A Systematic Approach for Evaluation and Selection of ERP Systems

Companies utilize advanced information systems, like Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, in order to manage their resources and improve their competitiveness. Evaluation, selection and implementation of suitable ERP systems, however, is a challenging task for many companies, especially small and medium sized enterprises (SME). A highly non-transparent ERP-market with a lot of different vendors and system versions, the variety of possible selection criteria as well as individual requirements of the company form a complex decision process. Particularly small and medium companies need support in this phase as it is a critical investment and an important success factor. In this article we will present a systematic approach for evaluation and selection of ERP systems. Our methodology offers decision support for acquisition of a new ERP system by consideration of individual requirements particularly including the company's current processes and IT infrastructure. It is driven by a multi-step process, first conducting a pre-selection of ERP systems, subsequently narrowing down in a second negotiation phase so that finally a suitable ERP system is chosen.