Risks and benefits of an ERP implementation and use

Nowadays a huge number of companies have implemented or plan to implement an ERP as their business management application. The use of an ERP, if done correctly, assures to the adopting company a competitive advantage. Nonetheless, the implementation process as well as the use phase, especially in the first months, presents several risks. This because an ERP strongly modifies the management of a company, the way in which the company works and its results. In addition, it has an impact on the allocation of power within a company and it involves a huge number of stakeholders. Consequently, the management of risks by a company before, during and after the implementation is of the utmost importance to achieve the expected profitability. This thesis aims to understand, after a brief initial introduction to the ERPs history and their functionalities, the benefits, and the risks, with a strong focus on the latter, associated to an ERP implementation and use. The analysis will start with a review of the major risks according to the literature. Following, there will be an analysis of the effective risks and benefits faced by some companies during the implementation and use phase on an ERP. The analysis will be obtained by some interviews to an employee of a company who implemented an ERP and to an employee of an Italian consulting firm involved in the ERP implementation business. The analysis of the effective implementation, despite done on a limited sample, would furnish a possibility to compare the literature risks and benefits of an ERP to the actual ones.