Driving Value in Vendor Selection: Aligning ERP to Sustainable Future Success
In today’s increasingly complex business landscape, where relationships with vendors and other partners are impacting more functions, the vendor selection process has long-term effects to profitability and strategic success. It’s not enough for organizations to solely consider the lowest cost or the newest upgrades – there must be strategic alignment on both sides in terms of future objectives and goals.
When selecting an ERP platform, the technology’s instrinsic impact to the organization elevates the pressure for success. Horror stories of bloated ERP implementation costs and timelines can also hang heavy as organizations navigate the growing range of options in the ERP industry. In ERP vendor selection in particular, it’s critical to find a partner in the selection process with deep understanding of the industry, business processes, and technology. Expertise in only one of these areas can leave you with a misaligned, ill-fitting system.
The American Hotel Register Company, founded in 1865, is a distributor and manufacturer of hospitality supplies and products, including linens, electronics, foodservice products, furniture, janitorial and maintenance products, office supplies, and more. Beyond the products and goods provided, the company also supplies large chain hotels a single source experience with excellent customer service, project management, and product support. Executive leaders made plans for global expansion and required an ERP platform that could enable, support, and sustain growth. Clarkston was engaged to partner with the leading distributor to leverage differentiated wholesale distribution industry expertise with technical leadership in order to select a vendor that would:
- enable the organization’s strategic vision,
- eliminate operational waste,
- automate currently manual processes, and
- drive greater efficiencies across the business.
Through the process, Clarkston was able to work with business stakeholders to drive internal alignment and select a platform that would serve the organization’s future ambitions. To learn more about how Clarkston helped the American Hotel Register Company execute a value-driven, future-oriented vendor selection, download the full case study below.
