EOFY ERP Upgrades: One Crucial Step That Could Save You $100K

As we near the end of the Australian financial year, many businesses are rushing to implement new ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems.

The goal is clear: have the new system fully operational by July 1st. But here’s the trap, EOFY pressure often leads to hasty decisions that can cost businesses tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Over the last 12 years, I’ve seen ERP implementations go both brilliantly and disastrously. And the difference usually comes down to one simple but often overlooked step:

Make them demonstrate your actual business process, using your real data.

Let me explain why this matters.

→ The ERP Illusion
→ No Two Businesses Are the Same
→ The Hidden Cost of Compromise
→ What to Do Before You Commit
→ Bottom Line

The ERP Illusion

Too often, ERP sales demos are smoke and mirrors. You’re shown a slick, hypothetical scenario designed to impress. Everything works flawlessly, the interface is clean, the workflow looks seamless.

But none of it reflects your business.

Just like in marketing, there’s a belief that a new ERP will magically fix all past issues. Fast forward 3–6 months, and that excitement can turn into resentment:

“I wish we stuck with the old system. At least it worked.”

No Two Businesses Are the Same

Every business has quirks. Your pricing rules, your sales processes, your purchasing flows, your stock and production models. They don’t operate like anyone else’s. Which is why the most critical thing you can ask is:

“Can you show me this system using my business data?”

It’s not about being difficult. It’s about doing due diligence. If you're dropping $100K on a system, you should expect more than a shiny, generic demo. Make them earn the sale.

The Hidden Cost of Compromise

Here’s the real problem:
Most ERP systems don’t do everything perfectly. There will be compromises. And unless you know in advance what those compromises are, you’re risking major disruption.

Will your sales team need to manually adjust pricing every time they enter a quote?
Will your operations manager need to run 3 reports instead of 1?
Are these small annoyances or total deal breakers?

Using your real data helps expose these issues before you sign on the dotted line.

What to Do Before You Commit

If you're evaluating an ERP, now or later, follow this checklist:

• Ask the vendor to run a full demo using your business data

• Walk through the full operational flow (sales, purchasing, WIP, invoicing, etc.)

•  Involve staff who will use the system and make sure they understand their new workflows

• Identify and agree on acceptable vs unacceptable compromises

• Don’t invest if they won’t demo with your data - it’s a red flag

Bottom Line

No ERP system is perfect. But going in blind is dangerous. By insisting on a real-world demo using your data and full workflows, you can sidestep the heartbreak (and financial headache) of post-implementation regret.

EOFY is stressful enough - don’t let your ERP decision add fuel to the fire.

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