A hermeneutic analysis of critical success factors for Enterprise Systems implementation by SMEs

ABSTRACT

This study employs the critical hermeneutic approach to identifying current knowledge limitations and propose future research directions. Through five hermeneutic cycles of review, analysis, synthesis and interpretation of the existing literature and success stories reported by 30 small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs), this study identifies critical success factors (CSFs) that are unique to SMEs, frequently cited in the literature, and influential as perceived by SMEs. The study offers contributions by providing a synthesis of CSFs for SMEs; highlighting current knowledge gaps; proposing avenues for future research; and demonstrating the suitability of the critical hermeneutic approach to studying CSFs for ES implementation.     

Motivations for enterprise system adoption in transition economies: insights from Poland

Enterprise system (ES) adoption can bring many benefits, but may also put tremendous strain on an organisation or business, sometimes with disastrous outcomes. The specific motivations and expectations that lead to ES adoption may impact the success or failure of these endeavours, and understanding these motivations may be useful in predicting the success of ES projects. Most of the published research on ES adoption motivation has been in the context of highly developed countries. The social, cultural, economic and political conditions in developing, emerging and transition economies make for a different business environment, and insights obtained from developed countries may not always transfer to these settings. This study seeks to identify and help understand the motivations for ES adoption specifically in transition economies, as these economies play a significant role in the global market, but have not been receiving adequate research attention. Drawing on the experience of 129 ES adopters in Poland, a transition economy, this study categorises motivations into coherent groups of issues and evaluates the influence of discovered motivations on ES adoption success. Further, motivations revealed by this study are compared with motivations reported by prior research conducted in developed countries.     

企业建立与实施HACCP体系的探讨

HACCP是以预防食品安全为基础的质量控制保证体系。文章介绍了HACCP体系的产生与发展及HACCP的概念和特点,探讨了企业HACCP体系的建立条件与实施要点,同时可为企业建立与实施HACCP体系提供借鉴。     

企业工程项目在高职项目化教学模式中的应用

结合工学结合课程——机床电气控制系统的设计与安装调试的教学,探讨企业工程项目在高职项目化教学模式中的应用,并介绍具体的实施过程。通过课程的实施得知,引入企业工程项目的教学跟传统的项目教学法相比,更有利于提高学生的工程实践能力,也是培养学生职业素质的有效途径。     

ERP system implementation in SMEs: exploring the influences of the SME context

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly implementing enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. Compared to large enterprises, SMEs differ in a number of inherent characteristics, which are likely to impact the ERP system implementations. The purpose of this study is to explore these influences of the SME context on the ERP system implementation process. SME characteristics are synthesised from relevant literature and the influences of the contextual factors on various activities across the ERP life cycle are investigated. The study presents findings from a multiple case study of four SMEs. The ownership type of the companies and limited resources were identified as the most influential contextual factors. Among the ERP life-cycle phases, the implementation phase was affected most by the SME context. The case studies also illustrate the need for a more nuanced view on what should be considered general characteristics of SMEs; for example, regarding the level of IS knowledge, business processes, and market characteristics.     

中小企业信息系统规划方法

中小企业信息系统规划应根据自身的需要抓重点,集中资源,重点突破,以点带面,更加注重信息化的集约效益。本文重点探讨了价值链分析法、关键成功因素法、借鉴成功案例等适合中小企业的信息系统规划方法。     

项目管理在企业信息化方面的应用研究

企业信息化项目开发是一项涉及面广，技术难度大的综合系统工程，需投入大量人力、财力、物力资源。对企业组织的改革发展会产生很大的影响应当对企业信息化项目的整个开发过程按照系统的观点，采用现代项目管理的科学理念和方法进行控制，以较小的投入取得理想的效果，使企业信息化得以顺利实施。     

Effects of people-centred factors on enterprise resource planning implementation project success: empirical evidence from Sri Lanka

Extant literature suggests people-centred factors as one of the major areas influencing enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation project success. Yet, to date, few empirical studies attempted to validate the link between people-centred factors and ERP implementation project success. The purpose of this study is to empirically identify people-centred factors that are critical to ERP implementation projects in Sri Lanka. The study develops and empirically validates a framework for people-centred factors that influence the success of ERP implementation projects. Survey research methodology was used and collected data from 74 ERP implementation projects in Sri Lanka. The people-centred factors of ‘project team competence’, ‘rewards’ and ‘communication and change’ were found to predict significantly the ERP implementation project success.     

Business process re-engineering in the logistics industry: a study of implementation,success factors,and performance

As business process re-engineering (BPR) is an important foundation to ensure the success of enterprise systems, this study would like to investigate the relationships among BPR implementation, BPR success factors, and business performance for logistics companies. Our empirical findings show that BPR companies outperformed non-BPR companies, not only on information processing, technology applications, organisational structure, and co-ordination, but also on all of the major logistics operations. Comparing the different perceptions of the success factors for BPR, non-BPR companies place greater emphasis on the importance of employee involvement while BPR companies are more concerned about the influence of risk management. Our findings also suggest that management attitude towards BPR success factors could affect performance with regard to technology applications and logistics operations. Logistics companies which have not yet implemented the BPR approach could refer to our findings to evaluate the advantages of such an undertaking and to take care of those BPR success factors affecting performance before conducting BPR projects.     

A combined approach using AHP and DEMATEL for evaluating success factors in implementation of green supply chain management in Indian manufacturing industries

The present work aims to evaluate the success factors (SFs) associated with the implementation of green supply chain management (GSCM) from the Indian manufacturing industry perspective. Initially, 24 SFs relevant to GSCM adoption and implementation were identified from the literature and inputs received from relevant experts. Subsequently, a structural model was proposed by means of combining the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) approach to evaluate these SFs at the tactical, operational and strategic levels in GSCM adoption. The AHP method helps in determining the relative importance/priorities of the SFs to GSCM adoption. In addition, the DEMATEL method captures the interactive relationships among the SFs, and analyses them on the basis of causal effect mapping. The model proposed can help industrial managers/practitioners to formulate short-term as well as long-term flexible decision strategies in efficiently managing a green supply chain.     

Why HR policies fail to support workplace learning: the complexities of policy implementation in healthcare

An appropriate human resource policy infrastructure to support workplace learning has been advocated both within the literature on workplace learning and in official British Government guidance for healthcare organizations. Yet minimal empirical evidence exists to support the view that HR policies are able to promote greater use of workplace learning methods within organizations. This proposition was tested through collecting both quantitative and qualitative data from staff in British hospices. The findings demonstrated the limited effects of HR policies in this respect and five key factors were identified that appeared to influence HR policy implementation in this instance. These findings have wider significance for our understanding of the complex interrelationships that potentially exist between HR policies, their outcomes and the mediating factors associated with policy implementation.     

Method of evaluating the impact of ERP implementation critical success factors – a case study in oil and gas industries

The so far implemented enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems have in many cases failed to meet the requirements regarding the business process control, decrease of business costs and increase of company profit margin. Therefore, there is a real need for an evaluation of the influence of ERP on the company's performance indicators. Proposed in this article is an advanced model for the evaluation of the success of ERP implementation on organisational and operational performance indicators in oil–gas companies. The recommended method establishes a correlation between a process-based method, a scorecard model and ERP critical success factors. The method was verified and tested on two case studies in oil–gas companies using the following procedure: the model was developed, tested and implemented in a pilot gas–oil company, while the results were implemented and verified in another gas–oil company.     

Strategic Planning and Implementation Success in Public Service Organizations: Evidence from Canada

In this article, we examine the role that formal strategic planning plays in determining the success of strategy implementation in a set of more than 150 public service organizations from Canada. We also analyse the mediating effects of managerial involvement in strategic planning and the moderating effects of stakeholder uncertainty on the planning-implementation relationship. A structured online questionnaire was used to collect the data. Our findings suggest that formal strategic planning has a strong positive relationship with implementation, which, though mediated by managerial involvement, becomes even more salient in the face of stakeholder uncertainty. Several implications of these findings are discussed.     

有色企业生产信息化系统研究与实施

企业信息化是国民经济信息化的基础,也是信息化带动工业化的核心内容。文章以某有色企业生产制造执行系统(MES)建设为背景,详细阐述了有色企业生产信息化项目研发建设过程中,有一定代表性及通用性的系统应用集成、系统分析设计、项目管理及技术路线等相关领域的方法、思路。该方法体系在具体项目实践中收到良好的项目建设效果,具备一定的行业参考价值及借鉴意义。     

Cultural patterns influencing project team behavior in Sub‐Saharan Africa: A case study in Ethiopia

Despite the increasing attention paid to the human element of project success found in the project management literature, empirical studies exploring cultural patterns influencing this particular human element continue to be far from satisfactory. To help further understand the influence of cultural patterns within Sub‐Saharan Africa project environments, we draw on a case study conducted in Ethiopia's service sector. Apart from the well‐perceived cultural values commonly referred to in the existing literature, we specifically investigated the deep‐rooted underlying causes, which include Ethiopian cultural habits, as a principal factor in influencing project team behavior. The article concludes with implications and recommendations for future research.     

Technical and organisational aspects in enterprise resource planning systems implementation: lessons from a Spanish public hospital

Public resources should always be managed efficiently, more so in times of crisis. Due to the specific characteristics of the healthcare sector, there is a need for special attention, especially in regards to hospitals. Administrators need useful tools to be able to efficiently manage available resources, such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. Therefore, an analysis of the effects of their implementation and use in hospitals is valuable. This study has two purposes. One is to analyse the role ERP systems play in aiding the integration of hospital data, with focus on user satisfaction as well as possible resistance to change. The other purpose is to analyse the effects of implanting and using ERP systems in the hospital environment and identifying how certain variables influence the process, especially the existence of different organisational cultures. Results indicate that clinical information has become notably more integrated, despite the lack of flow in the economic–financial area. The heterogeneous nature of the different groups, clinical (Medical, Nursing) and non-clinical (Economic–Financial, Accounting), had a negative influence on the implementation process, and limited the integration of information as well as the system's performance.     

Estimating the impact of enterprise resource planning project management decisions on post-implementation maintenance costs: a case study using simulation modelling

Organisations often make implementation decisions with little consideration for the maintenance phase of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, resulting in significant recurring maintenance costs. Poor cost estimations are likely related to the lack of an appropriate framework for enterprise-wide pre-packaged software maintenance, which requires an ongoing relationship with the software vendor (Markus, M.L., Tanis, C., and Fenema, P.C., 2000 Markus, M. L., Tanis, C. and Fenema, P. C. 2000. Multisite ERP implementation. CACM, 43(4): 42–46. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]. Multisite ERP implementation. CACM, 43 (4), 42–46). The end result is that critical project decisions are made with little empirical data, resulting in substantial long-term cost impacts. The product of this research is a formal dynamic simulation model that enables theory testing, scenario exploration and policy analysis. The simulation model ERPMAINT1 was developed by combining and extending existing frameworks in several research domains, and by incorporating quantitative and qualitative case study data. The ERPMAINT1 model evaluates tradeoffs between different ERP project management decisions and their impact on post-implementation total cost of ownership (TCO). Through model simulations a variety of dynamic insights were revealed that could assist ERP project managers. Major findings from the simulation show that upfront investments in mentoring and system exposure translate to long-term cost savings. The findings also indicate that in addition to customisations, add-ons have a significant impact on TCO.     

地区经济差异、企业组织变迁与环境会计信息披露——来自中国沪市污染行业2009年度的经验数据

经济发展程度的差异造成了欧美等发达国家与发展中国家环境会计信息披露水平的显著差异。我国东、中、西部各地区由于种种原因经济发展极不均衡,这是否会导致地区性环境会计信息披露水平的不同?企业组织理论在现代管理学中具有重要的地位,那么与环境保护相关的企业组织结构变迁与环境会计信息披露之间是否存在必然的联系?从企业外部宏观经济发展水平和企业内部微观组织变迁的视角来考察我国沪市隶属于污染行业的上市公司环境会计信息披露的现状、动机和影响因素,研究结论表明加强政府管制和促进企业内部组织制度的变迁有利于提高企业环境会计信息披露水平。     

Cultural barriers to the use of Western project management in Chinese enterprises: Some empirical evidence from Yunnan province

The Western project management (PM) approach requires the use of not only PM technology but also PM values/beliefs. This research is concerned with the likely cultural barriers for Chinese enterprises to use the PM approach. The literature review reveals the four cultural barriers of the Doctrine of the Mean, Strong Hierarchy, Family Consciousness, and Boss Orientation. Then, through a questionnaire survey at Yunnan province, this research provides some empirical evidence about the actual status of the four cultural barriers. In general, the Chinese traditional values/beliefs of Strong Hierarchy, Family Consciousness, and Boss Orientation are empirically major cultural barriers, and the Doctrine of the Mean is not. In addition, this research empirically reveals the differences in the cultural barriers among different types of enterprises and that appropriate PM training is very important to overcome the cultural barriers. Limitations of this research are also discussed.     

Understanding the adoption of project management in Serbian organizations: Insights from an exploratory study

The article contributes to our understanding of the drivers behind, and the nature of, project management implementation in the complex context of a transitional economy. Relevant insights are generated through an integrated and dynamic analysis of interviews and secondary data from a sample of local organizations, based on a conceptual model of strategic transformation. The analysis concludes with propositions about how both adoption of and resistance to project management implementation in the region could be understood from a strategic point of view, taking into account complex and dissonant circumstances of transition, history, cultural tradition, embedded social values, and identities of individual organizational members.