How does an ERP selection project work in a mid-sized company?
An ERP selection project in a mid-sized company runs in six steps from readiness to decision paper and, with good calendar availability, takes about six months. Plus: how to introduce the ERP system without downtime, why ERP projects fail, five-year costs and funding.
An ERP selection project in a mid-sized company runs in six steps: readiness of the project team, process analysis, a screenplay with the real use cases, a shortlist, vendor presentations along the screenplay, and an offer comparison with a decision paper. At Vertiko GmbH, PASSION4IT supported this path with Smart Software Selection from July to December 2024, and at the end the shareholders made their choice on a solid basis. An ERP system goes live without downtime when this groundwork carries over into the rollout: with a cut-over date outside peak periods, a rehearsed data migration and key users trained before go-live.
What you’ll take away:
- The six steps of an ERP selection project and what each one produces
- A real timeline from a mid-sized company, month by month
- Why three vendors on the shortlist are usually enough
- Why the offer comparison should show costs over five years
- What happens if no solution fits in the end
- How to introduce the chosen system without downtime in operations
- Which funding applies to selection and implementation
How does an ERP selection project work in a mid-sized company?
In six steps that build on each other. Each step has a result the next one needs, and skipping one means catching up later at a higher price.
| Step | What happens | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Readiness | Everyone involved in the project is brought to the same level of knowledge | a team that can put vendor claims into context |
| 2. Process analysis | Core processes are captured and documented | described target processes instead of a wish list |
| 3. Screenplay | The real use cases are written as scenes | the template every vendor has to measure up against |
| 4. Shortlist | From a wider market view, three to five vendors remain | the invitation list for the presentations |
| 5. Casting | Vendors present along the screenplay, an in-house jury assesses | an assessment per vendor and use case |
| 6. Offer comparison | Offers are compared over several years | a reasoned recommendation and a basis for negotiation |
The difference from a classic tender lies in step 3. Instead of a requirements specification with several hundred items, a screenplay is written in which the people from purchasing, warehouse or accounting appear as the protagonists. Each vendor then shows live how their software handles exactly these scenes.
How long does an ERP selection take?
With good calendar availability, about six months. The project at Vertiko started on 1 July 2024 and ran like this:
- July 2024: ERP readiness training for everyone involved
- July and August: process analysis and documentation of the core processes
- September: screenplay with scenery, plus the shortlist of at most three vendors
- November: structured demo sessions with the remaining vendors
- December: offer comparison and recommendation to shareholders and management
The pace is set by the availability of the jury, meaning the people who will later work with the system and carry the day-to-day business at the same time. That is why the schedule belongs in the offer and is matched against the calendars at the start.
When should an ERP selection project start?
At the latest once a fixed end date is known. At Sport Greil, a retailer in the INTERSPORT network, support for the existing ERP system was running out at the end of the year. A date like that doesn’t move, and the implementation needs its own time after the selection.
The second typical trigger is growth that the old system can no longer carry. No date is pressing here, and that is exactly why the decision often gets delayed. If you first want to establish whether the problem lies in the ERP at all, the groundwork is in Business diagnosis before an ERP or AI investment.
How many ERP vendors should make the shortlist?
Three to five; at Vertiko it was at most three. More vendors at the casting lengthen the process without improving the decision, because from the fourth or fifth presentation onwards the jury no longer compares with full attention. The wider market view belongs in the pre-selection, and the casting is for the vendors that are seriously in the running.
What should the offer comparison include?
The costs over several years, over five at Sport Greil. Managing director Karl-Heinz Greil writes in his testimonial that the clear overview helped him understand both the initial costs and the expenses of the following five years. The same overview was then used by other retailers in the INTERSPORT network.
The comparison should include licences or subscriptions, implementation effort, maintenance and the internal hours the project ties up. A system with a cheap entry and expensive operation stands out immediately in a five-year view. The jury’s assessment per use case sits alongside, so that price and fit are in the same document.
What happens if no ERP system fits?
Then that is a usable result. The screenplay shows which use cases every vendor fails on, and one of three decisions follows: adjust the process, drop the requirement, or postpone the selection until the requirement is clarified. Deciding against every vendor costs considerably less than a rollout abandoned in its second year.
How do you introduce an ERP system without downtime in operations?
With a cut-over date that falls in a quiet period, a data migration that has been rehearsed several times, and key users who master the system before go-live. Downtime almost never arises on the cut-over day itself, but because one of these three preparations was missing.
In practice that comes down to five preparations.
- Choose the cut-over date deliberately. Not in the seasonal peak, not during year-end closing, not during stocktaking. With a fixed deadline such as support for the old system running out, work backwards from that date.
- Rehearse the data migration. Master data is cleaned up before the migration, and the transfer runs in test cycles until the figures in the new system match the old one.
- Use the screenplay as a test plan. The use cases from the selection are played through in the new system before go-live. Whatever doesn’t work there gets solved before the switch.
- Train key users before everyone else. One person per department who knows the system and catches colleagues’ questions in the first weeks.
- Define a fallback. It is decided beforehand what happens if a critical process doesn’t run on the cut-over date, and the old system stays reachable read-only for look-ups.
This needs a project lead who has time for it alongside day-to-day business. If that is missing internally, PASSION4IT’s IT project management takes it on.
What does an ERP selection project cost, and is there funding?
At PASSION4IT the selection is billed by effort in person-days. We scope the effort together in an initial conversation, and it depends on the number of use cases in the screenplay, the number of vendors invited and the size of the jury. PASSION4IT can then support the implementation in a follow-up project.
The consulting share may qualify for the BAFA funding for management consulting, which has been extended to 31 December 2028. The assessment basis is capped at €3,500, which in Bavaria means a grant of at most €1,750. For implementing the chosen system, the Bavarian Digitalbonus is the better route, Standard up to €7,500 and Plus up to €30,000, each up to 50 per cent, but only for businesses with fewer than 50 employees. In both cases the application has to be filed before the engagement.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
How long does an ERP selection take in a mid-sized company?
With good calendar availability, about six months. The ERP selection PASSION4IT supported at Vertiko GmbH ran from July to December 2024, from readiness training to recommendation. The pace is set by the jury’s availability.
How do I introduce an ERP system without downtime in operations?
With a cut-over date outside the seasonal peak, year-end closing and stocktaking, a data migration rehearsed in test cycles beforehand, and key users trained before go-live. The use cases from the selection screenplay serve as the test plan, and a fallback is defined in advance.
Why do ERP projects fail?
Mostly over points that come before the software: processes were never described, the future users had no seat in the selection, the project lead had no time alongside day-to-day business, or the data migration was underestimated. A screenplay with real use cases and a jury from the business units take care of the first two risks up front.
How is an ERP system integrated into project management?
On two levels. The rollout itself is a project with a project lead, a milestone plan and a steering committee that makes decisions. And companies that run orders as projects put project costing, time tracking and project controlling into the screenplay as use cases, so every vendor has to show how its system handles them.
How are ERP systems used in practice?
As a shared data basis for purchasing, warehouse, sales, production and accounting. An order is captured once and then runs through ordering, delivery and invoicing without being entered again. Which areas a company maps in the ERP depends on its core processes, which is why process analysis comes before selection.
Do I need a requirements specification for the ERP selection?
Not in the classic form. In PASSION4IT’s Smart Software Selection, a screenplay with the real use cases replaces the requirements specification. Each vendor shows live how their software handles these cases, and afterwards the screenplay remains the basis for rollout and acceptance.
Who should sit on the jury for an ERP selection?
The people who will work with the system every day, from purchasing, warehouse, sales and accounting. Plus management, who make the final decision. A selection made by IT alone loses acceptance before the system goes live.
How many vendors should I look at?
Three to five on the shortlist, chosen from a wider pre-selection. At Vertiko it was at most three.
Is ERP consulting vendor-independent?
At PASSION4IT, yes. PASSION4IT sells no licences for the systems it assesses and takes no referral commission; the client’s jury makes the decision.
Does PASSION4IT also support the ERP rollout?
Yes, if the client wants it, from contract negotiation through project leadership to rollout. For project leadership on its own there is IT project management, starting two to four weeks after the first meeting.
Is the ERP selection eligible for funding?
The consulting share via BAFA funding, with a grant of at most €1,750 in Bavaria. In Bavaria the implementation can be funded through the Digitalbonus if the business has fewer than 50 employees. In each case the application must be filed before the engagement.