Technology companies are notorious for believing the solutions they propose to a potential user’s pain points are the best possible answer. When it comes to ERP software systems, however, too often many developers, vendors and integrators ignore or overlook the reality that the technology they sell is actually a business solution, not simply a technology
ERP Cloud Migration Might Not Be Sunny
It seems as if nearly every week, a major business or technology publication carries an article about migrating processes to the cloud. In many circumstances, this makes sense for a range of good reasons. However, for users of ERP software systems, migrating a very complicated and sophisticated management tool with countless “moving parts” to the
Keeping Public Sector ERP Projects From Going Astray
Massive and costly failures of corporate ERP software system installations and integrations are becoming legendary. Nearly every week comes news of another train wreck. But as the public sector adopts ERP to serve a variety of purposes ever-more frequently, digital transformations are carrying a growing number of risks for government entities.
In July 2019, we
Why Aren’t CEOs Asking These Five Questions on Data Security?
Good chief executive officers pay close attention to every aspect of the business they are charged with running, from yesterday’s sales and production numbers, to the look and feel of next winter’s advertising campaign. As well they should: After all, the board, shareholders, employees and even the public hold the CEO accountable for the success
Seven Things General Counsel Should Know About ERP Contracts
The general counsel at any sized company knows how to draft everything from employment contracts and leases to complicated sales agreements. But few are familiar with what Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software systems actually do, let alone the traps lurking in these types of contracts.
This isn’t surprising given that the lifespan of most ERP
Taft Co-Sponsor of Digital Stratosphere Conference 2019
Taft was a co-sponsor with the Third Stage Consulting Group of the Digital Stratosphere Conference 2019, which was held in Chicago on August 7-9, 2019. The conference was an independent educational and peer-networking event for organizations about to embark on a digital transformation or ERP/CRM/HCM implementation. Attendees learned real-world lessons, shared battle scars and heard
How Senior Management Causes Its Own ERP Problems
We often write about the mounting number of failed digital transformations, especially those involving an ERP software system. More often than not, the underlying cause of the failures involve either the vendor or integrator biting off more than they can chew. They misrepresent the capability of their ERP system or their experience at integrating a
Don’t Let ERP Contracts Fool You Twice
Three court cases reveal the importance of ensuring that contracts for an ERP software system and other digital transformations be carefully negotiated to remove the possibility that a lawsuit over a failure can be blocked by, seemingly harmless clauses that vendors and integrators insert as a matter of routine in their template agreements.
The first
Taft Part of Roundtable on Technology for Crain’s Chicago Business
It’s been said that to succeed in today’s digital world, every company must be a technology-first organization that also specializes in another industry. Cloud computing is the operating model that’s fueling the digital transformation, modernizing IT platforms around the globe. It involves software and other hosted services rented from sources like Microsoft Azure and Amazon
SAP, Accenture and The Weakness of Entrenched Success
After retiring from a wildly successful career running Ford and then saving Chrysler from bankruptcy, Lee Iacocca was asked by an interviewer how American automakers could have allowed their globally dominant position in the market to be eroded by foreign car companies. Iacocca replied, “There is nothing more vulnerable than entrenched success.”
It’s not just