Performance Enhancement Factors of ERP Projects in a Telecom Public Sector Organization of Pakistan : An Exploratory Study

Public sector organizations are treated in a different manner, as Information technology/information system has become necessity in a highly competitive environment. Importance of information systems is becoming more and more vital as the global technology adoption is in progress. ERP projects are considered as one of the most important and critical area of technology especially in public sector organizations where cost effectiveness and operational efficiency is prioritized on profits. A lot of research studies have been made on ERP projects but mostly on critical success factors (CSFs) and other managerial issues. This ongoing research mainly focuses upon the performance of ERP software in public sector organizations by thoroughly going through one of the largest most public sector organizations of Pakistan. Though ERP projects are handled by experienced consultants in addition to the support of vendor companies but because of its features and functional complexity and mismatch with the organizational processes, different managerial and technical issues arise during and after its implementation. This study investigates the performance of ERP system in a large public sector organization of Pakistan; five most critical technical factors, which can lead the whole project towards success or failure, have been dug out. This exploratory study i.e. extensive literature review and a case study includes survey and interviews which later on investigated through their application in a public sector organization in Pakistan. Statistical analysis later on proves that the developed hypothesis which ultimately paves the way for the findings i.e. five critical technical factors, if properly addressed in addition to the other managerial factors can enhance the performance of ERP projects. Study also finds the gap between the existing literature and its real application, which derives the researchers, more towards exploration, and application of crucial technical factors.