Understanding the role of knowledge management during the ERP implementation lifecycle: Preliminary...
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Confenis 2012 Understanding the role of Knowledge Management during the ERP implementation lifecycle: Preliminary Research Findings Relevant to Emerging Economies Anjali Ramburn & Lisa Seymour
Understanding the role of knowledge management during the ERP implementation lifecycle: Preliminary Research Findings Relevant to emerging economies
Anjali Ramburn, Lisa Seymour, Avinaash Gopaul, Understanding the role of knowledge management during the ERP implementation lifecycle: Preliminary Research Findings Relevant to emerging economies
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1. Understanding the role of Knowledge Management during the
ERPimplementation lifecycle: Preliminary Research Findings
Relevantto Emerging Economies Anjali Ramburn & Lisa Seymour
Confenis 2012
2. Outline Setting the Scene Research Objectives Research
Phases Case Description Research Method Findings Conclusions 2
Confenis 2012
3. Setting the Scene Work in Progress Paper Challenges of
Knowledge Management during the EPR Implementation phase The
implementation phase refers to the training and development of the
users of the ERP system. Part of an on going research Role of KM
during the ERP implementation lifecycle in both large and medium
organizations in South Africa A number of ERP implementations in
South Africa Implementation process is challenging, costly, risky
and complex Half of ERP systems fail to meet organisations
expectations (Parry & Graves, 2008) Process can be less
challenging through proper use of knowledge management. Knowledge
Management: Key driver for ERP success and a critical success
factor. ERP implementation is a dynamic continuous improvement
process and a key methodology supporting ERP continuous improvement
would be knowledge management (McGinnis & Huang, 2004) 3
Confenis 2012
4. Research Objective, Scope & Relevance Explore the ERP
implementation life cycle from a KM perspective within a South
African context Provide a comprehensive understanding of the role
of KM practices and dimensions during the ERP implementation
lifecycle Key objective is to investigate the KM challenges faced
by organizations while implementing ERP systems Identify and
understand the dimensions of KM required during the ERP system
implementation Understand the different ways in which large
organisations and SMEs can engage in better knowledge creation, use
and transfer during the whole ERP implementation lifecycle.
Preliminary research findings Findings may be extended Applicable
to both academics and practitioners Adds to existing KM literature
Offers a better explanation of the KM challenges and dimensions
applicable to large emerging economies First of its kind in South
Africa Reference for any future research 4 Confenis 2012
5. Research Method 1st Phase: Focus on building a theory to
promote better understanding of the role of knowledge management
during the ERP implementation lifecycle Grounded Theory Strauss and
Corbin school of thought 2nd Phase: The researcher will apply the
theory to assess its validity and applicability in an organisation
Action Research 5 Confenis 2012
6. Case Description Large organisation with branches all over
South Africa>39000 employees Currently implementing the SAP
project portfolio Management module throughout its branches
Organisation wide training has been conducted in all the branches
Semi structured interviews conducted in one of the branches in
Western Cape Chosen participants had been through the SAP training
and were impacted by the implementation process. Users of the
system (Planners and System Administrators) Aim is to interview as
many participants as possible until theoretical saturation is
achieved 6 Confenis 2012
7. Knowledge Management Challenges Trainers Lack of Process
Knowledge The trainers were not knowledgeable enough None of the
trainers had any experience as end users of the system, resulting
in inconsistencies in their understanding of the new system from a
user perspective. Ownership of roles and tasks were not defined No
clarification on the information and process flow between the
different departments and the individuals as per their role
definition They also lacked the expertise to engage with the
different problems that surfaced during the training Things were
not clear, we have all this data, and it was unclear who was
supposed to do what. A number of questions were left unanswered
with regards to the ownership of the different processes. 7
Confenis 2012
8. Knowledge Management Challenges Lack of Technical Knowledge
The technical knowledge and qualification of the trainers were put
into question. Lack of SAP skills The trainers were the
administrator support technicians who are experts in the current
system the interviewees use but did not have enough expertise to
deal with the upcoming ERP system. Trainers had a 2 days workshop
where they were trained to train the rest of the staff. There were
a lot of unanswered questions. Data needed to be put in the system,
we did not know whereWe asked the trainers but they did not know
themselves, I felt they were not very qualified either. Employees
lack of technical knowledge Struggled to understand the ERP system.
They found the user interface and navigation increasingly complex
as opposed to their existing system. Some employees felt confident
and said they would learn the system eventually Others felt they
would never figure out how to use the system 8 Confenis 2012
9. Knowledge Management Challenges Poor Project Configuration
Knowledge Complexity of the ERP system as opposed to the existing
system the participants are using. Existing system is logical. The
system did not make any sense to them, they felt they were only
filling blocks on the screen. Number of steps to perform a task had
increased drastically So the training showed us how to click on
SAP. This is what we did; Click, Click, Click, Copy Paste, Copy
PasteIt was ridiculous, it was insane to have more than 300 steps
of clicking. It was about filling blocks 9 Confenis 2012
10. Knowledge Management Challenges Lack of Project Knowledge
No clear project objectives, milestones and deployment activities.
Unaware of the date they were required to start using the system.
Some of them believed they were not near the implementation stage,
and the training was only a pilot activity to test whether they
were ready for implementation. Others hoped that the implementation
had been cancelled due to the number of problems experienced in the
training sessions All they said was that now you have had the
training for SAP and this is the system we will phase into. No one
knows when it will happen for sure. I am hoping it wont be anytime
soon.We do not get frequent emails or updates to inform us of the
status of the project. All management said was that you need to
complete the training for the new system and this is the system we
will phase into. 10 Confenis 2012
11. Knowledge Management Challenges Lack of Knowledge on
Management Initiatives No go ahead from top and middle management.
Interviews indicated that top and middle management had not
supported the initiative as yet. Training had to be completed by a
certain date Compulsory roadshows were organized but the employees
chose not to participate We will only start using it when we get
the word from top management; well basically when they tell us, as
from now you are expected to use this program. Then I will make an
effort to learn the program. 11 Confenis 2012
12. Knowledge Management Challenges Lack of Knowledge on Change
Management Initiatives Managing change is arguably one of the
primary concerns of ERP implementation. Lack of importance
attributed to this area. Lack of proper communication channels and
planning coupled with the absence of change management initiatives
resulted in employees confusion and resistance. Employees were
demotivated, unhappy with their new system, and they did not
understand why they should change to a new system. I dont
understand how this system will make me more productive when I do
not even understand how to use it. 12 Confenis 2012
13. Knowledge Management Challenges Lack of Knowledge on Need
for Change Employees did not understand the benefits of using SAP
from a strategic perspective. Importance of the implementation of
the new system as they felt their previous system could do
everything they needed it to. No need for a new system. To me, the
previous system worked in a logical way; Should I have to enter
project information in my head, I will work in the same way as our
current system. I do not see the benefit of using SAP. 13 Confenis
2012
14. Knowledge Management Challenges Knowledge Dump Information
overload Employees from different departments and a number of
processes were covered together The participants got confused with
regards to their role definition and the ownership of the different
activities. Employees said the training would have been easier and
beneficial if the training was limited to their specific and
individual department and process. If you are planners, this is all
you need to do. I do not feel we had to do all these steps and a
lot of the information needs to be entered before we would see it
as planners, someone else would have already entered that data but
when we doing the training everyone was confused with what and why
we need to do certain tasks. 14 Confenis 2012
15. Knowledge Management Challenges Poor Knowledge
Contextualization Poor focus on local context. Difficulty in
relating to the training examples given as they were based on the
process flow from a different suburb. Each province has its own way
of operating and has unique terms and terminologies. The fact that
the examples used came from Johannesburg and not from Cape Town
made it harder for the interviewees to understand the overall
process. The examples used were from Joburg, I could not relate to
the examples. It would have been nice to have our terminologies. 15
Confenis 2012
16. Conclusions A number of intra-organisational barriers to
efficient knowledge transfer. Inadequate training, lack of
technical and project knowledge, lack of management support and
change management initiatives, process knowledge, customization and
contextualization of knowledge. Seemingly, in a large organization
with multiple branches throughout South Africa, understanding the
process, contextualization and customization of the training
content from the users perspective is a key aspect to consider
during an ERP implementation process. This research is still on
going and the subsequent research phases focus on providing a
holistic view of the role, different dimensions and best practices
of KM during the entire ERP implementation cycle. 16 Confenis
2012
17. Questions 17 Confenis 2012
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