However, in practice, this promise often runs into far greater complexity. Simply implementing an ERP system is not enough to ensure that best practices are adopted. Believing otherwise risks deploying a powerful tool without making any meaningful change on the ground.
1. An ERP system alone will not change practices
In other words, an ERP provides structure but does not enforce anything. The company remains responsible for how it models its flows, configures business rules or sequences its approval steps. Best practices are not built-in by default. They must be chosen, tailored and supported.
2. Best practices are not universal
Each organisation has its own internal culture, regulatory environment, operational constraints and level of digital maturity. A best practice only works if it fits within a coherent business reality.
ERP systems offer standard templates and building blocks. But they do not take into account the company’s strategy, history or specific goals.
3. Standard settings are not enough
How should a purchase request be validated? Who is responsible for entering analytical allocations? How frequently should projects be closed?
A well-configured ERP only adds value when decisions have been clearly made beforehand. That requires cross-functional work, clarity on responsibilities and prioritisation of use cases.
Without this phase of reflection, the ERP system simply reproduces existing silos, or even reinforces them.
4. Compliance does not guarantee proper usage
This happens when rules are too complex, poorly understood or out of sync with operational reality.
The organisation may believe everything is under control: data is available, workflows are approved, modules are activated. But on the ground, processes remain manual, disconnected or handled outside the system.
So best practice is not just about system configuration. It requires full, conscious and lasting adoption.
5. Without adoption, there is no real improvement
It is the users who choose to enter data correctly, follow the workflows or respect the rules. And they are also the ones who, due to habit, pressure or lack of clarity, take shortcuts.
Even the best ERP cannot ensure business alignment if users do not understand the goals, see the added value or receive adequate support.
An ERP’s effectiveness depends less on its technical capabilities than on the organisation’s ability to evolve its human, cultural and managerial practices.
Conclusion
Believing that an ERP system can automatically apply industry best practices is misleading. An ERP is a powerful tool, but it does not transform the business on its own.
It does not contain the right methods by default. Those must be defined, implemented and, above all, used by the teams.
An ERP project is not just an IT project. It is an organisational one, requiring clear decisions, shared rules and real user support.
It is this human dimension that determines whether the ERP brings real value.
👉 To go further on this topic, discover 6 tips and tricks to make ERP process harmonisation easier