Communication is key in any organization. In fact, studies show that communication within an organization is directly related to employee happiness. People want to be filled in with what is going on and feel included. This is especially true when change is occurring. If there is ever a time when employees need to be included in conversations it is when a big change is coming to the company, like an ERP implementation. Below are the 4 ways to have effective ERP communication for an easy and painless transition.

Step 1: Communicate the Change

Always let everyone know about the change before it happens. In the instance of an ERP implementation, try to get the value across to the employees. Everyone will want to know how this will either benefit or hinder them. Show them how this will make their job easier and what their department will personally get out of it.

Step 2: Early Communication

As soon as the training begins, you need to communicate to employees what is going on with the ERP system. The earlier you can get the message across, the process will be easier and less painful. This way you can make clear what your expectations will be from the employees and what goals you are hoping to reach. Without any notice or ERP communication, it will be very hard for your employees to reach your expectations.

Step 3: Communicate Constantly

During an ERP implementation, it is very important to constantly stay in contact with your employees. You need to keep them up to date with where the project is at and how close the company is to hitting the set goals. By constantly communicating you can also keep track of how well the employees are doing in their training and whether it is effective.

Step 4: Listen

The often forgotten about part of communicating: listening. During an ERP implementation it is crucial to listen to your employees and see what they have to say about their training and the system. They may all be stumbling on the same issue, which means you should be taking a different approach for training. By listening to the employees you can gain the most insightful information.

You simply cannot be successful in a company if you aren’t communicating with the employees. Your employees contain some of the most valuable information from where your bottlenecks are occurring and what customers are thinking to where your software is falling short. Include your employees in the conversation when implementing ERP.