Re: Using % type functions/using RPG IV

[DAsmussen@xxxxxxx]

Booth,

In a message dated 2/7/00 5:26:54 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
BoothM@goddard.edu writes:

> This raises a question.  Are any new ERP applications installing anywhere as
>  expected?

We've gotten pretty far off the RPG track here, but with nearly fifteen of my 
20 years experience spent implementing ERP on various platforms with various 
packages, the subject is near and dear to my heart so I cannot resist a 
response.  _NO_ ERP implementation goes 100% as expected -- _EVER_.  Anyone 
who tells you different is either a liar or did not implement a full ERP 
package.  The complexity of the newer "top of the line" ERP packages 
compounds this truism, but they never went that well back before the packages 
evolved this far.  Any "Big 5" representative with five years' experience 
that tells you they've performed 18 ERP implementations is also a liar -- the 
average ERP implementation takes 18-24 months (APICS figures, not mine).  The 
latter could have been _involved_ in that many implementations, but they 
surely DID NOT see them from start to finish.

ERP vendors are hurting.  They're hurting for several reasons, failure to 
upgrade their packages to newer "paradigms" not least among them.  The 
biggest problem though, IMO, is that they want to have their cake and eat it 
too.  Expensive software that requires _THEIR_ equally expensive consultants 
to install it.  Sorry but, if _I_ paid $14 million for a software package the 
darned thing had better pretty much implement itself!

The sad thing is that customers buy into this -- "I purchased X so I had 
better hire consultants from X to help us or at least one of "The Big 5".  X 
and "The Big 5" charge a minimum of $1600/day plus expenses for "experienced" 
professionals.  These same customers often to refuse to offer even a living 
wage to independent professionals that offer _far_ more experience than do 
the so-called "experts" from company X.  The only thing worse is those 
companies that refuse to hire any help at all and wonder why they suffer 
failed implementation after failed implementation.

ERP implementation is not a project, it's a company-wide commitment.  
Anything less, and you're wasting (a _LOT_ of) your money...

JMHO,

Dean Asmussen
Enterprise Systems Consulting, Inc.
Fuquay-Varina, NC  USA
E-mail:  DAsmussen@aol.com

"The greatest joy in life is doing things that others say you cannot do." -- 
Walter Bagehot
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