Design an ERP Solution with Emerging Technologies

This assignment consists of three (3) sections: a written ERP solution, ROI analysis PowerPoint presentation, and the project plan. You must submit the three (3) sections as separate files for the completion of this assignment. Label each file name according to the section of the assignment it is written for. Additionally, you may create and / or assume all necessary assumptions needed for the completion of this assignment.

Imagine that you are a solution architect that specializes in ERP solutions and implementation. You are assigned to work in a midsize company that has over fifty (50) grocery stores in eight (8) states in U.S. This company started as a single store in a small town. It grew quickly in the past ten (10) years with its competitive price and excellent service. However, in the recent two (2) years, its profit margin reduced, vendor base has increased by 50% and store gross sales declined. Executives in the company have been considering many options to improve its earnings. One of the options is to implement an ERP solution to provide the holistic view of the company’s performance, such as its supply chain, marketing effectiveness, customer services, and so on. Your main task is to find and quantify an ERP solution for this company, and help the management team establish a project plan to implement your solution. You need to consider its organizational maturity and in-house skill sets since it is not a technology company. You also need to evaluate new technologies that can accelerate the implementation with less cost. Since this company does not have a formal project management office, you need to develop a project plan to demonstrate the key tasks, milestones, expected timelines, deliverables, and high-level cost and resources plans. As part of the assignment, you need to include the project charter and conduct a return on investment (ROI) analysis. Finally, you need to construct a systems architecture that shows the interactions among the ERP modules and other existing applications / systems.

Section 1: Written ERP Solution

1. Write a ten to fifteen (10-15) page paper in which you:
   
   
   
   1. Conduct a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis to identify the values of using ERP solutions as a way to turn around this company.
   
   
   2. Establish the project charter through the use of MS Word.
   
   
   3. Choose the ERP modules for this company, and explain the assumptions and rationale for each module.  
   
   
   4. Determine inputs, transformations, outputs, and business processes from each ERP modules in the solution.
   
   
   5. Identify at least two (2) new ERP technologies or innovative ideas, and detail their pros and cons in the context of this assignment.  
   
   
   6. Determine at least two (2) ERP vendors (e.g., SAP, Oracle) that are the best of the breed in the new trends identified and explain why they are the leaders in the field.
   
   
   7. Determine the high-level system architecture that will be used to implement the technologies and solutions identified.
   
   
   8. Explain how to integrate data and enable analytics for the company in the overall solutions.
   
   
   9. Speculate and suggest the organizational changes needed for the successful implementation of the solution.
   
   
   10. Speculate on the ethical implications in the solution and how to mitigate the associated risks.
   
   
   11. Explain the production support model that needed to be designed to support the ERP system.
   
   
   12. Use at least five (5) quality resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and similar Websites do not qualify as quality resources.
   
   
   
   

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• This course requires use of new Strayer Writing Standards (SWS). The format is different than other Strayer University courses. Please take a moment to review the SWS documentation for details.


• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow SWS or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.


• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

Section 2: ROI Analysis PowerPoint Presentation

Additional to your written ERP solution you must present your ROI analysis to the executive team that along with the written ERP solution will convince the group that your solution is optimal.

1. Create an eight to ten (8-10) slide PowerPoint presentation in which you:


2. Produce an ROI analysis that can convince the executive team that the solution and project will help the company financially in the long term.


3. Present the qualitative features and benefits of the solution.


4. Create bulleted speaking notes for the presentation to the executive board in the Notes section of the PowerPoint. Note: You may create or assume any fictitious names, data, or scenarios that have not been established in this assignment for a realistic flow of communication.


5. Use a professional technically written style to graphically convey the information.

Section 3: Project Plan

Use Microsoft project to:

1. Develop your project plan. The project plan should:


2. Record all tasks, subtasks, resources, and time related to the project.


3. Outline the planning, analysis, design, and implementation phases.


4. Identify the key milestones of the ERP project.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

• Describe the application of master data to the organization.


• Explain the organizational role of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems.


• Compare and contrast organizational, master, and transactional data in an ERP context.


• Analyze and describe the key process areas in ERP to include: marketing and sales, accounting, procurement, fulfillment, production, inventory and warehouse management, human resources, and material planning processes in ERP systems.


• Summarize how ERP systems represent a key source of competitive advantage for organizations.


• Demonstrate an understanding of existing and emerging ERP technologies, the functions of ERP, and its impact on the organizational operations.


• Evaluate the issues and challenges associated with ERP implementation.


• Develop an ERP solution to address and solve a business problem.


• Evaluate the ethical concerns that ERP systems raise in a global context.


• Use technology and information resources to research issues in ERP.


• Write clearly and concisely about ERP topics using proper writing mechanics and technical style conventions.