Enterprise Resource Planning – A Ternary Role of CMA as an Analyst, Architect and Appraiser

This article is aimed at highlighting the role of a Cost and Management Accountant (CMA) in the latest ERP implementations. The ERP implementation scenarios have entered the next generation with various options that can be leveraged by the organization with an extensive Cost Benefit Analysis by a CMA. With the advent of cloud computing, Software as a Service (SaaS) Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) can now afford an almost risk free ERP to scale up their operations. There have been number of ERP systems that are available based on the maturity of the organizations.An ERP is a single application single database across the organization for all the business process management. Over the time, it has evolved further to accommodate the extended needs of an organization and the deployment models have radically changed. CMAs with experience at various levels have much to offer for the success of an ERP implementation. The success or otherwise of Enterprise Resource Planning largely depends on various factors viz., top Management's support, selection of a suitable ERP system, role of the implementation partners, end-user training and involvement, quality of hardware deployed etc. These key success factors determine the effectiveness of ERP and will have significant effect on Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) or Return on Investment (ROI) of an ERP Project. Hence, CMA's role in selection and implementation of an ERP is one of the most important key success factors. While making Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) successful and to ensure its effective ness CMAs role in the present context can be described as s Computerized Management Accountant (CMA)