Change management is a way of preparing employees and executives for the changes that come with an ERP implementation. Change management is designed to help employees adjust to the new system in a stress-free way, using training and management teams to introduce new practices in small pieces, rather than in one enormous move.

Change management is a relatively inexpensive cost compared to the overall project cost but the value you get from spending that extra little bit is huge, especially if you position it in the context of an overall Benefits Realization / ROI program. So highlighting the ROI and risk mitigation aspects of change management should get the executives’ attention.

It should begin with preparing a special team who plans to communicate and is the voice that addresses the concerns and wearies of employees. They will be the pioneers for spreading change and comfort in the organization.

A clear strategy and vision behind the ERP Implementation should be communicated to all employees before the implementation. This will keep them mentally prepared. This will help them understand as to why, what and how of the implementation.

To communicate more effectively set up a project site on the Intranet, send emails, hold user group sessions for each business unit before ERP implementation.

Training is a very important component of change management while implementing ERP. Training employees for their new roles in the company is one excellent way to get them accustomed to the change process. It can also prevent resistance from employees who don’t understand how ERP works.

Employees who show resistance and have a negative approach should be delegated more responsibilities during the implementation phase. This involvement will itself reduce their apprehension. If that does not work sometimes the employee has to be reprimanded firmly and confidently to go with the change.

We can divide the organization into Top Management – Decision makers, Process Owners – Department heads, Power Users – Experts in key processes and End User – Final user / operating person. The comparatively difficult people are Process owners and Power users.  It is necessary that one must take the support of external consultants – by taking them to successful sites and giving credit to process owners and power users in front of top management for the progress. This will encourage them to accept the change and can free the power users for further activities. Always involve them in brain storming sessions.

The top management may have agreed, but have not bought the effort involved. They usually slack on the motivation part and sometimes just think ERP will be the magic stick to all their problems. However without their motivation and support the change management can go kaput.

You can use techniques similar to 360degree HR assessments and reviews that are more likely to succeed. Gather as much subjective data as you can, and then you can use statistical methods to turn that into hard information.

Large implementations that cross geographies often involve political battles in terms of how the business will operate in the post-implementation world. Executives often need to be the ones to resolve such issues, so their involvement is important in this regard as well.

Conclusion:
In order to successfully implement any ERP system, a company must establish a well planned change management. There are various aspects that need to be considered when establishing change management. This depends on the type, size and area of the business.

Although ERP software will help make your business more efficient by refining your processes, it can still be intimidating for some employees to think about changing the way they do their jobs. They might also have insecurities about losing their jobs. This is the reason why change management is required.