4 training tips for manufacturing ERP success

Training is one of the more important parts of any manufacturing ERP implementation project, and the importance is often overlooked. Whether your business makes to stock or to order, your users should have extensive, role-based training. That remains true today, but the scope of ERP user training has expanded significantly as systems have become more configurable, more data-driven, and more tightly integrated with daily operations.

Discrete and process manufacturers may select the best possible system for their business, but if the users can’t enter data and record transactions accurately, consistently, and in the context of real production constraints, the money invested in your manufacturing ERP can be seen swirling down the drain. This is especially true where small data errors compound quickly across planning, inventory, quality, and finance.

1. Show users that training is a priority

Let all the users know that training is a priority, and then walk the talk. Use company time for training. Sally is a chemistry technician in a lab. Jose is a welder. Marcus is a buyer. None of them should be expected to use their own time for training. When you conduct training on company time, it sends a clear message: learning is just as important as production and sales.

This is where organizations quietly fail. Training is announced as a priority, but production schedules, month-end pressure, or customer commitments always come first. The result is superficial ERP system training that teaches clicks rather than judgment.

Go beyond classroom training and find ways to integrate informal training as often as possible. Short, task-focused sessions embedded into real work; receiving, issuing, scheduling, or closing jobs tend to stick far better than generic system overviews.

Recent research indicates that ERP learning accelerates when users train against realistic scenarios instead of sanitized demos.

2. ERP training should be company-wide

You have already defined your key users, all of whom should have received extensive training during your testing phase. Continue this foundation of training with engineers and accountants, shop floor personnel, and external salespeople.

Some will use yourERP every day, and others will only use the system from time to time, but all are part of the enterprise. Treat everyone equally, and your manufacturing ERP training program will be a success.

What has changed since this article was first written is how interconnected ERP usage has become. Decisions made by engineering, quality, or customer service now directly affect planning accuracy and shop-floor execution.

Limiting ERP system training to “core users” creates blind spots that show up later as rework, expediting, or inventory distortion.

Today’s manufacturing ERP systems all have powerful ad hoc query tools and the ability to build dashboards for decision support. Decisions must be made at all levels, and your ERP can help by leading users toward the desired decisions and actions. Don’t hide the candy. Let users have access to those advanced tools and encourage use through comprehensive training.

This runs counter to a common IT-driven instinct to restrict access for fear of misuse. In practice, organizations that teach users how data is created (and how mistakes propagate) see better outcomes than those that lock systems down. ERP user training should focus on responsibility and context, not just permissions.

Your business is making and selling products. If you restrict ERP use to the IT department, many will lose the chance to help the whole business produce more for less.

3. Use varied training techniques

Our manufacturing businesses are diverse, and the individuals we employ are even more so. We all have our own preferred methods for learning. Your quality engineer might read, a planner might see, and a lathe operator might need to touch; recognize each style and train so the training sticks.

Don’t limit the training to classroom sessions. Create practical training processes which get users up close and personal with your manufacturing ERP.

This point has only become more important as ERP interfaces have grown more flexible...and more complex. Video demos, guided transactions, supervised live entry, and peer-led sessions all serve different learning needs.

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In many cases, the often-advertised “practice databases” only become useful when populated with messy, imperfect data that mirrors reality.

It is also vital to monitor who was trained and on what. Track their understanding with exams and provide remedial training if needed. Keep the training up to date as people change job roles and as new people join the organization. Offer refresher training after some time goes by and before people begin to fall into bad habits.

Another oft-forgotten task is retraining after process changes. Workflows are rarely static; routings, lead times, compliance rules, and reporting needs evolve. Training should be treated as a lifecycle activity, not a one-time project milestone.

4. Nurture manufacturing ERP training champions

You will find that some employees pick up training well and become more engaged in the ERP system as a result. Use them as informal models of success. Offer secondary training to those who want to go beyond the basic level. These individuals are your training champions and should be the first to utilize the advanced operations in your manufacturing ERP, such as workflow or real-time data analysis.

In many successful implementations, these champions are not managers or IT staff, but respected operators, planners, or buyers who understand both the system and the work. Their credibility matters more than their job title.

Once these processes become established, your champions can bring in other members of their team and demonstrate the value of these advanced features. This peer-to-peer reinforcement often succeeds where formal ERP system training stalls, because it ties system behavior directly to daily outcomes like fewer shortages, cleaner jobs, or faster closes.