Do You Really Need a Third-Party ERP Consultant?
There’s often a debate about whether businesses truly need third-party ERP consultants. In many cases, consultants primarily provide advice rather than direct implementation, which can sometimes lead to questions about their value.
- Limited hands-on experience – Some consultants focus more on recommendations than actual implementation.
- Client resistance – Even with the best advice, businesses may not always be open to change or new approaches. Consultants can guide, but they cannot enforce decisions.
- Accountability concerns – When projects face challenges, it’s sometimes unclear who is responsible for ensuring a successful outcome.
Because of this, one of the most common questions we get is:
“I already have an ERP vendor. Why would I need a third-party consultant?”
How a Consultant Can Add Value
For this, we will like to be honest at the answer. Our role goes beyond advice—we actively help businesses optimize their ERP implementation to align with their workflows, data structures, and user needs.
Here’s how we typically support you:
✅ Advocating for the client’s best interest – Unlike vendors who focus on deploying their solution, we ensure the system works effectively for the business.
✅ Detailed process flow analysis – We go beyond filling out standard templates by mapping and optimizing business workflows.
✅ Comprehensive data migration (ETL) – Instead of a generic data upload, we ensure data is cleaned, structured, and migrated accurately for seamless system integration.
Case Study: When Precision Manufacturing ERP Implementation Goes Wrong
Over the years, we’ve seen several ERP projects struggle, with companies reaching out to us for support after facing major challenge
We shall share a few cases here in the following posts.
Background
📌 Industry: Precision Manufacturing
📌 System: One of the top five global ERP solutions
📌 Challenges: Lack of customization, workflow misalignment, user adoption issues
📌 How We Helped: Custom feature recommendations, process flow studies, user transition strategies, data migration support
When I met this client, it was purely for a grant application. The vendor have already met a few rounds with him and they were confident.
After chatting more on the basis of getting a new ERP system, the client say they tried to implement one the top 5 ERP system previously.
But as they were getting from the government agency’s PSG solutions, they do not have the flexibility to customise. The previous sales staff was very persuasive in saying they have no issue with the client’s process flow etc. All seems good.
However, when implementation began for that previous ERP system, things started falling apart:
🚨 Cumbersome system navigation – Routine tasks like editing sales orders required multiple steps, slowing down operations.
🚨 No user adaptation strategy – Employees were accustomed to a simple legacy system. The new ERP introduced unnecessary complexity, making adoption difficult.
🚨 Missing core functionalities – The system lacked a manufacturing module, leaving a critical gap in their operations.
🚨 Data migration inefficiencies – A third-party ETL contractor struggled with accuracy, turning a one-month process into six months of delays.
🚨 Limited customization – The system only allowed configuration, not true customization, making it difficult to align with business processes without incurring high costs.
How TrustPro Helped Turn It Around
Recognizing the risks, the client sought an additional layer of “insurance”—expert guidance to ensure their ERP system would truly work for them.
Before committing to the project, we conducted:
✔️ A factory walkthrough to understand operational challenges firsthand.
✔️ A system assessment to evaluate whether the selected ERP could meet business needs.
✔️ A process review to identify gaps and potential solutions.
Once we confirmed we could make a meaningful impact, we joined as co-implementation partners, ensuring the ERP system was effectively adapted to the company’s needs.
Key Solutions We Delivered
🔹 Custom feature recommendations – Addressed missing functionalities critical to daily operations.
🔹 Process flow studies – Mapped both current and future-state workflows to align the ERP with business processes.
🔹 User transition support – Helped employees shift from the legacy system to the new ERP with minimal disruption.
🔹 Comprehensive data migration (ETL) – Structured and cleaned the data for a seamless transition.
Final Outcome
By addressing these challenges early, the project turned around successfully. Instead of struggling with an ERP system that didn’t fit, the client now had a system that was:
✅ Aligned with their processes
✅ Adopted by their employees
✅ Optimized for long-term success
Thank you.
We have listed some of our projects over here to showcase our vast ERP consultancy experiences.
For Singapore’s company, there are financial assistance from Enterprise Singapore to help defray costs.
Contact us at win@trustprosg.com for more details.