Implementation Methodology In Action : A study of an Enterprise Systems implementation methodology

Abstract: Enterprise Systems create new opportunities but also new challenges and difficulties for implementers and users. The clear distinction between the development and the implementation of Enterprise Systems Software seems to influence not only the characteristics of methodologies but also how implementers use the Enterprise Systems implementation methodologies.The general aim of this thesis is to study an Enterprise Systems implementation methodology, SAP’s AcceleratedSAP implementation methodology. An exploratory case research approach is employed and is initiated with the development of a framework which integrates current views on Method in Action and Information Systems Development with insights from Enterprise Systems research. The theoretically grounded framework outlines the characteristics of the implementation methodology recommended by SAP and used by implementers in Enterprise Systems implementations. The framework is enhanced by an empirical study.Findings add a number of insights to the body of knowledge in the Information Systems field and the Enterprise Systems implementation methodology. For example, the Implementation Methodology in Action framework developed in this study outlines a set of components which influence the use of an implementation methodology, and implementers’ actions which occur through the use of an implementation methodology. The components have varying characteristics and exert a significant influence on the effectiveness of implementation methodology use, which may explain differences in implementers’ actions and consequently in the outcomes of the Enterprise Systems implementation processes. The notion of implementation methodology in action, as articulated in this study, integrates two complementary views, i.e. a technology view focusing on a formalised aspect and a structural view focusing a situational aspect, emphasising different features of the implementation methodology.