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What is the reason when the sales department working past the new ERP system?

What is the reason when the sales department working past the new ERP system?

02.09.2021 Blog

The new ERP system may have been introduced but was not used by the sales department. That is why a company from the medical supply industry entrusted us with process optimization in this department.

What is the reason when the sales department working past the new ERP system?

Uncoordinated sales department and unused ERP system

A customer from the medical supply industry, a system supplier for medical packaging, had introduced an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system two years earlier. However, the sales department did not use it and was unwilling to implement changes. In addition, there were no clear processes and hardly any systematic approach to handling orders. This resulted in long waiting times for offers, delays in orders and correspondingly few new orders. Some employees had already resigned for these reasons.

 

Analyzed from the ground up and improved

As Head of Business Development, our interim manager not only had the overriding task of getting the sales department on track, but also took on the role of salesperson for all French-speaking customers at short notice. That way he experienced many of the difficulties himself and was able to introduce and implement suggestions for improvement more effectively. In order to develop and optimize the processes, he involved the entire sales team at the appropriate level.

In a first step, the department was renamed from the inconclusive “projects” to “order management”. Then processes were redefined, and tasks clearly assigned. By the time the mandate ended, the department was stabilized, offers were drawn up in a short period of time and new orders were processed efficiently. The sales manager had been picked up emotionally and had fully adjusted to his task, including the use of the ERP system. Further optimizations were on the way.

 

Everyone involved is always involved

The fact that the interim manager looked after some of the existing and new customers for the duration of the mandate was very helpful for the development and implementation of new processes. The weekly meetings with the decision-maker, in which the interim manager informed him of the measures planned and taken, also contributed to the success. His consent was always obtained. In addition, the interim manager listened openly to both management and employees and kept them clearly and transparently informed. In this way, he was able to address the points that were previously considered inviolable, and to propose and implement solutions.

 

Even the best ERP system is of no use if it is not used or not used correctly. Our interim managers know the situation of employees or departments who struggle with changes and are aware of the reasons for this. In this way, established patterns can be carefully broken up and processes can then be optimized. Are you in a similar situation? Contact us at office@top50interim.com or +41 (0)41 412 02 02.

 

 

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