Survey questions returns on SAP investments

The cost of implementing, customizing and supporting SAP's ERP system exceeds the overall cost savings that many SAP users had expected to achieve, according to a study by technology research firm Nucleus Research. The study found that 57% of respondents believe that they have not achieved a positive return on investment (ROI) from their SAP system. Nucleus interviewed 21 companies that have had their SAP systems in place for three years. Nucleus identified three main obstacles to SAP users' achieving positive ROI. Changes in business conditions, including deregulation, prevented some users from expanding SAP use throughout their entire operations, thus limiting benefits. ERP deployments often require between 25 and 200 full-time internal personnel.