ERP Implementation Consulting
ERP implementation consulting describes the partner firms that actually configure, customise, train and operate an ERP product on behalf of the buyer. Unlike independent selection advisors, implementation partners are aligned with a specific product family — an SAP partner implements SAP, a Microsoft Dynamics partner implements Business Central. That alignment is legitimate and necessary, because deep product expertise is essential for a successful rollout. Industry data consistently shows that the largest share of ERP project failures originates not in the technology itself but in the partner relationship: incomplete requirements, weak project governance, under-staffed change management and inadequate user training. Choosing the right implementation partner is therefore a more consequential decision than choosing the product.
What implementation partners do
A typical implementation engagement covers process workshops, system configuration, customisation through standard extensibility frameworks, data migration, integration with adjacent systems (e-commerce, WMS, DATEV, EDI), end-user training and a hypercare period after go-live. Larger partners maintain dedicated industry units — discrete manufacturing, process industry, wholesale, project services — with pre-built templates that shorten the configuration phase. The mature DACH partner ecosystem includes large multi-product houses such as NTT DATA Business Solutions, All for One Group and Cosmo Consult, as well as many mid-size and boutique firms with deeper sector specialisation.
Quality criteria for partners
Useful criteria for evaluating an implementation partner: certifications from the relevant ERP vendor (SAP Gold, Microsoft Inner Circle, NetSuite SDN Premier and so on), staff tenure and bench depth in the customer's industry, recent reference customers of comparable size, and a clear project methodology with named phases. Equally important but harder to evaluate: the partner's actual ability to challenge customer requirements when they are unrealistic, and willingness to recommend standard configuration over custom development. Partners who agree to every customisation request without pushback often produce projects that are technically successful but operationally fragile.
Contract models and costs
Three commercial models dominate: fixed-price for defined scope (most common for smaller, well-bounded projects), time-and-materials for larger or more uncertain efforts, and target-price with shared risk for mature partner relationships. Day rates in DACH range roughly from 1,200 euro for junior consultants to 1,800 euro for senior architects, with specialist roles such as integration architects or industry leads at the upper end. Realistic implementation costs scale with users and industry complexity: a 150-user mid-market implementation typically lands between 600,000 euro and 1.5 million euro all-in, including licences for the first year.
Change management and training
Adoption is where most ERP projects underperform their business case. A partner's ability to design and deliver change management — identifying key users, mapping process changes to job roles, running role-based training and supporting the first quarter of live operation — matters as much as their configuration skills. Buyers should explicitly ask for the change-management staffing plan as a separate line item in the proposal rather than accepting it as a thin slice of overall project management. Investment of five to ten per cent of total project cost into structured change management is normal for well-run engagements.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How is a good implementation partner different from a bad one?
A good partner challenges scope, recommends standard configuration over custom development where reasonable, names specific consultants on the proposal and commits them to the project, and offers structured change management as a defined work stream. A weaker partner accepts every customisation request, staffs the project with rotating consultants, and treats training as an afterthought near go-live.
Can an implementation partner also be the selection advisor?
Not without a structural conflict of interest. The partner who sells the implementation is incentivised to recommend the product they implement, which compromises selection neutrality. Some firms separate the two services into independent teams with a hard handoff at contract signature; that is acceptable if the commercial separation is documented.
How many partners should I shortlist?
For a typical Mittelstand implementation, three to four partners on the shortlist is usually right. Fewer reduces the basis for comparison; more dilutes the depth of the evaluation. Each shortlisted partner should be asked for a named delivery team, a written methodology and at least two recent reference customers of comparable size.
What share of ERP project budget goes to the partner versus licences?
The ratio varies by deployment model. For on-premises ERP, services typically run two to four times the first-year licence cost. For cloud-subscription ERP, services in the first year usually equal one to two times the annual subscription. Over five years, total cost of ownership is roughly split evenly between subscriptions, services and internal effort.