An Integrated Approach to Implementing Enterprise Resource Planning Systems for a Large Transportation Agency
Amy Ahim Kim, Hessam Sadatsafavi, M. Kim Soucek, Stuart D. Anderson · Transportation Research Board 94th Annual MeetingTransportation Research Board · 2015
Several state transportation agencies have implemented enterprise resource planning (ERP) for real-time access and comparison of financial and human resource information across divisions and districts. In 2013, in response to recommendations made by various internal and external investigators, and as a part of its modernization efforts, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) started the transition from the legacy applications in use at the time to an enterprise-wide computing environment. TxDOT operates within 25 geographical districts by county, 22 divisions, and 12 offices. The fragmented nature of the organization, its limited budget, and short timeframe created various challenges in the implementation of the ERP system for TxDOT. This study identified key strategies adopted by TxDOT and lessons learned from a comprehensive review of the implementation project. The review included analyzing feedback from an organization-wide employee survey to understand the viewpoints of ERP end users and interviews with two members of the ambassadorship group involved in the change management process. To assist other transportation agencies in planning and implementing an ERP project, findings are translated to recommendations and guidelines for addressing challenges an organization might encounter in implementing an ERP system.