European criteria for assessing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems: Preliminary Results from Multiple Empirical Studies

This research report provides preliminary results in terms of ERP system selection criteria across five European Union countries based on empirical studies. The paper provides a structured list of decision making criteria considered in ERP decisions and contrasts weights as well as achievement levels across countries. Research was guided by the Delone & McLean Information Systems (D&M IS) success model supported with views on project and vendor related aspects needed to capture the whole scope of the decision problem. The main considered dimensions were: quality; net benefits; project costs and time; and a vendor dimension. Especially the considered dimensions from the D&M IS success model, namely quality and net benefits varied across countries in terms of their initial weighting and satisfaction levels achieved after ERP implementation. However, a common global notion seems to be that quality and project related criteria are more important to the decision maker than potential benefits on the organisational or individual level.