ERP Selection Consultant, USA

What a US ERP shortlist looks like by company size

The right shortlist depends more on how complex your operations are than on headcount. Still, US buyers tend to fall into a few recognizable groups, and each group usually looks at a different set of products.

• Small businesses leaving QuickBooks and spreadsheets. Options often include Zoho apps built around Zoho Books, Odoo, ERPNext and a higher QuickBooks tier with add-ons. The real question is whether a connected suite beats a better-integrated accounting stack.
• Growing mid-sized companies. The list typically adds Dynamics 365 Business Central, NetSuite, Acumatica or Sage Intacct next to Odoo and Zoho, depending on whether inventory, projects or finance drives the decision.
• Multi-entity groups and PE-backed platforms. Consolidation, intercompany flows and roll-up reporting move to the top of the criteria, and the partner's experience with acquisitions matters as much as the product.

None of these groupings is a recommendation. They are starting points that I narrow with knock-out requirements: how sales tax will be calculated, the entity structure, inventory costing method, industry features and the skills of the people who will run the system day to day. A product that fails a must-have is removed with the reason written down, so nobody reopens the debate a few meetings later. For a neutral side-by-side of common choices, see my comparison of the best ERP for mid-sized businesses.

Comparing VAR and partner proposals on equal terms

Many mid-market products reach US buyers through VARs and implementation partners rather than directly from the publisher. That means you are choosing two things at once: the software and the firm that will configure it. Two partners on the same platform can propose very different projects, and the proposals they send almost never line up neatly.

One quote is fixed-fee, another is time and materials with a not-to-exceed figure. One includes data migration and report building, another assumes your staff will do both. One names senior consultants, another lists roles without names. Before anyone compares totals, I rebuild every proposal in a common grid:

• Phases, deliverables and hours by role and seniority.
• Assumptions, exclusions and client responsibilities written out in full.
• Change request rates and the approval route for extra work.
• Who actually does the work, including any subcontracted parts.
• Post go-live support terms and how tickets are prioritized.

Only then do the numbers mean anything. I also ask each partner for references from companies in your industry with a similar entity count, and I run those calls with a fixed question list. My ERP vendor proposal review page explains the red flags I look for, and if you want a formal tender, ERP RFP consulting covers the document itself.

Demo scripts that test US-specific requirements

Generic demos show a clean sale to a single customer in a single state. Your business is rarely that tidy, so the scripts I write put each vendor through the transactions that cause trouble in US operations:

• Sales tax. A multi-state order with an exempt customer, a taxable and a non-taxable line, and a drop shipment. Many platforms rely on a third-party tax engine for this, so the demo must show which engine the partner proposes, who maintains product tax codes and how exemption certificates are stored. Your CPA or tax advisor confirms which scenarios matter for your obligations.
• Vendor setup and payments. Capturing contractor tax details on vendor records, an ACH payment run, check printing and a positive pay export for your bank.
• Multiple entities. An intercompany sale, the matching purchase in the other company and a consolidated report at month-end.
• Payroll and labor cost. Many US companies keep payroll with a specialist provider. The demo should show how payroll journals and labor costs arrive in the ERP, not just claim that an integration exists.
• Customer document exchange. If you sell to large retailers or distributors, their EDI or supplier portal rules are often stricter than any government requirement, so test those flows too.

Process owners score each scenario as standard, configuration or custom work, and the scores go straight into the weighted model.

Contract, licensing and data hosting questions

The commercial terms deserve the same scrutiny as the demo. Subscription agreements and partner statements of work are usually separate documents, and the gaps between them are where surprises appear. These are the points I review with you, leaving final legal review to your attorney:

• License types. Full users versus limited or light users, what each type can actually do, and whether warehouse, approval-only or field users need full licenses.
• Commitments and renewals. Minimum user counts, annual versus monthly billing, automatic renewal, and whether renewal price increases are capped.
• Bundles and add-ons. Which modules are included, which are priced separately and which third-party apps, such as tax engines or EDI connectors, carry their own subscriptions.
• Environments and limits. Sandbox availability, API call limits, storage caps and what happens when you exceed them.
• Data hosting and security. Where your data is stored, whether a US region is available, what security assurance reports the vendor can share, how backups work and who at the partner has administrative access.
• Exit. The export route and file formats if you leave, and how long the vendor keeps your records afterwards.

Each answer is recorded in writing and attached to the decision pack, so the implementation team starts with the same understanding as the buyer.

Independent, remote and ready to hand over

I do not sell software, hold partner agreements or accept referral fees, so the shortlist is never shaped by who pays a margin. That independence is what lets me push a vendor on a weak demo answer or challenge an estimate that looks too optimistic.

The whole selection runs remotely. Kickoff and scoring workshops are held on video at times that suit your main location, demos are scheduled in overlap hours across Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific time, and scoring sheets live in shared documents so people in other states can contribute without extra meetings. On-site sessions are possible by arrangement, but most US selections do not need them.

When the decision is made, the work does not have to stop. The requirements, demo scripts and contract notes become the baseline for the project, and I can continue on the delivery side as your ERP implementation consultant in the USA, checking the build against the scripts the vendor passed. If the bigger open question is whether an ERP is needed yet, start with ERP evaluation, or read about broader advisory work on the US ERP consultant page, with market notes on the United States hub. The general method behind this page is described under ERP vendor selection.