The Hidden Costs of Poor ERP Architecture
By Robert Shea
Architecture Decisions Have Long Tails
In 26 years of Infor implementations, I've seen the same pattern repeatedly: organizations cut corners on architecture to save time or money upfront, then spend years paying for those decisions. The hidden costs of poor ERP architecture are real, substantial, and completely avoidable.
The Compounding Cost Problem
Poor architecture decisions don't create one-time costs—they create recurring costs that compound over time. A bad integration design doesn't just cause problems today; it creates fragility that breaks with every upgrade, every new module, every business change.
Common Architecture Mistakes
1. Point-to-Point Integration
Instead of using proper middleware (ION or MuleSoft), organizations build direct connections between systems. With 5 systems, that's 10 connections. With 10 systems, it's 45. Each one is a potential failure point that someone has to maintain.
2. Ignoring Data Architecture
Data migration is treated as a one-time event rather than an architectural decision. Master data management, data quality, and data governance are afterthoughts that become expensive problems.
3. Over-Customization
Every customization is technical debt. CloudSuite upgrades (which happen frequently in the cloud) must be tested against every customization. The more you customize, the more expensive and risky every upgrade becomes.
The Right Approach
Good architecture starts with understanding your business processes, not your technology preferences. Design for maintainability, scalability, and upgrade compatibility. Use standard patterns where possible. Document everything.
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