Taking an ERP program 18 months behind schedule to go-live in six months
A large manufacturer and distributor of food-industry packaging was a year and a half past its ERP deployment date, with major cost overruns, several third-party vendors and no one on the client side running the project. We audited the program, took over client-side project management, and had the business live on the new ERP within six months.
- Client
- Large manufacturer and distributor of paper, plastic and aluminum packaging for the food industry
- Scope
- Large-scale ERP deployment involving multiple third-party vendors and applications
- Our role
- Project audit, project governance, client-side project management, steering committee leadership and organizational change management
- Follow-on
- Retained for an additional year for PMO and CIO Advisory
A large, multi-vendor deployment with no one steering it
The client had committed to a large-scale ERP deployment that depended on several third-party vendors working in step. Eighteen months after the planned deployment date, the system still was not live and costs were well beyond budget.
The business processes the system was meant to support had never been defined, and no one on the client side owned the project. When we arrived, the program was facing:
- A deployment 1½ years past its target date
- Major cost overruns
- Multiple third-party vendors without a single point of coordination
- Business processes that had not been defined
- No project management on the client side
- Weak communication and no PMO structure
What we put in place
Project audit
An independent review of where the program actually stood, giving leadership an honest baseline to make decisions from.
Project governance
A governance structure with clear ownership, decision-making and escalation, so the program was steered rather than left to drift.
Client-side project management
We took over project management on the client’s behalf, giving the business one accountable lead across its own teams and its vendors.
Project and steering updates
We led all project status updates and steering committee updates, so leadership saw a single, consistent picture of progress and risk.
Organizational change management
We led change management activities to prepare the business for the new system and the new ways of working it required.
Live in six months, and a longer partnership
ERP go-live
The client went live on its ERP within six months of our engagement.
Third-party applications resolved
Every outstanding third-party application issue was resolved.
Ongoing PMO
The client retained us for an additional year to run its PMO activities.
CIO Advisory
We continued as a trusted advisor to IT leadership after go-live.
Is your program off track?
We bring named senior consultants who take ownership of the plan, the vendors and the steering conversation, and get stalled programs to go-live. Let’s talk about where yours stands.