Abstract
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is packaged software, and the accompanying set of best practices designed to integrate and serve different departments’ needs, and to automate a corporation’s business functions and processes on a single management system, database, and interface. ERP allows business to operate in a real-time, more effective and responsive manner and can facilitate better identification, storage, analysis, reuse and distribution of a company’s business intelligence (e.g., performance, productivity, customer satisfaction, availability, inventory management, communication). SAP, Oracle, and PeopleSoft are the top three ERP software vendors. ERP software installation and popularity have grown over the past decade, especially in the late 1990s (it was once thought to be the panacea for Y2K problem). The motivations for ERP use are internal business integration, best business practices, competitive advantage, and operational cost reduction. Following the market trend, a large number of ERP implementation projects were conducted, especially by large enterprises. However, multi-million dollar ERP implementation projects are not without problems. In some companies, implementation takes much longer and requires a larger budget than expected, and a large number of modifications and configurations to the software are necessary. Some businesses have to change their existing processes to adapt to the software, and thus have to deal with significant internal resistance and change management. A few companies have even been bankrupted by unsuccessful ERP implementation projects.