At a Glance
Legacy ERP systems can hinder growth through limited integration, rising maintenance costs, security gaps and declining vendor support. Clear indicators, such as performance issues, reliance on spreadsheets, and evolving business needs, signal when an upgrade is due. A structured approach that considers cost, cloud strategy, data readiness and change management can reduce risk and support long-term scalability. Book a consultation with Brookland Solutions to learn how we can help.
To Upgrade or Not to Upgrade ERP?
In the past few years, as organisations have embraced modern technologies such as ERPs, these systems themselves have changed considerably. While some organisations look to enter the world of ERP, others are already ready to move to new systems or upgrade existing ones.
But as workloads change and new technologies like AI impact business, ERP systems implemented a decade or more ago may not keep pace.
The real question to ask – Is your ERP still enabling growth or quietly limiting it?
In this guide, we explore the risk of staying on legacy systems, signs when an ERP upgrade is due, and how to plan a low-risk legacy ERP upgrade.
The Risks of Staying on Legacy ERP Software
Two of the most common reasons for businesses to invest in an upgrade are outdated systems or changing business priorities.
Many organisations continue to operate legacy ERP systems implemented more than a decade ago. While these systems still function, they fail to support modern business workflow needs.
Here are some risks of staying on outdated ERP systems:
End of Support
As ERP vendors create more modern systems, they often phase out updates and technical support for the older ones. Over time, the limited availability of specialists to support legacy systems can translate to higher maintenance costs.
A clear example is Dynamics Navision and GP, for which Microsoft has announced the end of support by 2028.
Security and Compliance Challenges
Older systems lack the security and compliance requirements that today’s businesses require. Inadequate security measures can make your business more vulnerable to cyber threats and data breaches. By not upgrading your legacy ERP to the latest compliance-compatible system, your business may find it increasingly difficult to comply with changing UK and international regulations, including GDPR updates and ESG reporting requirements.
Integration Limitations
Older ERP systems can often struggle to integrate with modern CRM platforms, e-commerce software, BI and analytics tools, and AI and automation solutions.
If your team is manually exporting data to Excel because your ERP can’t integrate with Power BI, then it may be high time to start designing an ERP upgrade plan.
Higher Maintenance Costs
Older ERP platforms require extensive infrastructure, hardware upgrades, manual support, and additional technical expertise to remain operational. All these add up to higher maintenance costs. Investing in a legacy ERP upgrade at the right time can avoid these additional costs, time, and energy required to maintain your systems.
Weak User Experience
Legacy ERP systems have outdated interfaces that work more slowly than modern ERPs. This can lower user adoption, productivity, and engagement in your teams.
7 Signs Your ERP System Needs An Upgrade
An ERP upgrade is the process of updating your existing software to a newer version from the same vendor. But identifying the right time to plan your legacy ERP upgrade is critical. Delaying this decision for too long increases operational risk, while upgrading prematurely can strain your finances.
Here are 7 clear signs that indicate you need an ERP upgrade plan.
1. Frequent Performance Issues
If your ERP is slow, experiences frequent system crashes and downtimes, and is slow at reporting and processing, then you risk a decline in productivity and operations. This further impacts the continuity of your business operations.
2. Heavy Reliance on Spreadsheets
If your teams are relying on Excel and other spreadsheets as a workaround for reporting, forecasting, or operational tracking, it’s a clear sign your current ERP is underpowered.
3. Compliance and Regulatory Gaps
Regulatory requirements, including GDPR, VAT, data protection, and financial reporting, continue to change. But if your ERP is struggling to keep up with these changes, you risk compliance issues, penalties, audits, and reputational damage without a timely upgrade.
4. Poor User Adoption
If your teams are avoiding the ERP and turning to manual workarounds instead, it’s a clear sign of poor ERP adoption, and maybe your system needs an overhaul.
5. Customisations are Hard to Maintain
Customisations add value to your system, but if they’re excessive or hard to maintain, then they can complicate future upgrades and increase support costs.
6. Increasing IT Expenses
Outdated ERP platforms can be an added strain on your IT budget with rising maintenance and infrastructure costs. These expenses may exceed modern cloud alternatives, prompting a timely investment in upgrading your legacy ERP systems.
7. Business Priorities Have Evolved
It signals a major concern if your business has changed through mergers, acquisitions, new revenue models or subscriptions, but your old system is unable to keep up.
Considerations Before an Upgrade
Planning an ERP upgrade requires a significant investment and support from organisational leaders to explain why it is necessary. But before you move ahead with your ERP upgrade plan, here are some key considerations:
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
Consider the total cost of ownership of upgrading your system. You need to account for the costs associated with software licensing, implementation, data migration, training, ongoing support, optimisation, and maintenance.
Compare the investment with the gains your business can achieve in the long term.
Cloud vs On-Premise
Upgrading to an improved ERP also raises the question of whether to choose the cloud or on-premises.
While cloud ERP offers lower infrastructure overhead, remote access, easier scalability, and automated updates, on-premises provides greater control and builds on existing infrastructure. It’s important to weigh the trade-offs between the two closely.
Change Management
Before you bring in a system upgrade, ask whether your teams are ready to embrace the change. From supporting a learning culture to change management training, it’s important to prep your internal teams before implementing change.
Data Readiness
Data in legacy systems needs to be prepped and ready before migration to reduce ERP implementation project risks. This step is important because it involves bringing all critical information into a new system.
When these tasks seem daunting, it can help to work with an experienced Microsoft ERP partner, such as Brookland Solutions, who can guide you.
Planning a Low Risk ERP Upgrade with Brookland Solutions
Upgrading your ERP systems is more than just replacing software. A timely legacy ERP upgrade can improve your business’ visibility, compliance, scalability and growth. Brookland Solutions, a certified Silver Microsoft Partner, understands the importance of system upgrades and the steps involved.
When you partner with us, we:
- Understand your business and current system for gaps, opportunities, and future capabilities
- Define the scope and structure of the project
- Audit your data and validate it
- Offer a customisation solution if required
- Optimise the upgrade post go-live
Multiple UK SMEs and growing businesses rely on us for our systematic and comprehensive approach to ERP upgrades. We can also help you with extensions and customisation options.
If you’re looking to upgrade your ERP, call 01372 282640 or fill out our contact form to book a consultation today.
