ERP Turnaround

Your ERP programme is not delivering what it was supposed to.

The system may be live, but performance, control, and confidence are not where they need to be.

The point on the journey matters: before go-live, in delivery, or after.
The situation differs. The cause is almost always the same.

Most ERP programmes do not fail at go-live.
They fail in what happens after.
Get a Reality Check →
Where are you right now?

Different stages.
Same underlying problem.

Before
Planning / mobilising
Confidence is high. Assumptions are untested.

The ERP is about to start. The business case assumes the organisation can deliver the change.

Those assumptions are about to be locked in.

During
In delivery · drifting
The programme is moving, but the outcome is at risk.

Costs are rising. The SI is billing. Delivery continues.

But nobody is sure it will deliver what was promised.

After
Go-live · no results
The system is live, but performance is not.

Workarounds have appeared. People are using the system in the old way.

The expected improvement never fully arrives.

Whichever stage you recognise, the question is the same:
Will this actually deliver?
Why it happens, at every stage

The root causes are consistent.

ERP programmes are treated as technology projects. The capability required to deliver and operate the change is underestimated, underfunded, or addressed too late.

An ERP programme that delivers the system but not the capability to operate it has delivered half the job. Under pressure, the second half does not get cut. They never knew it existed.
The three capability gaps
Transformation capability
Leadership bandwidth
Programme governance
Decision speed
Change capacity
Underestimated from the start
Operating capability
Process discipline
Data governance
Middle management alignment
Behavioural change
Addressed too late, or not at all.
Risk and compliance integrity
Sector requirements
Data controls
Audit trail
Often compromised under delivery pressure
Every engagement starts with a Reality Check

Start with a Reality Check

Before continuing, establish what is actually happening. The Reality Check in an ERP situation runs in 2 to 3 weeks, accelerated because of urgency.

If this is not addressed now, the cost compounds quickly.

We establish
What outcome the ERP was supposed to deliver
Where performance is being lost
Whether the organisation can actually operate the system
What capability gaps exist
Whether risk or compliance exposure has been introduced
What it will take to recover
€30k to €95k · 2 to 3 weeks · Senior team only

You see the findings before committing to anything further.

Every week of delay compounds cost. The Reality Check is accelerated for exactly that reason.

Then a decision

Proceed.
Phase.
Redesign.

You decide what happens next. Nothing is committed to delivery before the leadership decision.

Only after the decision

ERP / Programme Recovery

Governance reset. Operating model realignment. Capability uplift. Recovery delivered.

Programme governance reset: decision rights, escalation paths, accountability rebuilt
Operating model realignment: organisation redesigned to match what the system requires
Capability uplift: closing the gaps identified in the Reality Check
Change embedding: adoption that holds, not just delivers on paper
Regulatory and compliance integrity: maintained and evidenced throughout
Recovery roadmap: sequenced and tracked to performance outcomes

€95k to €290k · 4 to 12 weeks · Only after the leadership decision

Angela Albiston and Martin Barker lead ERP engagements. Lawrence Spence leads the adoption discipline on every recovery.

ERP failure after go-live is as much a change problem as a systems problem. Both need addressing in the same engagement. Chartered Accountant rigour means we understand what the CFO needs to see, not just what the project board is reporting.

The goal is not to fix the system. It is to restore the organisation's ability to deliver the performance improvement the ERP was supposed to create. That is the job that actually matters.

Get a Reality Check

30-minute conversation. No pitch.
We will tell you what we think is happening and whether your programme will deliver what it was supposed to.
Even if you are not yet clear how to define it.

Talk to us about your programme →