just surf the internet and everything will be fine:) I haven't got the money yet. In addition, human resources projects can not be completed at once, and subsequent training, ability and performance are more troublesome, and there is no unified standard. Maintaining a good user relationship means maintaining your work:) I hope you can make friends after completing a project? 10: There is still a training stage, so I won't repeat it here for the time being;