Last spring, I watched a manufacturing CEO celebrate his new ERP deal. Six months later, he called me back—AED 1.25 million in, with a system that couldn’t handle his multi-location inventory tracking. “I thought I asked everything,” he said. “Turns out, I asked the wrong ERP selection questions.”
The ERP selection questions that matter most are the ones vendors hope you won’t ask. Most decision-makers focus on features when they should focus on fit. Understanding true ERP cost means demanding itemized expenses—not accepting vague estimates. I watched a retail client spend an additional AED 440,000 on “necessary customizations” that should’ve been standard.
Every vendor promises excellent support, but strong ERP vendor support distinguishes itself through contractual guarantees, not marketing promises.
This is one of the most revealing ERP selection questions. Great partners will detail a project that went sideways and explain how they fixed it. I had a client ask this to three vendors. Two gave vague answers. One told a detailed story about a warehouse implementation that took three months longer than planned—and what they learned. Guess which vendor delivered on time?
ERP vendor support isn’t just about phone numbers. If you run 24/7 operations, you need guaranteed 1-2 hour response times in your contract. One client negotiated a dedicated account manager with direct mobile access. When their system crashed during peak season, they had expert help in 30 minutes instead of 30 hours.
If a vendor gives you a single number, they’re either naive or dishonest. The real ERP cost includes licensing, implementation, training, data migration, customizations, maintenance, and upgrades. I’ve seen businesses budget AED 735,000 and spend AED 1.4 million.
I watched a distribution company buy a beautiful ERP that couldn’t sync with their warehouse software. The vendor had promised “full integration capabilities”—technically true if you paid AED 220,000 for custom middleware. The right question isn’t “Can you integrate?” It’s “Show me exactly how.”
These ERP selection questions have helped our clients avoid millions in combined losses. That CEO eventually found the right system—but first, he had to absorb that AED 1.25 million loss. When I asked what he’d do differently, he said: “I’d ask questions that made me uncomfortable. Because being uncomfortable for an hour beats being stuck for years.”
Ready to make the right ERP decision? At TechfordAI, we help businesses navigate ERP selection with clarity and confidence. Contact us today to ensure your next ERP investment delivers real value—not expensive regrets.
