Mastering ERP Optimization: 10 Key Lessons

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are the backbone of modern businesses, but implementing changes to these complex systems can be a daunting challenge. Having led numerous ERP transformations throughout my career, I’ve seen firsthand the pitfalls that can derail even the most well-intentioned projects. But fear not! In this blog, I’ll share 10 hard-won lessons I’ve learned from the trenches, covering everything from meticulous planning and effective communication to data management, vendor selection, and continuous improvement.

Whether you’re an ERP veteran or a newcomer to the field, this guide will equip you with the knowledge and strategies you need to navigate the complexities of ERP changes and achieve a successful implementation.

Table of Contents

• Defining ERP Optimization
• 1. Meticulous Planning: Your Roadmap to Success
• 2. Communication is Key: Keep Everyone in the Loop
• 3. Change Management: It’s All About the People
• 4. Prioritize Data Quality: The Foundation of Success
• 5. Manage Data Migration Expectations and Costs
• 6. Collaboration: Break Down Those Silos
• 7. Flexibility: Be Prepared to Pivot
• 8. Vendor Selection: Choose Wisely
• 9. Continuous Improvement: The Journey Continues
• 10. Focus on Business Outcomes: Don’t Lose Sight of the Big Picture

Defining ERP Optimization

ERP optimization is the process of refining your enterprise resource planning system to better support your business operations, strategy, and goals. It’s not just about implementing the right software—it’s about ensuring that the system is configured, integrated, and used in a way that delivers real value. An optimized ERP system improves data accuracy, increases process efficiency, enhances reporting capabilities, and ultimately supports better decision-making across the organization.

An optimized ERP system should feel like a natural extension of your business. That means automation where appropriate, clean integrations across departments, role-specific dashboards, and streamlined workflows. More importantly, it should reduce manual work, eliminate duplicate data entry, and deliver insights that help leadership take action. In many cases, optimization involves reevaluating existing customizations, cleaning up legacy data, and retraining users on how to get the most out of the system.

From our experience at 8020 Consulting, no two ERP optimization projects are alike—but the same themes tend to emerge. In one client engagement, we found that the ERP system had been configured based on the original business structure, which had since changed significantly due to growth and acquisitions. Reporting was inconsistent, workflows were fragmented, and teams relied on offline spreadsheets. By mapping the current-state processes, redefining user roles, and rebuilding key modules, we helped align the ERP with how the business actually operated—cutting the monthly close time by 40% and reducing data errors.

ERP optimization matters because it’s where technology and business strategy meet. If your system is outdated, misaligned, or underutilized, it’s not just a tech issue, it’s a drag on your performance, efficiency, and ability to scale.

Why Optimizing Your ERP System is Critical

ERP systems touch nearly every corner of the business, from finance and operations to inventory and HR. If the system is inefficient or misaligned, that inefficiency ripples across departments—slowing down reporting, introducing errors, and making strategic decision-making harder than it needs to be.

Optimizing your ERP system unlocks measurable improvements: faster month-end closes, more accurate forecasting, better visibility into KPIs, and stronger internal controls. It also allows teams to work more proactively rather than reactively. For companies experiencing rapid growth, entering new markets, or managing increasing complexity, ERP optimization becomes not just a nice-to-have but a critical enabler of scalability.

We’ve seen firsthand how companies struggle when they lean too heavily on workarounds or outdated system logic. Optimization isn’t just a tech refresh—it’s a strategic realignment of your processes, people, and tools to position your company for better outcomes.

1. Meticulous Planning: Your Roadmap to Success

Before diving headfirst into an ERP transformation, take a deep breath and plan meticulously. This means thoroughly assessing your current situation, crystallizing your objectives, setting a realistic timeline, and allocating resources wisely. Rushing into an ERP change without a well-thought-out plan is a recipe for disaster, leading to costly mistakes and disruptions that could have been avoided. 

• Conduct a current-state assessment: Map out your existing processes, data flows, pain points, and system customizations. Talk to stakeholders in every department to understand their needs and frustrations.
• Define your future-state objectives: Clarify what success looks like. Do you want faster reporting? Better forecasting? Reduced manual entry? Your goals should drive the optimization.
• Develop a phased roadmap: Break the work into stages (e.g., cleanup, testing, rollout) and assign clear owners and timelines. Factor in parallel business priorities to avoid overloading teams.
• Audit your data and integrations: A significant portion of optimization projects stall due to poor data quality or misaligned integrations. Plan time for cleanup.
• Secure executive sponsorship and functional alignment: Your plan should include a stakeholder engagement strategy to ensure buy-in and cross-functional accountability from the start.

Example in Practice
One mid-sized consumer products company we worked with wanted to expand internationally, but their ERP system was barely supporting their existing operations. The finance team was manually consolidating multiple entities in spreadsheets, inventory tracking was fragmented across regions, and reporting delays were causing frustration at the executive level.

Instead of jumping into implementation, we led with a strategic planning phase. Over the course of four weeks, we facilitated stakeholder interviews across finance, supply chain, and IT; conducted a system and process diagnostic; and built a current-state process map. This early discovery work revealed that several departments were using shadow systems outside of ERP, and key financial data lacked consistency across business units.

Using these insights, we co-developed a transformation roadmap aligned to the company’s strategic goals—including phased rollout plans by region, a unified chart of accounts, and a data cleansing initiative. As a result, the company avoided costly rework during implementation, improved global visibility, and reduced month-end close time by 50% within six months of go-live.

2. Communication is Key: Keep Everyone in the Loop

Clear and consistent communication is the glue that holds an ERP implementation together. Explain the reasons behind the change, address concerns head-on, and keep stakeholders informed at every step. Transparency builds trust and encourages buy-in from employees at all levels, minimizing resistance and fostering collaboration.

To get started:

• Share the vision early and often. Use simple, non-technical language to explain the business goals.

• Identify key stakeholders and tailor messages to their concerns.

• Set up a regular cadence of updates, including wins, roadblocks, and next steps.

• Create feedback loops so employees can raise questions or flag issues.

3. Change Management: It’s All About the People

ERP changes don’t just affect processes and technology; they impact people too. Invest in change management strategies to overcome resistance, create excitement, and ensure a smooth transition for everyone involved. Comprehensive training, ongoing support, and open channels for feedback can make all the difference in helping employees adapt to the new system.

To get started:

• Engage early. Involve employees in process reviews and system demos to build ownership.

• Provide tailored training. Focus on what each team needs to succeed in the new environment.

• Offer ongoing support. Make help easy to access—through job aids, live support, or power users within departments.

• Reinforce wins. Share success stories and improvements as they happen to build confidence.

Example in Practice

We partnered with a fast-growing tech company to optimize their ERP system. While the rollout was well-structured, employees were overwhelmed by the change and slow to adopt new processes. The issue wasn’t technical, it was human.

We implemented a change management plan that included hands-on training, daily support drop-ins, and peer champions in each department. Within a month, usage rates improved, error rates dropped, and teams were more confident navigating the system.

4. Prioritize Data Quality: The Foundation of Success

Data integrity is the backbone of a successful ERP system. Implement robust data governance frameworks, rigorous data validation protocols, and regular audits to ensure the accuracy, completeness, and reliability of your information. Remember, garbage in, garbage out.

To get started:

• Establish clear ownership. Assign data stewards across functions to oversee accuracy and accountability.

• Standardize inputs. Create rules for naming conventions, data formats, and required fields.

• Clean before you migrate. Don’t carry over legacy errors. Audit and cleanse data before moving it into a new system.

• Schedule regular reviews. Set up periodic checks to catch duplicates, outdated records, and inconsistencies.

5. Manage Data Migration Expectations and Costs

Data migration is a significant part of any ERP implementation, both in terms of effort and cost. During the planning phase, have candid discussions with stakeholders about the amount and type of data that needs to be migrated. Consider factors like historical data for trending analysis and reporting. Aim for a balance that meets the needs of the business without breaking the bank. I’ve found that migrating a year’s worth of detailed data and 2-3 years of summary data at a specific point in time (like month-end or quarter-end) is often a good compromise.

To get started:

• Define what truly needs to move. Not all historical data adds value. Focus on data required for day-to-day operations, compliance, and analysis.

• Segment your approach. Migrate detailed transactional data for the current year, and retain prior years in summarized form.

• Time it strategically. Use natural cutoff points such as month-end or quarter-end to ensure clean transitions and easier reconciliations.

• Align stakeholders. Make sure finance, operations, and IT agree on data retention policies and reporting requirements.

6. Collaboration: Break Down Those Silos

ERP changes touch many different parts of an organization, from finance and operations to human resources and supply chain management. To avoid creating silos, encourage collaboration between departments. Working together ensures everyone is aligned with the business objectives and helps to avoid potential conflicts. Collaboration also makes end-users feel involved, which leads to greater acceptance of the new system.

In one engagement, we supported a growing distribution company where finance and operations had conflicting requirements for inventory tracking. Early planning sessions revealed that each team had designed separate workflows in spreadsheets that the ERP couldn’t reconcile. By bringing both teams into joint process workshops, we aligned on a unified approach that streamlined reporting and reduced manual intervention.

When teams work together, the system reflects the way the business actually operates. That kind of alignment reduces friction, increases adoption, and improves the long-term value of the ERP investment.

7. Flexibility: Be Prepared to Pivot

Even with the most meticulous planning, unexpected challenges will inevitably arise during your ERP implementation. Embrace flexibility and adaptability to navigate these unforeseen obstacles. Be willing to adjust timelines, reallocate resources, and make course corrections as needed. Remember, the ability to pivot is key to staying on track.

In one project, a client’s internal team underestimated the time required for user acceptance testing. As a result, go-live had to be pushed back. Instead of forcing the timeline, we adjusted the rollout strategy to launch in phases—starting with core finance and adding operational modules once the team was ready. That pivot preserved momentum and reduced post-launch issues.

Being able to reassess, adapt, and redirect resources ensures the project stays aligned with business needs, even as conditions change. 

8. Vendor Selection: Choose Wisely

Despite careful planning, unexpected challenges and obstacles are bound to arise during ERP implementations. Maintaining flexibility and adaptability is key to navigating unforeseen circumstances. Being open to course corrections, adjusting timelines as needed, and reallocating resources based on evolving priorities can help mitigate risks and keep the project on track. Incorporating “unplanned project obstacles” into the initial timeline can provide the necessary buffer to address these issues.

To get started:

• Assess industry fit. Look for vendors with proven experience in your sector. They’ll understand common challenges and be more prepared to offer relevant solutions.

• Evaluate support quality. Ask about post-implementation support, response times, and escalation paths. A smooth go-live means little without strong ongoing assistance.

• Prioritize flexibility. Ensure the vendor can accommodate changes in scope, timeline, or requirements without excessive friction or cost.

• Check references. Speak directly with other clients who’ve implemented the system. Learn what worked, what didn’t, and how the vendor handled surprises.

9. Continuous Improvement: The Journey Continues

View your ERP implementation as a journey, not a destination. After go-live, foster a culture of continuous improvement to maximize the long-term value of your system. Encourage feedback from users, identify areas for optimization, and embrace new functionalities as they become available. Also, share your feedback with the vendor so they can incorporate customer concerns into future updates.

To keep improving after go-live:

• Collect user feedback regularly. Create structured channels for teams to report issues, suggest enhancements, and share workarounds.

• Review performance metrics. Track KPIs related to system use, process efficiency, and reporting accuracy to identify optimization opportunities.

• Revisit configurations. As the business changes, workflows and permissions may need to be adjusted to stay aligned.

• Adopt new features. Stay current with software updates and new functionalities that can extend the value of your ERP.

• Engage with your vendor. Share real-world feedback to help shape product roadmaps and ensure your needs are heard.

Example in Practice

One client went live with a streamlined ERP rollout, but six months later, user frustration had resurfaced due to changing reporting needs. We facilitated a post-implementation review, realigned workflows, and rolled out dashboards tailored to new business priorities. User satisfaction improved, and leadership gained more timely insights into performance trends.

10. Focus on Business Outcomes: Don’t Lose Sight of the Big Picture

In the midst of the ERP whirlwind, it’s easy to get caught up in the details and lose sight of the bigger picture. Keep your eyes on the prize: your desired business outcomes. Whether it’s improving efficiency, enhancing decision-making, or driving growth, make sure every aspect of your ERP implementation is aligned with these goals.

To stay focused:

• Tie decisions back to strategic goals. When evaluating trade-offs, ask whether the choice supports your key outcomes.

• Set measurable success criteria. Define what success looks like for your team and track progress beyond go-live.

• Engage leadership regularly. Keep executives involved so that business priorities remain front and center throughout the project.

By following these lessons, you can navigate the complexities of ERP changes with confidence and achieve the transformative results you envision for your organization.

Getting Started with 8020 Consulting

At 8020 Consulting, we bring a strategic finance lens to ERP optimization. Our team of experts helps organizations align their systems with business goals, streamline operations, and drive measurable outcomes—whether you’re optimizing an existing platform or planning a full transformation.

Ready to turn your ERP system into a competitive advantage?
Book a meeting with our team to learn how we can help your organization achieve a smarter, more scalable ERP strategy.