In today's society, ERP consultants are often used when implementing ERP systems. Through the implementation of ERP systems, companies can gain clear benefits as they can more effectively handle increased business needs. But despite the major benefits, there are also risks and management must be careful so that the risks are not darkened by the enthusiasm over the benefits. The use of a consultant when implementing an ERP-system can, therefore, be a winning concept. This is because the consultant has the technical expertise needed and a broad understanding of individual business processes, but also a genuine interest in solving the difficulties of implementing a system. Employing someone with previous experience in implementing ERP systems instead of training internal staff, who will probably only implement the implementation once in their career, means that the use of external expertise is standard in the implementation of ERP systems. A very small amount of previous research involving ERP systems has been conducted from the consultant's perspective. Even less, if any, research has addressed how the consultants' experience and skills affect their work in adapting the system. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the degree of customer customization of an ERP system that an external consultant can achieve. It is also of interest to examine the consultants' approach in relation to their experience as well as their degree of competence. The study found that a basic approach exists, but that the different activities of the approach can be combined or carried out in parallel. How these are used depends on the consultant's experience and skills, but also the framework within which the consultant works. The consultant's experience and expertise also influence the degree to which customizations are made. The consultant must understand both the customer and its language, the industry in which they are located as well as the technology to achieve a high degree of customization. Senior consultants generally have a broader competence than their junior colleagues, who to a greater extent have a more specified knowledge. The fact that the consultant utilizes his or her expertise is not what separates junior and senior consultants. What sets them apart, and which affects the degree of customization, is the amount of experience and competence one holds and how one uses it.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:hb-25375 |
| Date | January 2020 |
| Creators | Isaksson, Nathalie, Lundberg, Sophie |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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