The ABCs of ERP & Beyond

Peter Nicholson | Nirav Shah | Emily Browning
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Management
  • Updated Biweekly

ERP systems run your business — but most of the advice out there is buried in jargon or sounds like a sales pitch. The ABCs of ERP & Beyond cuts through that. Hosted by Pete Nicholson and Nirav Shah, two ERP practitioners working in the trenches with manufacturing and distribution businesses, this podcast covers everything from go-live survival to planning, scheduling, inventory, finance, and the tech that ties it all together. No fluff. No vendor spin. Just practical insight you can actually use.

  1. Upgrade or Migrate? How to Tell Which Your ERP Really Needs

    6d ago

    Upgrade or Migrate? How to Tell Which Your ERP Really Needs

    Send us a message about this episode! Every ERP project starts with someone saying "we need to do something about our systems". The two real options on the table are usually upgrade or migrate — and most teams treat them as if they're the same kind of project at different scales. They aren't. They're different operating models, with different costs, different risks, and different reasons to choose them. This is the first episode in our mini-series on the upgrade vs migrate question. Pete, Emily, and Nirav lay out the framing — what actually makes a project an upgrade versus a migration, why vendors keep mis-labelling one as the other, and how to do the cost comparison properly so you don't pick the wrong path on day one. What we cover: Where the "we need to do something" conversation actually comes from — and why the trigger shapes the answerWhy "do nothing" is also a decision (and the boiling frog problem that hides its cost)The real definition of an upgrade versus a migration — and the test that tells you which one you're actually doingWhy most "upgrades" are migrations in disguise, especially anything with the word "cloud" bolted onto an existing productHow to do the cost comparison properly — sticker price versus total cost of ownership versus the cost of doing nothingWhy migration is sometimes the cheaper option, even though it never looks that way on the quoteThe hidden cost nobody puts on the spreadsheet — internal preparationIf you've been handed the "should we upgrade or migrate?" question — or you're about to be — this is the framing episode to start with. The rest of the mini-series will go deeper on each piece. Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    40 min

  2. May 19

    5 Conditions for a 6-Month ERP Implementation

    Send us a message about this episode! Six-month ERP implementations get a bad name because most "six-month" projects are really twelve-month projects with a six-month deadline glued onto the front. The software is rarely the problem. The problem is everything around it — decisions, data, scope creep, and the unwillingness to go standard. In this episode, Pete, Emily, and Nirav walk through the five conditions that have to be true for a six-month ERP implementation to actually finish in six months. What we cover: Why a reliable internal team that can make decisions quickly is the difference between six and twelve monthsHow to spot whether your business is actually simple enough for a fast implementation — and what kills it (integrations, special pricing rules, custom reports)The case for going standard with a clear MVP, and why customisation tolerance should be near zeroWhat to look for in a VAR who will challenge you instead of just nodding alongHow to know if you've picked the right ERP for the timeline you wantIf you've been handed a six-month deadline and you're trying to work out whether it's achievable or whether someone's set you up to fail, this one's for you. Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    54 min

  3. May 4

    8 Things We Actually Like in Acumatica 2026 R1

    Send us a message about this episode! Acumatica 2026 R1 is live — 460 pages of release notes, and we've read them so you don't have to. Pete, Nirav, and Emily walk through what actually stood out, what's genuinely useful, and why this particular release deserves your attention sooner rather than later. In this episode, we cover: Acumatica Payments on Shopify — how closing the refund and B2B payment gap between your storefront and ERP simplifies reconciliationThe redesigned customer portal — what it looks like now, why it actually resembles an e-commerce experience, and whether B2B customers will use itInsightXL — Acumatica's new Excel add-in with a live connection to ARM, and what it means for VelixoThe AI assistant and AI Studio — why Acumatica's approach is ahead of Dynamics Copilot, and the data governance question nobody's answering yetGI enhancements, GL anomaly detection, and the classic UI sunset — the things that aren't flashy but will affect your day-to-dayAcumatica 2026 R1 Official Release Notes here: https://community.acumatica.com/supported-releases-67/acumatica-2026-r1-downloads-and-release-notes-34865 Oh, and Emily Browning is now officially our third permanent co-host. Commiserations to her. If you're on Acumatica or evaluating it, this is the release review episode to listen to. Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    54 min

  4. Apr 21

    Why Your Inventory Numbers Don't Add Up — with Ben Hussey, Co-CEO of Katana

    Send us a message about this episode! Most businesses have an inventory problem. The question is how big. In this episode, we're joined by Ben Hussey, Co-CEO of Katana Cloud Inventory, to talk about why so many growing businesses struggle with inventory visibility — and what they can do about it. Ben shares how Katana was founded after its creator realised he had no real-time view of demand and supply across his own manufacturing business, and why the rise of multi-channel e-commerce has made the problem exponentially harder. When orders are flowing in from Shopify, Amazon, and distribution channels simultaneously, Excel and traditional ERP systems simply can't keep up. We dig into the practical side: how to assess whether you have an inventory problem (start with a single SKU and audit it end-to-end), who needs to be involved in that conversation, and how to quantify the cost of doing nothing. Ben shares a story of a customer who discovered $120,000 worth of inventory they didn't know they had — simply by gaining a single view of their stock. The conversation moves into change management — arguably the biggest barrier to success. Ben explains Katana's "strangulation technique" for phased adoption and why the most common trigger for falling back to old ways isn't resistance to new tools, but staff turnover when new hires aren't trained on the systems already in place. We also cover how macroeconomic forces — tariffs, the Middle East conflict, supply chain disruption — are reshaping how businesses approach planning, costing methods (moving average vs FIFO vs LIFO), and supplier diversification. Textile and apparel companies increased inventory purchases by 50% overnight following recent geopolitical events. The question is whether the rest of the market has caught up. Finally, we get into AI. Ben talks about where it's already useful (data analysis, workflow mapping), where it's arriving whether you like it or not (agentic commerce on Shopify, launching end of month), and why your product data accuracy is about to matter a lot more than your website copy. **Guest:** Ben Hussey, Co-CEO of Katana Cloud Inventory — katanamrp.com Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    53 min

  5. Apr 7

    5 Things to Do Before You Connect Your E-Commerce Site to an ERP

    Send us a message about this episode! There comes a point in every e-commerce business where the patchwork of Shopify, spreadsheets, ShipStation, and QuickBooks stops working. Orders are flowing in, but nobody has a single view of what's happening — and you're managing three screens just to fulfil one order. In this episode, Peter and Nirav break down the five essential steps every e-commerce business should take before integrating with an ERP system. From cleaning up your product data to choosing the right connector (and why they're not all created equal), this is the groundwork that sets you up for success — or sets you back ten steps if you skip it. Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    35 min

  6. Mar 24

    5 Reasons Your ERP Project Falls Apart Before Go-Live

    Send us a message about this episode! You selected the right ERP. You signed the deal. Everyone's buzzing. So why does it start going wrong three months in? This week, Pete and Nirav welcome Emily Browning back to the show to tackle one of the most underrated topics in ERP: project management. Not the software. Not the consultants. The actual discipline of running the project well. Together, the three of them walk through five areas that determine whether your ERP project finishes strong or fizzles out: Structure – assembling the right team, defining roles, setting governance before a single workshop happensProject planning – building a realistic plan, using it as your single source of truth, and dealing with scope creepVisibility – making the project status visible to everyone, not just the PMKeeping momentum – handling decision fatigue, mid-project slumps, and knowing when (and when not) to call a timeoutChange management – the people side that most projects underestimate and many never recover fromIf you're about to start an ERP project, in the middle of one, or wondering why the last one didn't land — this episode is packed with practical, experience-based advice you can use immediately. Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    1h 4m

  7. Mar 10

    Why Your ERP Training Isn't Working (And How to Fix It)

    Send us a message about this episode! Why does your team forget everything they learned in ERP training? You invested serious time and money. Everyone attended. And three months after go-live, half the team is still confused, making errors, and asking the same questions. The problem isn't your people — it's how the training was structured. The timing's off, the focus is wrong, and nobody's set up to retain what they've learned. In this episode, Pete and Nirav share 5 practical tips (plus a bonus) that can fundamentally change whether your ERP training sticks or fades. Whether you're about to go live or already in the weeds, this one's for you. Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    44 min

  8. Feb 27

    Parallel Running Your ERP? Here's Why That Backfires

    Send us a message about this episode! Parallel running sounds like a safety net. In reality, it's one of the most common and most expensive mistakes in ERP implementation. In this episode, Pete and Nirav are joined by Emily Browning — an IT leader in manufacturing — to break down exactly why running your old system alongside your new ERP almost always backfires. We talk through: Why data duplication quickly becomes data chaos — and you lose your single source of truthThe real impact on your teams when you ask them to do everything twice during go-live What "just in case" actually signals to the rest of the business Why phased or staggered go-lives rarely work for fully integrated ERP systems How keeping the old system alive delays ROI and muddies the business casePractical tactics for driving adoption — from post-go-live training to accountability dashboardsIf you're approaching go-live and leadership is asking about parallel running, this episode gives you the arguments (and the confidence) to push back. 🔔 Subscribe wherever you listen — new episodes every two weeks. We're also on YouTube, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Support the show 👋 JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Have you experienced an ERP data migration, or are you planning one? Share your thoughts, experiences, or ask questions in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you! 🔔 STAY IN THE KNOW: Enjoyed the content? Subscribe to our channel and hit the bell icon to stay updated on the latest episodes. We bring you expert insights, valuable tips, and real-world case studies from the ERP realm and beyond! #ERPTips  #BusinessProcesses

    42 min
See All (81)

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

ERP systems run your business — but most of the advice out there is buried in jargon or sounds like a sales pitch. The ABCs of ERP & Beyond cuts through that. Hosted by Pete Nicholson and Nirav Shah, two ERP practitioners working in the trenches with manufacturing and distribution businesses, this podcast covers everything from go-live survival to planning, scheduling, inventory, finance, and the tech that ties it all together. No fluff. No vendor spin. Just practical insight you can actually use.

Information

  • Creator
    Peter Nicholson | Nirav Shah | Emily Browning
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    81
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The ABCs of ERP & Beyond
  • Show Website
    The ABCs of ERP & Beyond

You Might Also Like