Friday, November 12, 2010
Strong Leadership Is Vital In Implementation
Continuing the conversation about the Cisco case involving implementing ERP, you can't understate the value of strong leadership. Regardless of whether you view their success as dumb luck or pure genius, it is undeniable that the implementation would have failed without the strong leadership that was present on both sides throughout. From Cisco's standpoint, the buy in was palpable. People's jobs were on the line, and it was up to Pete Solvik to make sure that the ERP was a success. Pulling people from across the various business units was critical in establishing the project as a business wide endeavor. As far as the vendors and software providers go, their leadership was equally valuable. They were invested in this project from the very beginning. I think the take away here for future managers is that, as we are faced with similar decisions and options, we have to find ways to leverage partnerships and relationships to make sure that there is PERSONAL leadership involved. If both sides of an implementation have personal ties to the success of the project, it will end well in spite of technological problems and obstacles.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Kevin, I could not agree more. The fact that Cisco got lucky is just that, luck. Strong leadership is the crux of successful implementation of change. Without strong leadership, decisions are not made, money is lost, and in the most extreme cases, lives are endangered. We can’t have that sort of tomfoolery going on in the marketplace today, especially with the strength of technology in the workplace. I also agree that in tying in the leadership role with implementation, the strong leadership in both cases was crucial. Harley was not successful, but at least their leadership did not falter in the decisions. Sisco’s leader allowed them to be strong and powerful, much like me. I hope this helps clarify your problem.
ReplyDelete