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In many organizations, ERP remains one of the most significant investments, yet many CIOs struggle to prove its business value. Too often, ERP is evaluated based on technical upgrades and feature rollouts rather than how it drives business outcomes like growth, efficiency, or customer satisfaction.
The Problem
CIOs are expected to lead digital transformation and improve margins, but outdated ERP mindsets make it difficult to demonstrate ROI. When ERP is only seen as an operational tool, it becomes misaligned with business priorities.
The scale of this challenge is significant. In Gartner's 2023 survey, almost 75% of organizations reported their ERP strategy is not strongly aligned to business strategy. This misalignment creates a vicious cycle where IT teams focus on capabilities while business leaders question the value of their largest technology investment.
For example, improving API integrations might enhance system connectivity, but unless it supports measurable outcomes like reducing loan processing from 5 days to 2 days or increasing digital transaction volume by 30%, it doesn't resonate at the leadership level. Without a direct link to measurable outcomes, ERP investments may lose momentum and stakeholder support.
The Idea
The root cause often lies in how IT and business teams interact. Many organizations operate with unstructured engagement patterns where IT simply waits for sporadic orders from business units. This reactive approach disconnects IT from business strategy and makes it nearly impossible to demonstrate ERP value.
Figure 1: Unstructured engagement vs Strategic engagement
The key is moving from "what can our ERP do?" to "how can our ERP enable the business outcomes we need to achieve?"
What ERP Can Actually Deliver
When viewed strategically, ERP can enable high-impact business outcomes. This means shifting focus from technical capabilities to outcome-driven metrics that demonstrate business value. It is recommended measuring "above the line": connecting ERP capabilities to business value. Metrics like increased workforce productivity or improved customer satisfaction should take priority over technical KPIs like system uptime.
Figure 2: ERP-Contextualized Outcome-Driven Metrics Framework
ERP is Not a One-Time Project
ERP value is not realized at go-live - it's built over time through continuous innovation of critical capabilities. Business needs evolve, and ERP must keep pace. CIOs must lead this evolution by prioritizing ERP capabilities that matter most to business outcomes.
It’s also important to show the impact of both action and inaction. For example, underinvesting in forecasting tools may not hurt immediately, but over time it could result in missed revenue targets or inventory issues. CIOs must be ready to justify not only what ERP can do, but why continuous innovation in critical areas matters to business success.
How Crowe Can Help
At Crowe, we have supported global organizations in propelling their business transformations using SAP ERP capabilities. Starting from Zero-Cost Readiness Checks, and high-impact use case identification to solution integration, we help our clients spur innovation and unlock the business potential of AI and modern ERP.