Mark Willis

"You need very clear, defined procedures which have to be enforced," says Mark Willis, international project director at Intentia, the Swedish-based ERP vendor.

If local or divisional managers want special features, there has to be a mechanism for deciding on these.It is vital to identify the scope of a project, have senior management fully involved and communicate the programme to employees, he adds.

"You need very clear, defined procedures which have to be enforced," says Mark Willis, international project director at Intentia, the Swedish-based ERP vendor.

If local or divisional managers want special features, there has to be a mechanism for deciding on these.It is vital to identify the scope of a project, have senior management fully involved and communicate the programme to employees, he adds.

One recent big ERP project was Intentia's Pounds 4.3m contract to provide a system for the European operations of Newell Rubbermaid, the US consumer goods group, across 14 countries.This was to link the financial, manufacturing and distribution activities, while also allowing for future acquisitions.