An ERP solution is one of the greatest assets a company, whether growing or established, can invest in. These advanced business management solutions help you run day-to-day operations and more without a hitch. And getting an ERP that is suited to your business is a must as selecting a solution in itself can often be a long drawn out process. You put in all your efforts in researching the market, partners, get in touch with them over various solutions, and even get implementation quotations from them. Of course, as is human nature, the one that catches our eye will be the one that is the lowest.
And that’s completely fair as the cost of an ERP solution such as SAP Business One or a solution of your choice is no joke. It is an invaluable investment, yes, but it comes at a price that at times, growing businesses might find north of their set budgets. That’s where growing SMEs make an error, by going for the low implementation estimates. You see, more often than not, low ERP quotes come with hidden costs.
There are a multitude of reasons for it. If you are partnering with a new and inexperienced ERP partner, chances are they themselves will be ignorant of these hidden expenses. And if it is an experienced partner, they might quote you low just to lure you in first and get a foot in the door. Whatever the case, these hidden expenses have the potential to wreak havoc on your budget by the time you’re finally done with the implementation.
Deviation from the Initial Project Scope
When you first get a quote from the vendor, it is set on certain terms that you both have agreed upon. But during the course of actual implementation, various minor and major changes can present themselves. This leads to a deviation in the initially agreed upon project scope. Minor deviations are nothing out of the ordinary. But major deviations in most cases can cost precious time and money. It is always advisable to look out for its signs at the very start when the vendor is outlining the project scope. If they aren’t able to provide you with a clear and thorough description of the implementation scope and costs, then that is a red flag. It indicates either a lack of a methodological approach to implementation, which is a must, or their overall lack of experience & inefficiency in the same. Such alterations to the project can also affect the decided go-live date of the implementation, resulting in additional costs, unforeseen downtime, and ultimately losses.Employee Training
A crucial point to keep in mind and check for while considering a low implementation estimate is the employee training cost. It is something that gets lost easily in the bigger picture, but is one of the most integral. At the end of the day, it’s you and your employees that will use and leverage the solution to its full potential. Therefore, just like with every new software, thorough employee training is a must. And it is a known fact that training costs are considered separate and almost always excluded from the initial quotes. But you might not know that. This may come to haunt you at a later stage as additional cost that is also dependent on the number of people you need to train. So when discussing implementation with your chosen partner, make sure to discuss training costs in a detailed manner to see if it is or can be included in the initial implementation quote or not and to avoid unforeseen training costs in the future.Customization & Upgrade Costs
Every business and company is unique. Therefore, a customized ERP solution is a must to fully adapt and integrate with the business and its processes. And that’s where ERP customization comes in. Your ERP partner can modify the solution to your particular specifications, be it the modules or alterations in the default system & more. Of course, this customization comes at a price, and while it isn’t exactly hidden, it does add to the overall cost of implementation. The hidden part would be when it comes to upgrading the solution. That’s where the difficulty arises as default ERP systems are easier to upgrade as customized ones require extra efforts and costs to upgrade, which is definitely a hidden expense. So discussing customization and upgrades with your ERP partner is a must to avoid additional costs in the future.Support & Maintenance Costs
Every business software needs to be maintained & upgraded for it to perform optimally at all times. For that, your ERP partner provides support and maintenance services that come in handy post implementation. While not explicitly a hidden cost, it is imperative to discuss it with your vendor nonetheless. Support and maintenance can be required for a myriad of reasons. It could be for the regular upkeep of the solution, upgrading to the latest version for additional functionalities, or for fixing bugs that might be affecting performance. And it’s not just the software, if you’re using the software locally, then hardware & infrastructure maintenance costs are included in the services as well if the vendor is providing them. So be sure to discuss after-sales support, maintenance, and upgrade with your ERP partner thoroughly & accurately to avoid surprises later.In conclusion, I would like to point out that a thorough & transparent discussion & approach right from the start about ERP implementation is a must. This is beneficial in avoiding hidden costs as well as having an overall clarity and a successful ERP implementation.At Accelon, we pride ourselves in putting our customers first. To that end, we are clear with you from the start and even have a methodological ERP implementation approach that is mentioned in detail on our website. Accelon Technologies is a certified SAP Gold Partner and is an expert in SAP Business One implementation partner and add-ons provider in India. Our years of experience in working with clients across different industries and businesses has given us the expertise to perform the best ERP implementation and provide further support. So hidden costs is the least of your worries when dealing with us.Want more helpful information about processes in SAP Business One? Or would you like a more in-depth understanding of SAP Business One? Then get in touch with Accelon - a Certified SAP Business One Gold Partner & the most reliable ERP software provider in India.