SATISFACTION WITH THE SELECTION OF AN ERP SYSTEM. EXPERTS OPINIONS FOR SME.

In the big global markets, the business requirements for small and medium-sized companies (SME) are changing rapidly. With the fast international growth of even very small companies, their need for a professional IT and ERP system support is higher than ever. A study of the Center for Enterprise Research of the University of Potsdam analysed 1300 SME companies and stated that about 70% of the companies are planning to invest in an ERP System implementation or are in the middle of implementation. A trend towards a decline of the significance of an ERP System specifically for SME is not noticeable (cf. Gronau, 2012). There are significant trends where SME companies and ERP providers will have to work on the next 5-10 years. Firstly, due to the high internationalization specifically of German SME companies, the ERP provider needs to invest in very specific industry solutions which can be integrated. In addition, the core functionality and processes have to improve even more. Secondly, technology and IT architecture are gaining importance. Finally, ERP has to provide mobile solutions in the years to come. The study claims that the current need is under 50% but increasing. Similar to cloud computing where currently the companies are still hesitant on the one hand, but dependent on the technological details, more and more companies are interested in new solutions (cf. Gronau, 2013). On the bases of the experience with business Case Studies, a Questionnaire has been developed and executed with over 60 business experts. All experts had years of experience in the field of ERP selection and implementation in the German and Austrian market. The main hypothesis that there is a relation between the satisfaction with an ERP system and the execution of the selection process could be confirmed along a set of criteria like budget constraints and time pressure. In summary; there is hardly a structured selection process and satisfaction with the ERP system is not measured but all involved people have an opinion based on “gut feel”.