Abstract

The study seeks to investigate The Factors affecting the implementation of enterprise
Systems (ERP)”. Many organizations globally are adopting ERP systems but little research
currently exists in this area. It is increasingly evident that our continued prosperity as nations,
communities, and ultimately as individuals is closely linked to our ability to create and
maintain profitable, competitive and sustainable business and institutional enterprises. Such
enterprises require the organization of aggregated basic resources.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) aims to maximize the use of all the resources in an
organization. These resources include: the employees and their skills and competencies; the
business processes, procedures and organizational structure; the IT systems which support the
various business areas. The ERP vision promises one database and one user interface across an
entire multi-site enterprise. Taking information from every business area, ERP helps managers
and employees plan, monitor and control the entire business. Improved control of resources
means greater efficiency and effectiveness.

This research paper investigates the factors affecting ERP systems implementations. The
research study will be based in Nairobi and will mainly focus on Safaricom Ltd, a leading
organization in the Information and Communication Technology (I.C.T) industry. The main
result of this study is to provide a clear framework for organizations that want to attain a
strong competitive advantage at the same time enhance a long-term reduction of its costs.
The data collection methods to be used include questionnaires both structured and
unstructured, literature research in both primary and secondary data.

The sampling technique to be adopted is stratified random sampling technique considering that
the population has similar characteristics. Data analysis will be done using descriptive
statistics. This will involve the use of percentages and cross tabulations

The findings that will be obtained at the end of the study are purposed to act as a guideline on
the major factors facing ERP systems implementation and how organizations can adopt them.
 CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Companies have abandoned legacy systems in favor of a new class of comprehensive
packaged application software designed to integrate the core corporate activities of an
organization. Variously called Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, enterprise-wide
systems, or enterprise systems, ERP systems are the software tools used to manage all the
enterprise's data, and to provide information to those who need it when they need it. These
systems help organizations deal with their supply chain: receiving, inventory management,
customer order management, production planning and managing, shipping, accounting, human
resource management, and all other activities that take place in a modern business
The purpose was to integrate all facets of the business enterprise under one suite of software
applications. The definition of ERP would be broadened to include almost any type of large
integrated software package. Webopedia provides a generalized definition of ERP as “a
business management system that integrates all facets of the business, including planning,
manufacturing, sales, and marketing.” Some of the more well-known ERP software developers
include SAP, Oracle, and PeopleSoft (Avison et al. 2001).
An enterprise resource planning system (ERP) is a packaged business software system that lets
a company; automate and integrate the majority of its business processes, share common data
and practices across the enterprise, produce and access information in a real-time environment.
Through collapse of many companies, especially parastatals, one learns that a good pay as
well as a big title is not enough to get the best talent and retain it. It’s all about the working
environment. Information systems exist in most people’s working lives. It is now generally
accepted that the information system world is one where human, social and organizational
factors are as important as the technological (Avison et al. 2001).
ERP’s are said to improve decision-making activities, increase competitive advantage,
centralize control and affect competitor’s behavior. ERP has diffused many “best practice”
processes into the system. The high cost of adoption (average of $15 million per system) also
justifies investigation (Koch et al. 1999) and the most common areas for budget overruns have
been identified by Koch as: training, integration and testing, data conversion and data analysis.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Business houses always find great difficulty in quickly making out the required information
because of the voluminous data, improper segregation, departmental arrangements and
unprecedented delays. Organizations are constantly searching for some means or mode to
overcome this debacle. The inconvenience is not only pinching on monetary profits but also
antagonized customers who are made to wait for a long time for a small piece of data.
An effective business strategy centers on an aggressive, efficient use of information
technology; for this reason the ERP systems have emerged as the core of successful
information management, and the enterprise backbone of the organization. A successful ERP
system will streamline processes within a company and improve its overall effectiveness,
while providing a means to externally enhance competitive performance, increase
responsiveness to customers, and support strategic initiatives.

Currently in Kenya, many organizations are yet to benefit from the implementation of ERP
systems. With the many bureaucratic structures existing in organizations and key policies
governing organizations, it has become difficult for them to implement key I.C.T systems that
reduce the number of these structures and computerize key functions and tasks. Many Kenyan
organizations seek to achieve competitive advantage and maintain a strong corporate image,
but they tend to lose millions of shillings trying to make I.C.T infrastructure adaptable to their
own organizational requirements. It is therefore important for organizations to understand the
impact that Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) can bring into enhancing their firms. On the
other hand, it is also important for these organizations to understand the factors that lead to the
implementation of ERP systems.

Gargeya and Brady (2005) state that an ERP success can be a complete success – one in which
everything goes off without a hitch, or one in which there are few alignment problems,
resulting in minor inconvenience or downtime. Some of the blame for failures in ERP
implementation lies with the enormous technical challenges of rolling out enterprise systems –
these systems are profoundly complex pieces of software and installing them requires large
investments of money, time, and expertise. But the technical challenges, however great, are
not the main reason enterprise systems failed. The biggest problems are business problems.
Companies fail to reconcile the technological imperatives of the enterprise system with the
business needs of the enterprise itself (Davenport, 1998).

ERP is not intended for every business (Gargeya and Brady, 2005). When considering the
decision to invest in an ERP system, a business case must be developed to provide an
understanding of ERP, and to formally assess the benefits that the company- as an individual
entity apart from its competitors – can expect to achieve. The analysis must consider not only
the obvious cost/benefits analysis, but also the non-financial factors. Non-financial benefits
include information visibility and flexibility (Sandoe et al., 2001).
ERP implementation can reap enormous benefits for successful companies-or it can be
disastrous for organizations that fail to manage the implementation process. We must ask
ourselves two critical questions, “How can ERP systems be implemented successfully?” and
“What are the factors that affect ERP systems implementation?” (Holland and Light, 1999).
GENERAL OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The general objective of this study is to investigate the factors affecting the implementation of
E.R.P’s in organizations, and highlight the requirements of ERP systems implementation in an
organization showing a clear framework and plan of action.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
• To clearly bring out the factors that should be taken into consideration for organizations
seeking to improve their business performance through the use of Enterprise Resource
Planning.
• To highlight the significance brought about by an Enterprise Resource Planning system
implementation within an organization in achievement of organizational growth and
expansion, so as to maintain a competitive advantage.
• To highlight the reasons as to why these factors have a direct impact on implementation of
an ERP system and what could be the causes of failure of an ERP system in spite of a
well-structured organization.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The following are some of the research questions that will be answered during the course of
this research paper.
1) Should the quest for ERP systems consider the corporate and organizational factors that
exist in the environment?
2) In what manner does the organization’s senior management and the project management
team determine the success or failure of the ERP systems implementation?
3) Is availability of financial resources and the technical expertise the only requirements that
determine the success/failure of an organization’s ERP system implementation?
JUSTIFICATION OF THE STUDY
The main purpose of the study is to clearly bring out the factors affecting the implementation
of ERP systems. The research tends to look at various aspects of the Enterprise Resource
Planning system, acknowledging the fact that it is a concept that is gaining in importance and
recognition and especially in large organizations.
Achieving business process improvement and control is also a key investment incentive.
These include operational or tangible benefits (cost reduction, improvements in cycle times,
productivity, quality and customer services) (Willis 2002); managerial benefits (improved
resource management, decision making, planning and performance); and organizational
benefits (support to organizational changes, facilitation of business learning, empowerment
and building common visions) (Shang and Seddon 2000).
ERP systems also may offer competitive advantage through providing better service to
customers as well as internal stakeholders by making organizational data available for client
use. A system which allows clients to place orders, view previous orders, change their
organizational details, view the delivery or shipment status of their order and pay online, is
meeting client information needs in addition to improving improved organizational data
management capability. A successful ERP system allows an organization to present a single
face (one-stop-shop) to the client, to strengthen supplier partnerships and gain competitive
advantage by doing so (Willis 2001).
An enterprise system streamlines a company’s data flows and provides management with
direct access to a wealth of real-time operating information. For many companies, these
benefits have translated into dramatic gains in productivity and speed. ERP predicts and
balances demand and supply.
An ERP system is a way doing things different in an organization and especially in enhancing
expansion and growth of enterprises. Thus the significance of ERP systems in organizations is
an important element that will be considered and especially in regard to whether an
organization will succeed or fail in its implementation. The study will also look at how ERP
systems can be implemented to ensure optimum efficiency in business operations.
LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
1) Due to the nature of organizations and especially their rigidity in policy making and
decision making, many may not fully understand the whole concept of Enterprise
Resource Planning (ERP).
2) Only a number of organizations in particular industries have fully or partly implemented
the ERP system but not in other industrial sectors. There’s more concentration in a
particular industrial sector than in others.
 CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 INTRODUCTION
In order to survive in a rapidly changing business environment, organizations must improve
their own business practices and procedures. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems can
be considered as the most important development in the corporate use of information
technology and are beginning to be the backbone of organizations. This section aims at
looking at the relevant literature so as to form a basis of the study. It starts by looking at the
Theoretical Literature and then the Empirical Literature.
THEORETICAL LITERATURE:
Information systems development has been conceptualized in past research as a process that
leads to a decision about the choice, design and development of an information system. Past
research findings suggest that the effectiveness or success of an information system depends
on a variety of factors, most importantly those relating to the extent of user participation and
involvement in system development, the extent of business process and needs assessment
during the analysis stage of the systems development process, and the level of data integration
designed into the system. In a similar fashion, researchers in the fields of management
decision making have promoted the shared assumption that a better designed information
system would contribute to the efficiency with which organizational functions are carried out
and the effectiveness of attaining desired outcomes (Willis 2001).

ERP is the process of integrating all the business functions and processes in an organization to
achieve numerous benefits. First, a single point of data entry helps to reduce data redundancy
while saving employee’s time in entering data, thereby reducing labor and overhead costs.
Second, the centralization of information, decision-making, and control leads to increases in
efficiencies of operations and productivity, as well as coordination between departments,
divisions, regions, and even countries (Willis 2001).
Consequently, the factors that influence the process of system development would also have a
significant effect on both organizational performance and user perceptions about the system
after its implementation and continued use in an organization, that is, during its post-
implementation stage (Galbraith 1995).
FACTORS AFFECTING ERP SYSTEMS IMPLEMENTATION:
Implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system project is a difficult and high
cost proposition as it places tremendous demands on organization’s time and resources.
Factors affecting ERP implementation are complex and abundant and numerous authors have
identified a variety of factors that can be considered to be the factors affecting ERP
implementation1.
A description of these factors is described below:
1. Organizational Culture and Change Effort:
The following definition will be adopted to enable a clear understanding of what is meant by
‘organizational culture’:
A patterned system of perceptions, meanings, and beliefs about the organization which
facilitates sense-making among a group of people sharing common experiences. It emerges
from the social interaction of organizational members and is the product of shared symbols
and meanings”.
Derived from (Bloor and Dawson 1994) and (Bright and Cooper 1993)
Organizational cultures are resistant to change (Meyerson and Martin 1987). A crucial
characteristic of most information systems is that individuals are required to change their
behavior (Lucas Jnr 1981, p2). In regard to organizational change and information systems,
four key characteristics have been identified: the content, the social context, the social process,
and the context/process linkage (Walsham 1993). Consideration of these factors in
combination will increase the chance of successful change.
Cultural change requires a thorough understanding of how cultures work, what factors about
them are likely to produce what sorts of resistance to change in a given situation, and what
levers cultures offer for producing change” (Gagliardi 1990). The potential diversity of human
behavior can lead to chaos and chaos can be threatening as new uncertainties arise. Some
suggest that cultures cover up the disorder of existence and construct a precarious social
reality that keeps chaos at bay (Gagliardi 1990).
Companies have realized the essence of culture, that change is the next buzz word taking the
corporate market by storm. But flawed corporate cultures are not exclusive to Kenyan
companies. The implementation of ERP systems ultimately results in changes to processes
1
Umble, E.J., Haft, R.R., and Umble, M.M. (2003). Enterprise resource planning: implementation
procedures and critical success factors. European Journal of Operational Research, 146: 241-257.
(business-oriented activities), which in turn inflicts changes to work practices (people-oriented
activities).
2. Top Management Support:
Top management support has been consistently identified as the most important and crucial
success factor in ERP system implementation projects [4]. (Slevin, 1996) define top
management to provide the necessary resources and authority or power for project success.
Top management support in ERP implementation has two main facets: (1) providing
leadership; and (2) providing the necessary resources. To implement ERP system successfully,
management should monitor the implementation progress and provide clear direction of the
project. They must be willing to allow for a mindset change by accepting that a lot of learning
has to be done at all levels, including themselves.
A successful implementation is only achievable when high-level executives have a strong
commitment to the project (Davenport, 2000). The attitude of senior managers will affect not
only the flow of funds and information to the project, but also the subordinates view the
project, its future impact upon the company as a whole, and its impact upon the employees as
valued and capable individuals. Top management support is needed throughout the
implementation. The project must receive approval from top management and align with
strategic business goals (Summer, 1999). This can by tying management bonuses to project
success (Wee, 2000).
Top management needs to publicly and explicitly identify the project as a top priority (Wee,
2000). Senior management must be committed with its own involvement and willingness to
allocate valuable resources to the implementation effort (Holland et al., 1999). This involves
providing the needed people for the implementation and giving appropriate amount of time to
get the job done.
3. Clear Goals and Objectives
This factor is related with concerns of project goals clarification and their congruence with the
organizational mission and strategic goals. Clear goals and objectives are essential to guide an
ongoing organizational effort for ERP implementation as it usually exceeds the time frame for
a typical business project. Clear goals and objectives were the third most critical success
factors in a study of MRP implementation. It is important to set the goals of the project before
even seeking top management support [14]. The “triple constraint” of project management
specifies three often competing and interrelated goals that need to be met: scope, time, and
cost goals. There must also be clear definitions of goals, expectations, and deliverables.
Finally, the organization must carefully define why the ERP system is being implemented and
what critical business needs the system will address (Rosario, 2000).
4. Planning/Development/budgeting
Planning a sophisticated ERP project should not be taken lightly or with little forethought.
There are enormous potential costs associated with such an undertaking. In addition to the
high costs paid out, there can be major expenses incurred by companies that were unable to
fully develop a comprehensive plan. Planning should be closely identified with maintaining
scope during an implementation. Cost overruns and developmental delays are costly,
sometimes fatal results of ineffective planning (Gargeya and Brady, 2005).
A clear business plan and vision to steer the direction of the project is needed throughout the
ERP life cycle. A business plan that outlines proposed strategic and tangible benefits,
resources, costs, risks and timeline is critical (Wee, 2000). This will help keep focus on
business benefits.
There should be a clear business model of how the organization should operate after the
implementation effort (Holland et al., 1999). There should be a justification for the investment
based on a problem and the change tied directly to the direction of the company. Project
mission should be related to business needs and should be clearly stated. Goals and benefits
should be identified and tracked. The business plan would make work easier and impact on
work (Rosario, 2000).
5. Effective Project Management
Project Management involves the use of skills and knowledge in coordinating the scheduling
and monitoring of defined activities to ensure that the stated objectives of implementation
projects are achieved. The formal project implementation plan defines project activities,
commits personnel to those activities, and promotes organizational support by organizing the
implementation process. There are five major parts of project management:
a) Having a formal implementation plan,
b) A realistic time frame,
c) Having periodic project status meetings,
d) Having an effective project leader who is also a champion, and
e) Having project team members who are stakeholders.
The team can have a mix of consultants and internal staff so that the internal staff develop the
necessary technical skills for design and implementation (Sumner, 1999). Both business and
technical knowledge are essential for success. The ERP project should be their top and only
priority and their workload should be manageable (Wee, 2000).

6. Business Process Reengineering

Another important factor that is critical for the implementation is the Business Process
Reengineering. It is defined by as “the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business
processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical, contemporary measures of
performance, such as cost, quality, service and speed”. Organizations should be willing to
change their businesses to fit the ERP software in order to minimize the degree of
customization needed. The implementation of ERP requires examination of many business
processes, which believed to be one of the important and beneficial results of the
implementation of ERP system. Dimensions concerning business process reengineering are:
a) Company’s willingness to reengineering,
b) Company’s readiness for change, and
c) Company’s capability of reengineering.
Aligning the business process to the software implementation is critical. Organizations should
be willing to change the business to fit the software with minimal customization (Holland et
al., 1999). The software should not be modified, as far as possible (Sumner, 1999).
Modifications should be avoided to reduce errors and to take advantage of newer versions and
releases (Rosario, 2000).
7. Change Management
Change management is a primary concern of many organizations involved in ERP project
implementation. Many ERP implementations fail to achieve expected benefits, possibly
because companies underestimate the efforts involved in change management.
Esteves, J and Pastor, J. (2001) identify organizational change is the body of knowledge that is
used to ensure that a complex change, like that associated with a new big information system,
gets the right results, in the right timeframe, at the right costs. Generally, one of the main
obstacles facing ERP implementation is resistance to change. Gupta (2000), points out that the
resistance to change is one of the main hurdles faced by most companies. Resistance can be
destructive since it can create conflicts between actors, it can be very time consuming. To
implement an ERP systems successfully, the way organizations do business will need to
change and ways people do their jobs will need to change as well [12].[13] propose the
recurring improvisational change methodology as a useful technique for identifying,
managing, and tracking changes in implementing an ERP system. Change Management is
important and one of the critical success factors identified in the literature. It is imperative for
success of implementation project starting at the initial phase and continuing throughout the
entire life cycle.
8. Technological Infrastructure
Adequate IT infrastructure, hardware and networking are crucial for an ERP system’s success.
It is clear that ERP implementation involves a complex transition from legacy information
systems and business processes to an integrated IT infra-structure and common business
process throughout the organization. Hardware selection is driven by the firm’s choice of an
ERP software package. The ERP software vendor generally certifies which hardware (and
hardware configurations) must be used to run the ERP system. This factor has been considered
critical by the practitioners and as well as by the researchers. Two aspects should be cared
when selecting software and hardware:
a) Compatibility of software/hardware and company’s needs, and
b) Ease of customization.
9. User training and Education
In ERP implementation process many projects fail in the end due to lack of proper training.
Many researchers consider users training and education to be an important factor of the
successful ERP implementation. The main reason for education and training program for ERP
implementation is to make the user comfortable with the system and increase the expertise and
knowledge level of the people. ERP related concept, features of ERP system, and hands on
training are all important dimensions of training program for ERP implementation. Training is
not only using the new system, but also in new processes and in understanding the integration
within the system – how the work of one employee influences the work of others.

EMPIRICAL LITERATURE
ERP IMPLEMENTATION
The implementation of an ERP changes the way organizations do business and how people
carry out their work (Koch et al. 1999). Three major motivations for implementing ERP’s
have been identified by (Koch et al. 1999): to integrate financial data, to standardize
manufacturing processes, to standardize HR information.
(Koch et al. 1999) also discusses three common approaches to ERP systems implementation in
organizations. As the number of modules being implemented increases, there is a shift from a
big-bang to a phased approach. The phased approach is used at the research site.
• Big bang – This approach enables organizations to cast off all their legacy systems at once
and implement a single ERP system across the entire organization. This is the most
ambitious and difficult of approaches to ERP implementation.
• Franchise Strategy – This strategy, also referred to in literature as ‘phased
implementation’, suits large or diverse companies that don’t share many common
processes across business units. Independent ERP systems are installed in each unit, while
linking common processes.
This is the most common way of implementing ERP and it allows the systems to link
together only to share the information necessary for the corporation to get a performance
big picture across all the business units.
“Usually these implementations begin with a demonstration or “pilot” installation in a
particularly open-minded and patient business unit where the core business of the
corporation will not be disrupted if something goes wrong” (Koch et al. 1999), as is the
case in this research.
• Slam-dunk – With this approach, ERP dictates the process design and the focus is on just a
few key business processes. This implementation strategy is most appropriate for smaller
organizations.
The benefits and limitations of ERP implementations are well documented in the literature.
 ERP CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ON BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE

Organization Business challenges:

• responsibility criterion • Intensifying competition for
• cooperation mechanism customers
• Upper level support • Customer changing
• Cross-organization team • Market share declining
• High inventory costs

Ensure Success

Management Information system Business solution:

• Order process reengineering
• Purchase Plan improving
• R&D process reengineering
• IT knowledge management
Enable Realization
• Order information share &
process control module
• On-line material purchase
roll planning module
• Production estimation &
planning module
• Reduce inventory & fund
possession
• Increase customer
Satisfactory Degree
• More efficient cooperation

Information technology
• Data integration
• computer networks
• Data communication
• Fuzzy algorithm

CONCLUSION
The most significant change is that from a paper-based to electronic-based system. This
change is likely to be acceptable to the IT culture of the company as IT people generally prefer
to work with things electronically. The way that ERP’s enable information to be uninhibited
by time and space limitations is also a substantial change. For example, users can gather data
at any time during the year therefore supporting planning activities.
The implementation projects of ERP systems are big, strategic and complex projects which
involve lots of risks, what is reflected on time, scope and costs of project implementation.
Because of that, companies have to create conditions, in which they can implement chosen
solution in expected time, scope and evaluated costs. This means, that companies should be
aware of what most factors of ERP implementations are.
This study aims to identify and evaluate the factors affecting ERP implementation in
organizations. Factors affecting ERP implementation are complex and abundant. A total of 9
factors for ERP implementation have been identified based on a review of the related
literature.
Variables and their measurement
 CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction
The chapter presents a description of the data and methods used for analysis in the study. The
study will make use of primary data and the main method of analysis will be through
descriptive statistics.
The research will be carried out in Nairobi and will target the personnel at Safaricom Ltd, who
play a key role in the use of the system. It was mainly looking at the significant impact it has
had on the organization before implementation and also after implementation. This was also
meant to gauge the effectiveness and efficiency of the system within the organization and how
it has enabled it to meet its goals and objectives and maintain a competitive advantage.
To gather the information, questionnaires were used, which were given to the various
employees at the branch level. Other instruments used were oral interviews.
TARGET POPULATION
The target population will be the employees of Safaricom Ltd focusing on 5 departments that
will be selected randomly because the ERP system is in place in all the departments within the
company. From the 5 departments, 7 respondents will be selected on a random basis.
SAMPLING PROCEDURE
The study will employ stratified random sampling technique in each of the 5 departments that
will be randomly selected; since the population has similar characteristics and most of the
activities in each of the department are identical thus they will tend to yield similar results.
SAMPLE SIZE
The study will have a total sample size of 35 respondents. Whereby 5 will be the respective
Heads of department and the remaining will be the staff members of the respective
departments at Safaricom Ltd.

DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURE

Data will be collected using self-administered questionnaires both structured and unstructured
and also the use of personal interviews. The data will mainly be primary.

DATA ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES

The technique of analysis will mainly be through the use of descriptive statistics.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Esteves, J. and Pastor, J., “Analysis of critical success factors relevance along SAP
implementation phases”. Proceedings of the 7th Americas Conference on Information Systems
(AMCIS), Boston, Massachusetts, USA, 2001.

Galbraith, J.R. (1995) Designing Organizations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Gargeya, V.B. and Brady, C. (2005), Success and failure factors of adopting SAP in ERP
system implementation, Business Process Management Journal.

Govindarajan, V., and Fisher, J. (1990) Strategy, control systems, and resource sharing:
Effects on business unit performance. Academy of Management Journal, 33(June): 259-285.

Gupta (2000), “Enterprise resource planning to emerging organizational value systems”,

Industrial Management & Data System (100), pp.114 -118, 2000.
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/E/ERP.html

Koch, Christopher (2004) CIO Magazine “The ABCs of Enterprise Resource Planning”. (7th
March 2002) The International Data Group, U.S.A.

Laudon, Kenneth. C & Laudon, Jane. P (2003) Essentials of Management Information

Systems, 5th ed. Prentice-Hall Inc., Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.

Nicolaou, A.I. (1999) Social control in information systems development. Information

Technology & People 12 (2): 130-147.

Sumner, (1999), Critical Success factors in enterprise wide information management systems
project, Proceedings of the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), 232-4.

Wee, S. (2000), Juggling toward ERP success: keep key success factors high,

www.infoline.com.
 APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1
FINANCIAL BUDGET
Particulars Total cost (Kshs)
Stationery 2000
Transport 4000
Typing expenses 600
Printing expenses 1800
Communication expenses 2500
Binding 400
Contingencies 3000
Totals 14300

APPENDIX 2
TIME SCHEDULE

Administrative and collection of questionnaires 3 weeks

Data analysis and interpretation 3 weeks
Writing the first draft 1 week
Typing and editing 1 week
Final copy 2 weeks
Total time 12 weeks

YOUR QUESTIONNAIRE IS INCOMPLETE

APPENDIX 3
QUESTIONNAIRE

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am a student at Kenya Methodist University pursuing a Masters degree in Business

Administration specializing in Strategic Management. The following is a questionnaire for my
research study I am conducting, titled “The Factors Affecting ERP systems
Implementation”.
Please indicate with a tick ( ) your choices, in the spaces provided for questions with option
and for the rest give a brief answer.
The information obtained will be used strictly for academic purposes and will be treated as
strictly confidential and will not be discussed with any other third party.

1) Name…………………………………………………………………….(optional)

2) Gender/Sex: Male □ Female □

3) What is your age bracket? (Tick One)

i) 20-30 years ( )
ii) 30-40 years ( )
iii) 40-50 years ( )
iv) Above 50 years ( )
4) How long have you worked in the organization? (Tick One)
i) 0-5 years ( )
ii) 6-10 years ( )
iii) 11-15 years ( )
iv) Above 15years ( )
SECTION B
5) Briefly describe your duties and responsibility within the organization.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………....
6) Were you in the current position during your institution’s ERP implementation? Select the
answer that best fits your circumstance.
i) I was in my position before the planning for ERP began ( )
ii) I was in my position after planning, but before implementation began ( )
iii) I was hired during the implementation ( )
iv) I was hired after the product was implemented ( )
7) How would you describe your involvement in your institution’s ERP implementation?
i) I was the executive sponsor/co-sponsor for the project ( )
ii) I was the project leader ( )
iii) I was part of the management team ( )
iv) I served as a functional or technical specialist ( )
v) I was partially involved ( )
vi) I was not directly involved ( )
8) There are a number of factors that influence (either positively or negatively) the
implementation of ERP systems. In line with the implementation of your organization’s
ERP system, how would you rate the following in terms of their effect on implementation.
(tick as appropriate)
Factors Affecting ERP Systems Very High High Average Low Very Low
implementation
Organizational Culture
Top Management Support
Clear goals and objectives
Planning/development and
budgeting
Effective Project Management
Business Process Reengineering
Change Management
Technology Infastructure
User Training and Education