{"id":8819,"date":"2014-02-13T11:33:49","date_gmt":"2014-02-13T11:33:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eu.syspro.com\/blog\/executive-buy-in-is-critical-part-one\/"},"modified":"2025-03-24T12:09:57","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T10:09:57","slug":"executive-buy-in-is-critical-part-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eu.syspro.com\/blog\/owning-or-running-erp\/executive-buy-in-is-critical-part-one\/","title":{"rendered":"Executive buy-in is critical – Part One"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

While on vacation recently, I visited an interesting restaurant with a large group of relatives. At the table a few clearly marked buttons were provided to request waiters to bring more water, clear used utensils, bring the bill, etc. I had never seen this back home in Vancouver. What a great idea to improve efficiency!<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

However, the servers didn\u2019t really pay much attention to the system, so we had to keep flagging them down manually. This was difficult (and frustrating) because we were inside our own semi-private room. Why didn\u2019t the system work? Because there was no top-down commitment or clear direction from upper management, so each server just did his or her own thing.<\/p>\n

Implementing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)<\/a> software is very similar. Without executive buy-in and leadership, the implementation will fail and you will not derive full value from the system. In fact, lack of top management support is one of the leading causes of application erosion<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I experienced this when I was an ERP user. When I was first hired as a junior (who was unfamiliar with ERP) I was never given the impression that it was mandatory to use the system. Instead it seemed more important to just get my job done, regardless of whether I used the system or not. If I could figure out how to use the system to add value to my efforts \u2013 that was a bonus but not mandatory.<\/p>\n

As you can imagine, most people didn\u2019t use the ERP system much. They weren\u2019t lazy or obstinate; they were just very busy, and used to the old ways of doing things. Human nature is that no one really wants to take the extra effort to learn a new system, especially if they can\u2019t see the big picture benefits of it. People\u2019s inherent resistance to change automatically opts for the tried and tested. Why rock the boat?<\/p>\n

A simple example serves to illustrate this principle. I realized we needed forecast figures from Sales to drive production. Without that production had to rely on guessing to determine production targets. However, I did not have the authority to tell the VP Sales myself that his staff needed to provide forecasts to Production in future. His department viewed this as an unnecessary burden. Only when senior management realized that better forecasts would lead to better customer service (and increased profits), were the Sales Department instructed to provide forecasts.<\/p>\n

I have also seen it as an implementer for SYSPRO<\/a> in Canada. I soon realized that one finds two kinds of users:<\/p>\n