How to Run a Successful ERP Project: Phases, Challenges, and Adoption

An ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) project is the end-to-end initiative to select, implement, and embed enterprise software that unifies an organization's core business processes, from finance and HR to procurement and operations, into a single system of record. Done well, it eliminates siloed data, reduces manual errors, and gives every team a shared view of the business. Done poorly, it becomes one of the most expensive software failures a company can experience. This guide covers what an ERP project actually involves, the six key implementation phases, the most common challenges, and why user adoption determines whether the investment pays off.

Insights in this article draw on expertise from Lesly Belkhir, Project Manager at Axelor, and Thomas Gereec, Project Director at Lemon Learning, a Digital Adoption Platform.

What Is an ERP Project and Why Do Companies Undertake One?

An ERP project is a strategic investment, not simply a software installation. Companies launch ERP projects to replace fragmented tools, consolidate data into a single source of truth, automate repetitive processes, and gain the reporting visibility needed to make faster decisions.

According to ERP vendors and implementation partners, the business case typically rests on three pillars: data sharing across departments, standardization of key processes, and automation of high-volume tasks. Together, these reduce human error, free up staff for higher-value work, and improve data quality organization-wide.

Lesly Belkhir, Project Manager at Axelor, puts it directly: "Nowadays, an ERP should no longer be seen as unnecessary, but as a solution offering a real ROI." That ROI depends entirely on matching the system to the company's actual challenges. As Thomas Gereec, Project Director at Lemon Learning, explains:

"An efficient ERP is above all an ERP that meets the company's challenges. It is therefore essential to identify these challenges from the start."

Despite the clear value case, many organizations still rely on disconnected spreadsheets and point solutions to manage business data. As Belkhir notes, this exposes them to data loss, poor internal organization, a higher incidence of human errors, and weak cross-team communication, all of which an ERP project is specifically designed to solve.

What Are the Six Phases of an ERP Implementation Project?

ERP implementation follows a defined lifecycle. Most frameworks, including those used by leading ERP vendors, break the process into six phases. Understanding these phases helps project teams set realistic timelines, assign accountability, and avoid the costly scope creep that derails many projects.

Phase 1: Discovery and Planning

The project team defines business requirements, maps existing processes, identifies gaps, and assembles the cross-functional stakeholders who will own each workstream. This phase also produces the project charter and governance structure. Skipping or rushing discovery is one of the leading causes of ERP project failure.

Phase 2: Design

The implementation team translates business requirements into system design. This includes workflow configuration, data model decisions, integration architecture, and role-based access design. Business users, not just IT, need to be active participants here so the system reflects how work actually gets done.

Phase 3: Development

Custom configurations, integrations with third-party systems, and any required custom code are built and documented. The goal is to limit customization to what is genuinely necessary, because heavy customization increases both implementation cost and long-term maintenance burden.

Phase 4: Testing

The system is tested rigorously: unit testing of individual components, integration testing across modules, and UAT (User Acceptance Testing) with representative end users. Issues found in testing are far cheaper to fix than those discovered after go-live.

Phase 5: Deployment

The system goes live, either as a big-bang cutover for all users at once or as a phased rollout by geography or business unit. Data is migrated from legacy systems, and users begin working in the new environment. Support resources must be in place from day one.

Phase 6: Support and Optimization

Post-go-live, the team monitors system performance, resolves issues, and begins a continuous improvement cycle. This phase also covers further user training, adoption measurement, and planning for future module rollouts or upgrades.

For a deeper look at cloud-based rollouts specifically, the cloud ERP implementation guide on this site walks through the additional considerations that apply when the system is hosted rather than on-premise.

What Is the Role of an ERP Project Manager?

The ERP project manager sits at the intersection of technology, business process, and people. Their responsibilities span the entire lifecycle: defining scope, managing timelines and budget, coordinating vendor and internal teams, tracking risks, and ensuring the project stays aligned with the original business objectives.

In an ERP context, the project manager role carries specific demands that differ from typical IT project management:

The PMI (Project Management Institute) recognizes ERP implementations as a specific application domain within project management, highlighting the cross-functional complexity involved. A strong ERP project manager understands both the technical architecture and the organizational dynamics well enough to bridge them.

What Are the Biggest Challenges in an ERP Project?

ERP projects are among the most complex technology initiatives a company can undertake. The challenges are well-documented and recurring. Knowing them in advance is the first step to avoiding them.

Selecting the Right ERP System

The ERP market includes solutions that range from broad generalist platforms to industry-specific and project-based ERP systems designed for project-driven businesses. Choosing the wrong architecture, or selecting a vendor before requirements are defined, is a foundational mistake. As Belkhir advises: "To choose the most appropriate ERP, you must first have defined your needs precisely, ideally by involving the business players from the start."

Scope Creep and Budget Overruns

ERP projects are notorious for growing beyond their original scope. Each request to add a module, customize a workflow, or integrate an additional system adds cost and time. Rigorous change control and a realistic initial scope definition are essential countermeasures.

Data Quality and Migration

Migrating years of data from legacy systems, spreadsheets, and point tools into a new ERP exposes data quality problems that were previously hidden. Poor data migration is one of the most common causes of post-go-live problems. Data cleansing must begin well before the migration date.

Change Resistance

ERP changes how people do their jobs every day. Without structured change management, employees resist, revert to old tools, or use the system incorrectly. The ERP implementation challenges organizations face most often trace back to the human side, not the technology side.

Inadequate User Training

Generic training disconnected from the actual system and role is a persistent failure mode. As Thomas Gereec states: "Training users via a manual, a PDF, or an e-learning device doesn't work. These training devices are not immersive enough. They are training elements, not support elements." ERP users need contextual, role-specific guidance embedded in the system itself, not a one-time classroom event before go-live.

First-Time Implementation Failure Rate

The ERP industry has long cited high rates of implementations that fail to meet their original objectives on the first attempt, whether due to budget overruns, missed timelines, or failure to achieve the expected business outcomes. Reviewing documented ERP implementation failure cases reveals patterns that are entirely preventable with the right preparation.

How Does Change Management Affect ERP Project Outcomes?

Change management is not a soft add-on to an ERP project. It is a determinant of whether the project delivers value. Every ERP implementation is fundamentally a change to how people work, which means the organizational readiness for that change must be built in parallel with the technical implementation.

Effective change management in an ERP project involves four core activities:

1. Stakeholder engagement from the start: Business owners and key users must be involved in requirements definition, not just consulted after decisions are made. Their ownership of the project drives downstream adoption.
2. Clear and consistent communication: Users need to understand why the change is happening, what it means for their role, and what support is available. Communication should be continuous, not just a pre-go-live announcement.
3. Role-specific training: Training must map to how each user group will actually use the system. Generic ERP training that is not grounded in real workflows fails to build the competency users need.
4. Post-go-live reinforcement: Adoption does not end at go-live. Ongoing support, usage monitoring, and feedback loops are essential to sustaining the behavior change the ERP project requires.

Marc Cohen, DSI at INRAP, captured the essential principle on the CIO Pioneers podcast:

"The most important thing is really to talk with users. It is all very nice to say we launched something, but what matters most is whether, in the field, people are satisfied; if not, understand why and what we can do to help."

Marc Cohen, DSI, INRAP, CIO Pioneers podcast

Understanding end-user realities also shapes the technical configuration of the ERP itself. Gereec advises teams to "conduct an audit of end users' uses" and ensure "visibility into the company's organization, including key users and overall planning of the internal project." An ERP that does not fit how people actually work will not be used as intended, regardless of its technical capability.

Why Is User Adoption the True Measure of ERP Project Success?

An ERP project is only as successful as the adoption it generates. A technically flawless implementation that employees avoid or misuse delivers no business value. As Belkhir notes: "Not using an ERP or not using it properly is giving up its undeniable advantage in terms of productivity and data management. The result is a colossal loss of time and lower profitability."

User adoption is shaped by three factors:

• Fit between system and role: Users adopt systems that help them do their job more easily. Configuration that reflects real workflows reduces friction at the point of use.
• Quality of support at go-live and beyond: The first weeks after go-live are when habits form. Users who cannot get help in the moment revert to old methods.
• Ongoing reinforcement: Adoption is a process, not an event. Measurement, feedback, and continuous improvement sustain long-term usage.

How Can a Digital Adoption Platform Support an ERP Project?

A DAP (Digital Adoption Platform) addresses the training and support gap that classroom instruction and static documentation cannot fill. Rather than training users before they interact with the system, a DAP delivers contextual, interactive guidance directly inside the ERP interface, at the moment a user needs help completing a specific task.

Thomas Gereec explains the approach: "Our system of interactive embedded guides accompanies users in real time directly from their ERP." This in-application support model has several practical advantages over traditional training methods:

For ERP projects specifically, a DAP is particularly valuable during the post-go-live support phase, when users are executing real business transactions for the first time and errors have actual consequences. It also supports ongoing optimization as new modules roll out or workflows change.

The Lemon Learning change management solution is designed precisely for this context, helping organizations build adoption into the ERP project plan rather than treating it as an afterthought.

ERP Project and Digital Transformation: The Bigger Picture

An ERP project rarely exists in isolation. It is typically one of the most significant workstreams within a broader digital transformation strategy, connecting financial systems, HR platforms, supply chain tools, and customer-facing operations under a unified data architecture.

This broader context has two important implications for project teams. First, the ERP project must be sequenced and coordinated with other transformation initiatives so that integration dependencies are managed and employees are not overwhelmed by simultaneous change. Second, the ERP itself needs to be configured with future scalability in mind. A system designed only for current-state processes will constrain the organization as it evolves.

The expansion of remote and hybrid work since 2020 has added a further dimension. Training and support that once relied on in-person sessions or on-site key users must now work for distributed teams. This has accelerated adoption of in-application support tools precisely because they function regardless of where the user is located.

ERP Project Best Practices: A Summary Framework

Drawing on the insights above and the documented patterns across ERP implementations, the following framework captures the practices most consistently associated with successful ERP projects:

1. Define business requirements before selecting a vendor. The choice of ERP system should follow a clear articulation of the problems the organization needs to solve.
2. Involve business stakeholders from the start. IT cannot own an ERP project alone. Business process owners must be accountable for their domains throughout design, testing, and go-live.
3. Treat change management as a workstream, not a task. Assign a dedicated resource, build a change plan, and run it in parallel with the technical implementation from day one.
4. Invest in data quality early. Data cleansing and migration planning should begin in the design phase, not the month before go-live.
5. Limit customization to genuine business needs. Customization that mimics legacy system quirks rather than improving processes adds cost and risk with no business benefit.
6. Design training around roles, not features. Users need to know how to complete their specific tasks, not how the system works in the abstract.
7. Plan for post-go-live adoption, not just go-live delivery. Measure usage, identify friction points, and provide ongoing support. The ERP project is not complete at go-live.
8. Build feedback loops with end users. Regular check-ins with users after go-live surface adoption problems early and demonstrate that the project team is responsive.

ERP projects are among the highest-stakes technology investments an organization can make. The six implementation phases, the role of the project manager, the centrality of change management, and the critical importance of post-go-live adoption are not independent concerns. They form an integrated system. Organizations that treat them as such are the ones that realize the productivity, data quality, and operational efficiency gains that ERP promises.