Bad Data, Big Problems: Why Your ERP Deployment Could Be At Risk
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) migration is a transformative step for any organization. It promises streamlined processes, improved efficiency, and enhanced decision-making capabilities. However, achieving these benefits hinges on one crucial element: good data. Companies usually don't realize how bad their data quality is until they start the process of migrating the data. If your data is inaccurate, incomplete, or duplicative, your ERP project will likely be unsuccessful.
The Challenges of ERP Migration
ERP systems integrate various business functions into a unified system, requiring seamless communication between different departments. However, most organizations face the challenge of dealing with disparate data sources, inconsistent data formats, and outdated or redundant information. This is especially true for enterprises that grow by acquisition. Without first addressing the organization's data issues, the ERP migration process can be fraught with errors, leading to operational disruptions and financial losses, particularly if low-quality or incomplete data is migrated to the new ERP.
Common Data Challenges
For those organizations that have grown by acquisition or haven't previously attempted a data cleansing effort, the challenges become more complex. Here are some common data pitfalls to keep in mind:
| Lack of Normalized Naming Conventions | Each legacy business will likely have their own naming conventions for their suppliers and associated supplier parts. If a company normalizes supplier names across each disparate business, they will have a much better opportunity to manage supplier spend in the new ERP. |
| Varying Data Quality | Each legacy business area will have varying levels of data quality - some may be better and more complete than others. |
| Incomplete Data | If data is incomplete or missing, it will quickly become problematic once migrated to the new ERP. Organizations that have incomplete data attribution often suffer from a lack of item findability and inability to drive spend analytics and other reporting critical to business performance. |
| Disparate Data Sources | Most organizations store data in multiple systems, ranging from legacy databases and spreadsheets to other modern applications. Consolidating this data into a single, cohesive structure is essential for ERP functionality. Without consolidation, data silos can persist, undermining the ERP’s ability to provide a holistic view of business operations. |
| Proliferation of Duplicate Data | Data that has not been cleansed is often a hotbed for duplicates. Once component and material data has been cleaned up, it very often exposes duplicate parts that can be consolidated prior to the new ERP migration. Doing this will mitigate introducing unnecessary inventory in the new ERP. |
| Lack of a Corporate Data Standard | Organizations that do not pursue data standards will quickly find themselves buried in data errors, poor item findability, and declining customer satisfaction. Having a corporate standard for data ensures consistency and accuracy across all departments, which enhances decision-making and operational efficiency. It also facilitates seamless data integration and compliance with regulatory requirements, reducing the risk of errors and miscommunication. |
| Lack of Data Governance | If data isn't governed to a corporate standard, the organization will continue to experience challenges associated with inconsistent and incomplete data. Ultimately, an ERP deployment is the ideal time to tackle data cleansing and institute a governance program to put data standards and rules in place and drive adherence to them. |
The Way Forward
ERP deployments are significant undertakings that demand extensive coordination and alignment among all stakeholders to ensure successful implementation. These projects require meticulous planning and execution to adhere to tight project timelines and meet critical deadlines. The importance of the ERP systems in the business landscape cannot be overstated, as they centralize and streamline operations, enhance efficiency, and provide crucial insights for informed decision-making. Effective ERP deployment is essential for optimizing business processes and maintaining a competitive edge in the market. Underpinning that is the foundational data needed to drive a successful ERP program.
The challenges outlined above can be addressed through:
- Adopting a methodology for classifying and cleansing your data - this should include the normalization of naming conventions for consistency and overall data integrity
- Implementing data validation rules to identify and rectify errors and inconsistencies
- Data enrichment to drive completeness of attribution
- Mapping your data sources to identify and understand their relationships across the organization, allowing your team to identify areas of risk and opportunity across the organization
- Identification and removal of duplicate records and obsolete data
- Improving findability with complete and accurate supplier and parts data
- Proper spend analytics and reporting
- Establishment of a corporate data standards and governance workflows to ensure adherence to the new standards
- Stakeholder engagement, involving the employees who interact with the data regularly to understand common issues and how to tackle discrepancies
Conclusion
Data cleansing involves identifying and rectifying errors, removing duplicates, and ensuring consistency across datasets. If your starting data is messy and siloed, you team needs a solid foundation of clean and reliable data before implementation. Proper preparation of your data is vital because even minor inaccuracies can lead to significant problems in an integrated ERP system. For instance, incorrect product information can affect inventory management, order processing, and customer satisfaction.
Ultimately, data preparation is the cornerstone of a successful ERP migration. By prioritizing data cleansing, consolidation, normalization, and validation, organizations can mitigate migration risks, enhance data integrity, and ensure that their new ERP system operates at peak efficiency.
👉 Remember: The quality of your ERP system is only as good as the data it processes. Invest the time and resources necessary to get your data ready for production, and reap the rewards of a seamless, efficient ERP deployment.
Our team of technical experts can handle even the most complex data-cleansing projects. Whether you're starting with MDM or ready to jump into an ERP deployment, Convergence Data can help complete a seamless transition of your parts and product data.
📝 Contact us for a free discovery call to discuss your data needs today!