Thesis: Critical success factors of ERP system in SMEs

Sample Thesis Paper

Strategic justification of ERP

The experiences of the Irish SMEs suggest that the justification to implement ERP were more concentrated upon the customers, rather than acquiring some common ERP benefits cited in the existing literature. The systems implemented were more web-enabled and customer driven, which could have been replaced by some standard e-business packages that could be cheaper & easier to install. This also implies that either the strategic justification of implementing ERP in SMEs is not very clear or there is a high demand to provide a different ERP suite for SMEs which would focus more on the e-business applications and treat the internal operations of the company as secondary.

Consultants Vs Recruitment of IT staff

The debate over hiring external consultants for expertise during the project or investing in experienced IT personnel is critical during the implementation phase. The consultants could bring in their expertise and knowledge (Welti, 1999, p.139) and offer a short term solution to the firm’s needs whereas the recruitment of experienced IT staff months prior to the implementation stage could help in assessing the internal needs and provide long-term support during and after the project. However, the decision could be highly influenced by the cost of hiring IT personnels vs consultant and the level of technical knowledge which the firm possesses.

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