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ERP Workforce Management and Qualities of a Great ERP Manager

ERP workforce management is a multi-level, highly dynamic field requiring top-notch leadership. Deploying an ERP (enterprise resource planning) system is an equally exciting and overwhelming task for many companies.

If you’re not familiar with ERP, it is a system that integrates a company’s information into one system that operates on real-time data it receives from throughout the organization. The shared database ensures that every location and department can access the most up-to-date information. An ERP system incorporates a variety of topics, including process design and management, aggregate planning, capacity and inventory management, scheduling, quality control and project management.

Although ERP is much easier to use than the Cloud, there is still a lot of room for headaches and mistakes. That is why it’s especially important to assess your company’s needs, fix any broken processes, verify consistent data, customize your ERP software to its full potential and in order to eliminate any competition, train your employees and always be working towards improving your processes as time goes on. Once you have outlined all of these items, you can begin selecting which ERP system you think would operate best with your company, as well as its goals, needs and objectives.

It is important to not only select the right workforce management ERP system for your company needs, but also the right ERP workforce management leader.

Implementing an workforce management ERP system successfully requires a multitude of skills, including technical expertise, political skill and deft project management. Choosing a qualified individual to manage your ERP system is crucial to making sure everything runs smoothly. The manager is the glue that keeps everything together.

The right leader must have excellent multi-tasking and coordination, since workforce management ERP implementations have a particular sequence to follow in order to complete tasks. Being able to manage a project with a level-headed mind and juggle many different variables all at once is especially important in the qualities of a potential ERP workforce management director. The person must be able to track, manage, understand the risks, prioritize tasks and know how to make the tough decisions to extend a project when the risk levels are high.

Another important quality is team-building leadership. When ERP project teams are compiled, these teams are made up of people who have not had the time to develop relationships with each other, but regardless, they are expected to perform and deliver within a very short period of time. With an ERP workforce management project manager who has strong team-building leadership skills, the teams will be brought together and have a clear understanding of what their tasks and expectations are. A good project manager who is team-oriented will also know how to provide excellent training and direction, coach any employees who are having trouble, but also give out both rewards and constructive criticism in a professional manner.

The project manager must also be able to get along with other executives and allow others to feel compelled and confident to follow this person’s leadership. This correlates with our next point. Since workforce management ERP involves almost all areas of a business, making an implementation work invariably will require working through disagreements and balancing personalities that may clash at times.

Alongside successful problem-solving skills is excellent communication. The correct project leader must be able to practice transparency in every situation and communicate frequently and clearly with stakeholders, other executives, and of course, their ERP team. Whether dealing with a push back on a certain project or getting the message across that business leads should rethink a certain decision, a good project manager will be able to keep things at bay and be a professional messenger, whether discussing the good, the bad and the ugly.

ERP systems bring the inevitable: change. Change is probably the biggest challenge a manager must deal with, and that’s in any line of work. It can be overwhelming for the company staff to transition into a big change such as an ERP system, but a good project manager will have the influence and expertise to help their staff wade through the tide of change, especially when it involves talking to the staff about new processes or explaining to management why they should consider a certain feature, even if it causes a slide in performance or requires employees to work overtime to complete their job tasks.

Knowing how to manage an ERP project is one thing, but another skill a project manager must have is a firm discipline and focus and yet unrestricted flexibility when necessary. ERP systems evolve during implementation, so the right project manager will need to know when to resist and when to embrace change, without derailing the entire project implementation.

Finally, a good project manager will understand the overall ERP process and culture of the business. Understanding those pieces will ensure that a useful ERP system emerges for that business.

While there are many defining qualities of a good leader, these skills listed above are the most necessary. Don’t settle; be sure to find the right project manager, since they are taking on an influential system.