When a company invests in ERP, it makes a major decision. It not only involves investment in the form of money but also time and other resources. Naturally, one would want to see if the return on investment has been positive. One of the hallmarks of ERP success is to actually track the ROI and see if your investment has been paying off. More than 60% of the companies do not calculate ROI on their ERPs.

By not calculating your ERP-related ROI, you risk many things leading to loss in productivity. When it comes to measuring ROI on your ERP, you need to save time, money and other resources. If these three factors are being saved, we can safely say that your ERP has been a success.

How to track ROI on ERP investment

One of the specific tasks is to identify KPIs which are measurable and that which are specific to your company's goals. You could speak to your accountants and hold meetings to check if the numbers are actually adding up and making any difference. You have to include training costs, implementation costs, capital expenses and even staff time. This will help you to identify gaps that need to be filled.

The next step is to list down specific goals that will help you to boost your business' productivity. This could mean shipping products in a timely fashion and what is actually stopping that from happening and other factors such as automating as many processes as possible. You also must start getting creative about your ERP itself.

Do not stick to using ERP handouts, which in other words means, that you are just using legacy apps within your ERP. ERP systems can be customized, enhanced and boosted with the help of add-on programs, plug-ins and customizations. Ask your ERP vendor how best your ERP can be fixed to suit your particular business. This will help you to track your checks and balances more efficiently. You could track gaps and deficiencies within your ERP and try and install third-party software solutions to fill in those gaps.

Another way of tracking your ERP success is to actually move towards the cloud. When you decide to make this plunge, you will gain access to superior ROI-tracking programs and plug-ins that help you to analyze your situation yourself in real time.

Partner with your ERP vendor

Always remember to seek your ERP vendor's help to track your success. A reliable ERP vendor will gladly do that because it is part of their business. This will help you to gain access to ROI reports that are professionally tracked and created, which will put you in a better position when it comes to ROI tracking.

Companies often think that once they implement the ERP and train their staff, the ERP vendor’s role is finished. This is not so. The relationship and partnership between you and your ERP partner is an ongoing one. The more you seek consultations and advices from your vendor, your ERP vendor will be in a better position to guide you and provide you with timely reports.