Towards the end of 2019, Umbrella Software was approached by a company wishing to improve control of Stock, Costing and their general administrative efficiency. A thorough management review was conducted, identifying below par stock control and costing as some of the areas that needed strengthening. Improved administrative efficiency that could lead to a reduction in overhead was also flagged for review.
Several ERP vendors were invited to do their own investigation and present their recommendations. Umbrella Software was selected due to their thorough investigation and recommendations that met the management brief. An affordable ERP Project budget was also a major consideration.
After installing Umbrella Software, the two companies embarked on the significant task of cleansing the legacy Stock Master data, taking advantage of the considerable additional functionality available for use and populating Customer and Supplier master data required.
Suddenly the Coronavirus hit, and, in short order, the country was placed in a hard lockdown. A joint review resulted in the decision to continue with the implementation, albeit with exclusive use of Video Conferencing.
The move to Video Conferencing ensured that meetings happened on time and that everyone was fully focussed during each session. User training was supplemented with practice sessions with user staff using test data, so that everyone was familiar with the change from the legacy system that had been in use for years to a new system that worked quite differently. The users found Umbrella to be logical and easy to use and the Umbrella Software Consultants to be skilled, both in the understanding of their business and that of the software and all its many capabilities. Skills transfer and detailed process flow discussions proceeded smoothing via Video Conferencing.
The company went live with Umbrella Software on 4th May, the day limited opening of Businesses in South Africa was allowed. Umbrella Software were readily available to deal with user queries, all conducted remotely, ensured immediate trading occurred and the first month end was trouble free. The Project is now due for Close-out, having achieved all deliverables and on budget. With cost overruns being a common feature of ERP implementations, this was particularly pleasing.
What was learned about executing a complex ERP implementation during a national lockdown and now the ‘new normal’? Successful ERP implementations are achievable if you have a tight client / vendor relationship with strong project management and this, once again, proved to be the case. Video Conferencing became key in making scoping meetings and training engaging and effective. The logical design and ease of use of Umbrella was also a contributing factor.
With free travel to clients once again being allowed this has not occurred. The Client prefers continuing to use Video conferencing and the Consultants enjoy the extra efficiency and time saving you get from not having to travel.
What is the takeaway from this? If you have software that can be implemented remotely, skilled consultants and a committed customer there is no reason why successful ERP implementations cannot occur remotely. During the lockdown period Umbrella Software has embarked on several new implementations across the country and are excited about how smoothly it is working, customer acceptance of remote work and the potential to exploit the ‘new normal’ that we all face.
