ERP consulting
Work out whether you need an ERP - then which one, and in what order.
ERP is not a reporting upgrade. It is a decision to run finance, inventory and operations on shared definitions. As your ERP consultant we assess readiness and fit, design the target operating model, and phase the architecture. Delivery is a separate discipline, described on our implementation page.
Conceptual state
Stock counted - ready to invoice
At a glance
- Platform focus
- Odoo for finance, inventory, procurement and manufacturing; Zoho where operations are lighter and customer-led.
- Common triggers
- Stock accuracy, job costing, multi-entity reporting, traceability and growth outpacing spreadsheets.
- Risk position
- Phased scope, real-data UAT and documented cutover - never a single untested switchover.
Scope
What an ERP engagement covers.
Scope is set by the processes that actually constrain you. We phase deliberately rather than implementing every module at once.
Operational data model
Products, variants, units of measure, warehouses, cost methods, projects and cost centres defined once. Almost every reporting dispute later traces back to a decision made here.
Order to cash
Quote, order, fulfilment, delivery and invoice as one traceable chain, so revenue recognition and customer status agree without manual reconciliation.
Procure to pay
Requisitions, purchase orders, receipting, supplier invoice matching and payment approval with clear thresholds and audit trail.
Inventory and fulfilment
Accurate stock positions, replenishment rules, lot or serial traceability where required, and a stocktake process that does not stop the business.
Manufacturing and job costing
Bills of material, routings, work orders and actual versus estimated cost - so quoting improves from real data rather than habit.
Finance and reporting
Chart of accounts, tax treatment for Australian requirements, period close, and management reporting produced from the system rather than rebuilt in spreadsheets.
Readiness
ERP is the right answer less often than vendors suggest.
An honest fit assessment costs a fraction of an abandoned implementation.
ERP is likely right
Signals we look for
- Stock, job cost or margin figures are argued over monthly
- Finance rekeys data from operational systems
- Multiple spreadsheets act as the real system of record
- Growth is adding admin headcount, not capacity
- Compliance or traceability needs are outgrowing the tooling
ERP is probably premature
Fix the cheaper thing first
- The core issue is lead flow or follow-up, not operations
- Existing accounting plus integration would close the gap
- Processes are undocumented and still changing weekly
- No internal owner is available for the project
- The driver is a single report that could be built directly
What ERP actually is
ERP is not a reporting upgrade. It is a decision to run finance, inventory and operations on shared definitions.
Which is why readiness and target operating model come before platform selection, and why the phasing matters as much as the choice.
Delivery
How we implement.
Each stage produces artefacts you keep: process documentation, data mappings, test evidence and operating procedures.
01
Fit assessment
Current operating model, volumes, integrations and pain points assessed against what an ERP would realistically change. We say so if the answer is not ERP.
02
Solution design
Target processes, data model, module scope, integration points and reporting requirements documented and agreed before configuration begins.
03
Configure and build
Iterative configuration with review checkpoints per process area, plus any integrations to CRM, marketing, logistics or payroll.
04
Data migration
Master data first, then balances and open transactions. Trial runs, reconciliation to source, and a documented cutover with rollback criteria.
05
UAT and training
Real users testing real scenarios against agreed acceptance criteria, then role-based training and written procedures.
06
Go-live and stabilise
An agreed post go-live support window scoped in the engagement, exception tracking, and a prioritised improvement backlog rather than an abandoned project.
Boundaries
An ERP should not try to be everything.
Keep acquisition where it belongs
Marketing capture and nurture usually run better outside the ERP, integrated into it at the point an order becomes real.
Decide the system of record per object
Customer, product, price, order and invoice each need one owning system. Ambiguity here is the root of most sync failures.
Automate after the process settles
Automation applied to a process still being redesigned creates rework. We sequence it after stabilisation.
Considering ERP, or recovering from one?
Start with a fit assessment. If your problem is cheaper to solve another way, we will tell you.