Factors Influencing Implementation of Enterprise Resource Planning in the Mobile Communications Sector in Kenya

Abstract

Enterprise resource planning systems are business management software that allow an organization to use a system of integrated applications to manage the business and automate many functions. The basic goal of an ERP system is to provide one central repository for all information that is shared by all the departments to improve flow of data across the organization. Implementing an ERP system is an expensive and time consuming venture therefore companies need to comprehend the factors influencing the implementation of ERP systems to avoid wastage of company resources through ERP implementation failures. This study sought to examine factors influencing implementation of ERP systems in the mobile communications sector in Kenya. It was guided by two specific objectives: to establish the factors influencing implementation of ERP in the Mobile Communications Sector in Kenya and to find out the relationship between the identified factors and implementation of ERP in the Mobile Communications Sector in Kenya. The study employed a descriptive research design. Four factors that influence implementation of ERP systems were identified through factor analysis. These include: employee knowledge and skills, top management support, project team and organizational goals and objectives. Three out of the four variables were found to have strong positive relationships with ERP implementation. These include: employee knowledge and skills, top management support and project team. Organizational goals and objectives had moderate positive relationship with ERP implementation. An examination of the joint relationship established that the four variables jointly account for 74% of the variability in ERP implementation. The findings of this study can be useful to companies planning to implement ERP systems and to ERP consultants. Although the study focused on the mobile communications sector, the researcher did not consider whether the size of the firms had an effect on the ERP implementation process. Future studies could look at factors influencing ERP implementation based on the size of the firms. The scope could also be extended to include other East African countries. Additional studies could also focus on the level of adoption of ERP systems in Telecommunications Industry.