The main cause of problematic ERP implementations : Bad management or functional mismatches?

This paper describes the results of a multiple case study in which five ERP implementations were investigated. This case study led to some remarkable conclusions. Using the project implementation success of Wixom and Watson (2001) as a yardstick, only two out of the five cases could be considered as successful. These two cases concerned standard production processes and had relatively modest implementation objectives. The other three cases concern more complicated business processes and more ambitious project objectives. In these cases, mismatches between business processes and the functionality of the ERP system could be observed. The following conditions appeared to be favourable for a successful implementation: good preparation of the implementation project, good project management and a high degree of consultant expertise. However, the case studies show clearly that the fit between the business processes and the functionality of the applications is a decisive factor for the success of ERP implementations. In contrast to the findings of other authors, the involvement of line management appears to be of less importanc